I'm cursious on the topic of Eorzean Law

[Morningstar1337]

I am wondering about a few things, specifically how the Eorzean City-states punish criminals? How are they tried? which nations have the death penalty? what's the lowest crime you can commit for jail time? How are the criminals treated? How corrupt are the justice systems? etc.

I basically want to ask about the legal systems of Ul'dah, Limsa Lominsa, Gridania, Ishgard and Ala Mhigo.

[SannaR]

At what point in time for Ala Mhigo were you looking at? As there's a possible of 5 different time periods for the laws to have changed. Though I doubt much change between when Giaus stopped being in charge and when Zenos took over, but we know one cares about things and the other is Zenos who seems to be easily bored by most things.

[Morningstar1337]

At what point in time for Ala Mhigo were you looking at? As there's a possible of 5 different time periods for the laws to have changed. Though I doubt much change between when Giaus stopped being in charge and when Zenos took over, but we know one cares about things and the other is Zenos who seems to be easily bored by most things.

Circa Heavensward-Stormblood

[Yuella]

Fordola is in jail but Raubahn wanted to execute Yuyuhase and Laurentius

[Enkidoh]

All the citystates practice capital punishment, with the possible exception of Limsa Lominsa (although I suspect being a thallasocracy they probably hang criminals from ship masts), it's just what form of execution they use differs - Ul'dah practices beheading (as stated during the level 30 GLA class quest, if not sending people to their deaths in gladitorial fights in the Colleseum), where as Gridania uses hanging (several of the minion descriptions state people being hung in Gridania for the crime of voidsent summoning). Ishgard and (formerly) Ala Mhigo threw people from a great height to their deaths in old Roman fashion.

Ishgard specifically threw people from the appropriately named Witchdrop who were convicted of heresy (as in, suspicion of dragon involvement/corruption) with the expectation that those thrown from the cliff in Witchdrop would turn into a dragon and fly away to save their life (where they would be shot down anyway by Ishgardian archers posted nearby with bows aimed at the ready), where as the innocent would still die, but would die an innocent and thus "be accepted in Halone's Halls"). With the end of the Dragonsong War it remains to be seen whether the newly created Ishgardian republican government under Aymeric would still practice this.

All the citystates are shown having some form of prison for incarcarating their criminals - Gridania repurposed old Gelmorran structures Toto-Rak and the Spirithold into gaols, which they've since replaced with a new purpose built prison "closer to the city", Limisa Lominsa has prison cells under the Coral Tower, and Ul'dah had the Mhajara (sp?) Pit under the Colleseum (where many prisoners become GLAs participating in matches at the Colleseum as a means of working off their sentences).

Ishgard had cells in Whitebrim Front in Coerthas and under the Vault (the later was where Aymeric was imprisoned briefly during HW's storyline). It's unclear where Ala Mhigo's prison was, but during the last days of 'The King of Ruin' Thedoric's enemies were thrown into the ruins of Skalla that Ala Mhigo was built on, many being turned into monsters by his "pet court THM" (most of the enemies you fight in Skalla were Ala Mhigans who had suffered this fate). We do also know the Royal Palace of Ala Mhigo has a dungeon, as it's where Fordola is incarcarted after the city's liberation.

As far as a court system goes, again we only really see Ishgard having any form of court (the Tribunal), but again it was basically just a kangaroo court designed to weed out heretics or anyone suspected of dragon influence - after the restructuring of Ishgard's government and the end of the Dragonsong War the Tribunal basically becomes redundant (the HW Hildibrand quests outright state that the Tribunal has suddennly found itself with a lot of time of their hands due to having basically nothing to do), so it's unclear if it will be also restructured into a court of law dealing with more petty or mundane crimes instead of heresy.

[KylePearlsand]

Fordola is in jail but Raubahn wanted to execute Yuyuhase and Laurentius

I think the main difference between Fordola and those two is their situations. Fordola is a POW and since no move was made to execute her, it can be assumed Eorzea has some standards on how to treat prisoners of war. Yuyuhase and Laurentius on the other hand are both terrorists. They massacred several Ala Mhigans under the guise of Garleans and they both were involved in the summoning of Shinryu. I'd argue it is also more personal for Raubahn in their case as they were also partially responsible for their attempt to execute him and the remaining scions + Yugiri via poison gas.

[SannaR]

I would assume that during Heavensward and pre Stormblood liberation of Ala Mhigo they'd follow Garlean laws. Which I'm sure also allowed the death penalty. Considering that one of their laws is the prohibition of God worship unless it was of the Emperor. Not that they would call the mandatory praising of the Emperor that. We all know how they treat anything in their view that could be seen as primal summoning.

We also know at least in the city states agree currently on how to deal with those temperd by primals and that's with death. That might change now that we know those who were slowly turning into sin eaters are similar to those who have been temperd.

[Recon1o6]

gridania also has different laws than the others as they have the elemental's rules as well. So they get judged in two courts, one of breaking spoken customs, then elemental laws. That's why poaching results in execution there but not elsewhere