haven't had a hypo like this yet...

[windandwater]

... The medical examiner in Denver, Colorado had examined the body of a young man, and had come to the conclusion that he had died from a gunshot wound to the head. However, there was a wrinkle to the story. The young man had jumped from the top of a ten story apartment building, with every intention of committing suicide. He had even left a note describing his despondency, and his wish to end his own life. On the way down, however, he was hit in the head by a bullet from a gun fired through an open window on the ninth floor, and had died from the wound instantly.

Normally, a person intending to commit suicide who dies from another cause in the process of a suicide attempt would still be ruled a suicide; however, a safety net had been erected at the eighth floor level, in order to protect some window cleaners who were working on the building. Because the suicide attempt would have clearly been unsuccessful, the medical examiner was inclined to rule the death a homicide. The police decided to investigate the origin of the gunshot blast.

They discovered that an elderly man and his wife lived in the ninth floor apartment from which the gun had been fired. The couple had been having an argument, and the old man pulled out his gun, pointed it at his wife, and pulled the trigger. Fortunately for the wife, the old man's aim was not very good, and the bullet went out the open window, striking the young man on his way down. Because someone who kills one person in an attempt to kill another is liable for the death, it appeared that the old man was guilty of murdering the young man.

However, the old man insisted, and his wife confirmed, that he was in the habit of threatening her with the gun every time they had an argument; for that reason he never loaded bullets in the gun. He had no intention of killing her; it just satisfied him to fire the gun at her. Because neither the old man nor his wife knew the gun was loaded this time, it seemed that the death of the young man was an accident after all.

Further investigation, however, revealed a witness who had seen the son of the couple load the gun several weeks earlier. Apparently the mother had cut her son off financially. Knowing his father liked to threaten his mother with the gun, the son decided to load it, so that she would be killed the next time there was an argument. Thus it was deemed that the son of the elderly couple was responsible for the murder of the young man who had jumped off the roof of the building.

The final twist in the case came when it was discovered that the son of the elderly couple who lived on the ninth floor was none other than the young man who had jumped off the apartment building. Apparently his despondence was a result of his failure to engineer his mother's death.

The medical examiner ruled the case as suicide.

Comments

[skyblueandblack.livejournal.com]

... Dude... truth is stranger than fiction? It's true, right? >_

eh...

[windandwater.livejournal.com]

as cool as it sounds, no. this is just a hypothetical that a guy gave during a speech. it's supposed to emphasize stuff about the law, like how there can be different interpretations of the same set of facts. actually, it's mostly just supposed to be mind-boggling and confusing... you know, stretch your imagination and logic and all that jazz.

Re: eh...

[skyblueandblack.livejournal.com]

LOL mind-boggling and confusing it is, then. ^_^