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* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' Poison Ivy was once disallowed from going to jail simply because she was apprehended by Batman, not a cop. Even if that were to apply in that particular case in that particular universe, there's all the ''other'' times she's escaped prison for all the ''other'' crimes she's committed (and she's not always caught after she commits a crime, even though gathered evidence implicates her.) Incidentally, in some older stories, Batman has the same legal standing as a police officer, albeit one in tights and a cape. He could also have made a citizen's arrest in any case. Ironically, if he's not an agent of the police, it'd be the opposite: requirements like MirandaRights and warrants only apply to law enforcement. Of course, he'd also have more potential liability than a police officer for misconduct. {{Justified}} by the later revelation that Task Force X exists in the DCAU, so villains are released in exchange for top-secret work, and then they have to lie about it to the public.
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* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' Poison Ivy was once disallowed from going to jail simply because she was apprehended by Batman, not a cop. Even if that were to apply in that particular case in that particular universe, there's all the ''other'' times she's escaped prison for all the ''other'' crimes she's committed (and she's not always caught after she commits a crime, even though gathered evidence implicates her.) Incidentally, in some older stories, Batman has the same legal standing as a police officer, albeit one in tights and a cape. He could also have made a citizen's arrest in any case. Ironically, if he's not an agent of the police, it'd be the opposite: requirements like MirandaRights and warrants only apply to law enforcement. Of course, he'd also have more potential liability than a police officer for misconduct. {{Justified}} {{Justified|Trope}} by the later revelation that Task Force X exists in the DCAU, so villains are released in exchange for top-secret work, and then they have to lie about it to the public.
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HollywoodLaw in this series.
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* Happens all the time in ''Series/{{Arrow}}''.
** One obvious example from the first season is the VillainOfTheWeek arranging for a lawsuit against him to be judged by a man whose reelection campaign he funded. Everyone acts like this guarantees his victory rather than guaranteeing the verdict be instantly overturned on appeal due to the judge having a conflict of interest, and said villain also getting additional sanctions and criminal charges against him.
** In season 2, Laurel Lance is the prosecuting attorney for Moira Queen's trial. The conflict of interest would guarantee the conviction get overturned on appeal, considering not just that she is the ex-girlfriend of the defendant's son (who publicly cheated on Laurel with her sister, leading to said sister's death) but also the fact that her boyfriend was one of the victims. In fact, even the fact that the trial was in Starling City is suspicious, and would probably require a change of venue, because it would be impossible for Moira to get an unbiased jury in the city she tried to destroy.
** In the opening of the seventh season, [[spoiler:Oliver Queen AKA Green Arrow is]] sentenced to prison. Even though they handed themselves over to a federal agent in the previous season, it doesn't stretch disbelief to see them in the same prison as some of the Arrow's previous collars, since their crimes were (almost) all committed in Star City. However, it ''does'' stretch disbelief to see them housed with the general population (genpop) instead of in a more secure portion of the prison given the enormous number of people who absolutely will try to kill them every second of the day.
* In the fifth episode of ''Series/TheFlash2014'', "Plastique," the army, under [[ComicBook/CaptainAtom Gen. Wade Eiling]], shows up early on to take over the investigation from the Central City police. This is of course a blatant violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, which forbids the use of the US Army to enforce the laws of the states (unless authorized to do so for a specific situation by an Executive Order or act of Congress).
** Numerous criminal metahumans are imprisoned at Star Labs over the course of Season 1. However, they lack any authority to do that, therefore this is illegal imprisonment for which they could be prosecuted and sued. Even when it's revealed, there are no legal consequences. It helps that Iron Heights got modified for metahuman prisoners.
** In the real world, police officers involved in shootings are typically placed on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Nothing of the sort happens to Joe.
* ''Series/Supergirl2015'':
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S1E9BloodBonds Blood Bonds]]" apparently, Maxwell Lord can just kick federal agents out of an active crime scene, because he says it's his building. Even Alex seems skeptical of this, though it is somewhat justified—Lord was the victim of the crime, and can choose not to cooperate, and the DEO's secretive nature means they can't counter his claim that it was industrial espionage without revealing itself.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S2E3WelcomeToEarth Welcome To Earth]]" PlayedForLaughs. Kara thinks that almost letting the President get killed is "misdemeanor treason."
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S3E12ForGood For Good]]" Edge is arrested shortly after confessing on tape. Thing is, there's no other evidence against him, so his lawyer will be able to easily get him off by claiming that the confession was forced. Based on his reactions, Edge knows he won't stay in jail for long.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E13WhatsSoFunnyAboutTruthJusticeAndTheAmericanWay What's So Funny About Truth, Justice And The American Way?]]". The previous episode made it clear that the President's staff had found a loophole, that Lockwood couldn't be charged because the Patriot Act doesn't apply to aliens. This episode refers to it multiple times as a pardon instead. If you can't be charged, you don't need a pardon.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E18CrimeAndPunishment Crime And Punishment]]":
*** Even under martial law, the military just can't go in and kill an entire prison of civilians hunting down ''one'' enemy -- it'd be a war crime of the highest order. But then again President Baker has never cared about such niceties.
*** Blatantly discriminatory means in enforcing martial law Baker announces are unconstitutional as well, but again he likely isn't concerned.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E19AmericanDreamer American Dreamer]]". As a Cabinet Secretary, Lockwood's house should have a security detail to prevent his family being attacked.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E01EventHorizon Event Horizon]]":
*** The non-compete agreement that's so important to the dramatic conflict from this episode is actually ''specifically'' unenforceable in the state of California. This fact is frequently cited as being one of the major "secrets" behind the success of Silicon Valley, making tech employees able to switch jobs and share ideas with ease. In real life Andrea also wouldn't be able to give all the reporters 3-year contracts with non-compete clauses without their knowledge or agreement. They would need to knowingly sign them, and something inserted later wouldn't be binding.
** There's mention of a special election for US Senate. While the US House of Representatives, aka the "People's House," would have special elections to fill vacancies, Senate vacancies are filled by the governors of the several states appointing a replacement, who normally serves until the next regular election time.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E8TheWrathOfRamaKhan The Wrath Of Rama Khan]]". Or rather, law enforcement. Even if the FBI believes that Lena was acting under duress, you'd think they would at least want to bring her in for questioning. Instead, they let her go without further issue.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E15RealityBytes Reality Bytes]]" Nia and Kara act like it's a sure thing Greg will serve time for assaulting Yvette. However, without more evidence (which the police might uncover, like video tape from security cameras nearby) it would still be just her word. Sadly, transphobia exists in the courts too and just the testimony of the victim is not guaranteed for a conviction.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S6E9DreamWeaver Dream Weaver]]" has one. In the United States, judges do not have the power to pardon a convicted criminal. This may have been a flub by the character though (e.g. the judge overturned his conviction or ordered an early release).
* ''Series/Batwoman2019'': As goes with the territory of Arkham being the quintessential BedlamHouse, the experiments Alice describes being conducted on the inmates at Arkham would be very illegal in reality in this century. Also, it's illegal to commit someone to a mental institution against their will without a court order, which Jacob and Kate can't have gotten because they're keeping the fact Alice is related to them secret and she had no trial.
** One obvious example from the first season is the VillainOfTheWeek arranging for a lawsuit against him to be judged by a man whose reelection campaign he funded. Everyone acts like this guarantees his victory rather than guaranteeing the verdict be instantly overturned on appeal due to the judge having a conflict of interest, and said villain also getting additional sanctions and criminal charges against him.
** In season 2, Laurel Lance is the prosecuting attorney for Moira Queen's trial. The conflict of interest would guarantee the conviction get overturned on appeal, considering not just that she is the ex-girlfriend of the defendant's son (who publicly cheated on Laurel with her sister, leading to said sister's death) but also the fact that her boyfriend was one of the victims. In fact, even the fact that the trial was in Starling City is suspicious, and would probably require a change of venue, because it would be impossible for Moira to get an unbiased jury in the city she tried to destroy.
** In the opening of the seventh season, [[spoiler:Oliver Queen AKA Green Arrow is]] sentenced to prison. Even though they handed themselves over to a federal agent in the previous season, it doesn't stretch disbelief to see them in the same prison as some of the Arrow's previous collars, since their crimes were (almost) all committed in Star City. However, it ''does'' stretch disbelief to see them housed with the general population (genpop) instead of in a more secure portion of the prison given the enormous number of people who absolutely will try to kill them every second of the day.
* In the fifth episode of ''Series/TheFlash2014'', "Plastique," the army, under [[ComicBook/CaptainAtom Gen. Wade Eiling]], shows up early on to take over the investigation from the Central City police. This is of course a blatant violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, which forbids the use of the US Army to enforce the laws of the states (unless authorized to do so for a specific situation by an Executive Order or act of Congress).
** Numerous criminal metahumans are imprisoned at Star Labs over the course of Season 1. However, they lack any authority to do that, therefore this is illegal imprisonment for which they could be prosecuted and sued. Even when it's revealed, there are no legal consequences. It helps that Iron Heights got modified for metahuman prisoners.
** In the real world, police officers involved in shootings are typically placed on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Nothing of the sort happens to Joe.
* ''Series/Supergirl2015'':
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S1E9BloodBonds Blood Bonds]]" apparently, Maxwell Lord can just kick federal agents out of an active crime scene, because he says it's his building. Even Alex seems skeptical of this, though it is somewhat justified—Lord was the victim of the crime, and can choose not to cooperate, and the DEO's secretive nature means they can't counter his claim that it was industrial espionage without revealing itself.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S2E3WelcomeToEarth Welcome To Earth]]" PlayedForLaughs. Kara thinks that almost letting the President get killed is "misdemeanor treason."
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S3E12ForGood For Good]]" Edge is arrested shortly after confessing on tape. Thing is, there's no other evidence against him, so his lawyer will be able to easily get him off by claiming that the confession was forced. Based on his reactions, Edge knows he won't stay in jail for long.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E13WhatsSoFunnyAboutTruthJusticeAndTheAmericanWay What's So Funny About Truth, Justice And The American Way?]]". The previous episode made it clear that the President's staff had found a loophole, that Lockwood couldn't be charged because the Patriot Act doesn't apply to aliens. This episode refers to it multiple times as a pardon instead. If you can't be charged, you don't need a pardon.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E18CrimeAndPunishment Crime And Punishment]]":
*** Even under martial law, the military just can't go in and kill an entire prison of civilians hunting down ''one'' enemy -- it'd be a war crime of the highest order. But then again President Baker has never cared about such niceties.
*** Blatantly discriminatory means in enforcing martial law Baker announces are unconstitutional as well, but again he likely isn't concerned.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E19AmericanDreamer American Dreamer]]". As a Cabinet Secretary, Lockwood's house should have a security detail to prevent his family being attacked.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E01EventHorizon Event Horizon]]":
*** The non-compete agreement that's so important to the dramatic conflict from this episode is actually ''specifically'' unenforceable in the state of California. This fact is frequently cited as being one of the major "secrets" behind the success of Silicon Valley, making tech employees able to switch jobs and share ideas with ease. In real life Andrea also wouldn't be able to give all the reporters 3-year contracts with non-compete clauses without their knowledge or agreement. They would need to knowingly sign them, and something inserted later wouldn't be binding.
** There's mention of a special election for US Senate. While the US House of Representatives, aka the "People's House," would have special elections to fill vacancies, Senate vacancies are filled by the governors of the several states appointing a replacement, who normally serves until the next regular election time.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E8TheWrathOfRamaKhan The Wrath Of Rama Khan]]". Or rather, law enforcement. Even if the FBI believes that Lena was acting under duress, you'd think they would at least want to bring her in for questioning. Instead, they let her go without further issue.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E15RealityBytes Reality Bytes]]" Nia and Kara act like it's a sure thing Greg will serve time for assaulting Yvette. However, without more evidence (which the police might uncover, like video tape from security cameras nearby) it would still be just her word. Sadly, transphobia exists in the courts too and just the testimony of the victim is not guaranteed for a conviction.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S6E9DreamWeaver Dream Weaver]]" has one. In the United States, judges do not have the power to pardon a convicted criminal. This may have been a flub by the character though (e.g. the judge overturned his conviction or ordered an early release).
* ''Series/Batwoman2019'': As goes with the territory of Arkham being the quintessential BedlamHouse, the experiments Alice describes being conducted on the inmates at Arkham would be very illegal in reality in this century. Also, it's illegal to commit someone to a mental institution against their will without a court order, which Jacob and Kate can't have gotten because they're keeping the fact Alice is related to them secret and she had no trial.
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!!!The following have their own pages:
[[index]]
* HollywoodLaw/{{Arrowverse}}
[[/index]]
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[[index]]
* HollywoodLaw/{{Arrowverse}}
[[/index]]
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!Franchise/TheDCU
!!Comic Books
* In ''Comicbook/{{Manhunter}}'', Kate Spencer's prosecution of Shadow Thief for the murder of Ron Raymond, aka ComicBook/{{Firestorm|DCComics}}, is ludicrous. It's hard to know where to begin, but consider the fact that Spencer calls a bunch of superheroes to testify without giving their real names without first showing that they or their families would have been in danger. Under ''United States v. Ramos-Cruz'', _ F.3d _ (4th Cir. Jan. 18, 2012); ''United States v. Zelaya'', 336 F. App’x 355 (4th Cir. 2009); and ''United States v. Gutierrez de Lopez'', a witness may testify anonymously only if the prosecution can show that the witnesses or their families would be in danger otherwise (but see the note below), although the issue would be whether an anonymous witness violates either the confrontation clause or due process, and a statute cannot override a constitutional provision. Secondly, most of the witnesses weren't even legitimate witnesses in the first place: they didn't actually see the crime committed, and she just asked them questions about what a hero Firestorm was, and what a great guy he was. None of that would be relevant at trial, although some of it might be allowed at a sentencing hearing, if Shadow Thief were convicted. The bizarre part is that there were other superheroes who were present at the crime and saw it happen, at least one of whom, Comicbook/{{Vixen}}, has a public identity and could have been called as a witness; needless to say, she wasn't.[[note]]In fact, though, trial law in the DCU has been modified to allow superheroes to testify without revealing their identities; this was established in 1985's ''Tales of the Teen Titans #53'' by Marv Wolfman and Rich Buckler, if not earlier. The other points absolutely stand, though.[[/note]]
* ''Comicbook/GreenArrow'':
** #32 features jury nullification with a slight difference: they find him not guilty, but the Judge still rules that he is exiled from the city for life, giving him 24 hours to leave and stating that he will be imprisoned if he returns.
** In addition to that rather dubious ruling, the judge openly states that he could have Ollie thrown in jail anyway, despite the jury acquittal. This is utterly impossible under US law (while you can still end up being found guilty and sentenced for the separate crime of "contempt of court" -- if you actually committed some -- while being acquitted on the original charge, you cannot be sentenced ''for the original charge'' while simultaneously being acquitted of the original charge!) and going on the record with it would probably earn a judge official reprimands at the very least.
** The trial isn't even in the correct venue. Exactly what jurisdiction does a California state court (Star City is in California) have over an alleged murder committed in ''another dimension'', especially when the victim is of unknown nationality? (Prometheus' secret ID has never been cracked.) Even if jurisdiction is being asserted on the grounds of 'well, Oliver Queen is a US citizen and nobody else has any jurisdiction over this entire mess as it happened in territory claimed by no sovereign nation', that should still have landed him in US District Court.
** The crowner of this entire mess is that ''the trial should not be happening at all''. Prometheus died during the course of a lawful arrest by a deputized peacekeeping agent, while on his feet, armed, and facing his killer. How does this qualify as murder? Sure, Oliver Queen went there with the intent of killing Prometheus even if he ''didn't'' resist arrest, but you can't be placed on trial for what you ''would'' have done, only what you actually ''did'' do. And since Prometheus wasn't surrendering and was a highly dangerous felon who has already killed entire squads of cops who've tried to arrest him before, shooting him the instant he makes a sudden move is justifiable homicide. Sure, Ollie's confession as to his intent should have gotten him dismissed from the JLA for going way outside of policy, if not asked to go see a psychiatrist, but it doesn't sustain a charge of murder one. If Ollie had sniped Promethus unawares, then yeah, that's murder -- except he didn't.
*** While it is true that there was only one living witness to the confrontation -- Ollie himself -- given that the arrow hole is in the front and Prometheus was clearly standing when he died and wearing his full battle harness, forensic evidence would entirely support the justifiable homicide interpretation. And while it's possible Ollie confessed to killing the guy cold (even if he didn't) out of some guilt complex, even then the scene would ''still'' contain a plot hole... specifically, that if Ollie had pled guilty then ''there shouldn't have been a jury trial in the first place''.
*** A confession is not the same as a guilty plea, though, so if he'd confessed but didn't then plead guilty to a murder charge there would have to be a trial.
* It's a major plot point of {{Creator/Greg Rucka}}'s ''ComicBook/GothamCentral'' that any case coming from the Internal Affairs Division of the Gotham PD against corrupt Crime Scene Unit technician Jimmy Corrigan would be tainted because Major Crimes Unit Det. Renee Montoya beat certain key information out of Corrigan[[note]]Corrigan had sold one of the bullets from the crime scene to a collector[[/note]] in a fight outside a bar in order to clear her partner, Crispus Allen, in a shooting after being tacitly encouraged to do so by a detective from IAD. Supposedly this means that neither IAD nor MCU can ever touch Corrigan legally. Shockingly, losing a bar brawl to an off-duty cop does not actually give you legal immunity to anything. It is true that none of the information that Montoya beat out of Corrigan would be admissible, but any evidence gathered independently of that would be perfectly admissible. At worst, if Montoya herself were a key witness against Corrigan, his attorney could try to use the fight to call her credibility into question. Of course, it would be very risky for Corrigan's attorney to bring up the fight at all, because it might open the door for the prosecutor to ask what the fight was about, which would probably hurt Corrigan more than the prosecution.
* ''{{ComicBook/Watchmen}}'': Rorschach was sent to Sing Sing before even being tried for his crimes, while in reality he would be held at Riker's Island until trial. He also would likely be kept isolated from other inmates as a notorious vigilante crime fighter, which is not only for his protection but to avoid just such an incident like in the cafeteria.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: When Paula goes to trial after her HeelFaceTurn it's somewhat unclear ''what she's even on trial for''. The prosecutor brings up the murders she's been convicted of and Diana cuts him off with a mention of Double Jeopardy, but Paula should be in trouble for plotting to blow up a munitions factory (which she then did everything she could to prevent after her daughter was returned to her and the Nazis couldn't use her against Paula) and her escape from prison. While the jury is obviously sympathetic to her being forced to work for the Nazis under duress the woman still killed at least one guard (a murder she's never tried for) and escaped from prison without serving her full term. This is never brought up.
!!Films
* ''Film/TheDarkKnight''
** The film features a scene where, after Lau is captured, Harvey Dent decides to charge the entire mob (as in all the three big crime families in Gotham as a single entity) under RICO. The problem is local district attorneys cannot charge RICO offenses. Not even the local US Attorneys can; it has to come directly from the Department of Justice. Dent's mass-trial would also count, but the movie points out that he doesn't expect it to succeed and it's only proceeding because of his local stature.
** Before that Lau flees to Hong Kong so that he's out of Harvey Dent's jurisdiction and the Chinese won't extradite him. Although it's a moot point since Batman's the one who captures him, Lau is sadly mistaken: Hong Kong has a completely separate legal system from the rest of China and it does have [[http://www.legislation.gov.hk/blis_ind.nsf/e1bf50c09a33d3dc482564840019d2f4/9a61090f8a225bc14825655500235c91?OpenDocument an extradition agreement]] with the United States. Mainland China will not extradite its own citizens ([[http://english.gov.cn/laws/2005-09/22/content_68710.htm see Article 8(1) of Extradition Law of the People's Republic of China]]) but it will try its own citizens for overseas crimes, which can be a bad thing because China has the death penalty and some states don't.
* ''Film/SupermanReturns'': Lex Luthor gets off when the appellate court calls Superman as a witness and he doesn't show. First, appellate courts don't call witnesses or take witness testimony, they only review prior court cases to make sure they followed proper legal procedure. Second, if the appellate court did find a defect in the original conviction, it would result in a new trial. Third, even if the appeals court granted a new trial and Superman was unavailable to testify, that would be grounds for his testimony from the original trial to be entered into evidence.
* ''{{Film/Watchmen}}'': Like in the original comic book, Rorschach was sent to Sing Sing before even being tried for his crimes, while in reality he would be held at Riker's Island until trial. He also would likely be kept isolated from other inmates as a notorious vigilante crime fighter, which is not only for his protection but to avoid an incident like in the cafeteria.
!!Live-Action TV
* Happens all the time in ''Series/{{Arrow}}''.
** One obvious example from the first season is the VillainOfTheWeek arranging for a lawsuit against him to be judged by a man whose reelection campaign he funded. Everyone acts like this guarantees his victory rather than guaranteeing the verdict be instantly overturned on appeal due to the judge having a conflict of interest, and said villain also getting additional sanctions and criminal charges against him.
** In season 2, Laurel Lance is the prosecuting attorney for Moira Queen's trial. The conflict of interest would guarantee the conviction get overturned on appeal, considering not just that she is the ex-girlfriend of the defendant's son (who publicly cheated on Laurel with her sister, leading to said sister's death) but also the fact that her boyfriend was one of the victims. In fact, even the fact that the trial was in Starling City is suspicious, and would probably require a change of venue, because it would be impossible for Moira to get an unbiased jury in the city she tried to destroy.
** In the opening of the seventh season, [[spoiler:Oliver Queen AKA Green Arrow is]] sentenced to prison. Even though they handed themselves over to a federal agent in the previous season, it doesn't stretch disbelief to see them in the same prison as some of the Arrow's previous collars, since their crimes were (almost) all committed in Star City. However, it ''does'' stretch disbelief to see them housed with the general population (genpop) instead of in a more secure portion of the prison given the enormous number of people who absolutely will try to kill them every second of the day.
* In the fifth episode of ''Series/TheFlash2014'', "Plastique," the army, under [[ComicBook/CaptainAtom Gen. Wade Eiling]], shows up early on to take over the investigation from the Central City police. This is of course a blatant violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, which forbids the use of the US Army to enforce the laws of the states (unless authorized to do so for a specific situation by an Executive Order or act of Congress).
** Numerous criminal metahumans are imprisoned at Star Labs over the course of Season 1. However, they lack any authority to do that, therefore this is illegal imprisonment for which they could be prosecuted and sued. Even when it's revealed, there are no legal consequences. It helps that Iron Heights got modified for metahuman prisoners.
** In the real world, police officers involved in shootings are typically placed on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Nothing of the sort happens to Joe.
* ''Series/Supergirl2015'':
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S1E9BloodBonds Blood Bonds]]" apparently, Maxwell Lord can just kick federal agents out of an active crime scene, because he says it's his building. Even Alex seems skeptical of this, though it is somewhat justified—Lord was the victim of the crime, and can choose not to cooperate, and the DEO's secretive nature means they can't counter his claim that it was industrial espionage without revealing itself.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S2E3WelcomeToEarth Welcome To Earth]]" PlayedForLaughs. Kara thinks that almost letting the President get killed is "misdemeanor treason."
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S3E12ForGood For Good]]" Edge is arrested shortly after confessing on tape. Thing is, there's no other evidence against him, so his lawyer will be able to easily get him off by claiming that the confession was forced. Based on his reactions, Edge knows he won't stay in jail for long.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E13WhatsSoFunnyAboutTruthJusticeAndTheAmericanWay What's So Funny About Truth, Justice And The American Way?]]". The previous episode made it clear that the President's staff had found a loophole, that Lockwood couldn't be charged because the Patriot Act doesn't apply to aliens. This episode refers to it multiple times as a pardon instead. If you can't be charged, you don't need a pardon.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E18CrimeAndPunishment Crime And Punishment]]":
*** Even under martial law, the military just can't go in and kill an entire prison of civilians hunting down ''one'' enemy -- it'd be a war crime of the highest order. But then again President Baker has never cared about such niceties.
*** Blatantly discriminatory means in enforcing martial law Baker announces are unconstitutional as well, but again he likely isn't concerned.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E19AmericanDreamer American Dreamer]]". As a Cabinet Secretary, Lockwood's house should have a security detail to prevent his family being attacked.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E01EventHorizon Event Horizon]]":
*** The non-compete agreement that's so important to the dramatic conflict from this episode is actually ''specifically'' unenforceable in the state of California. This fact is frequently cited as being one of the major "secrets" behind the success of Silicon Valley, making tech employees able to switch jobs and share ideas with ease. In real life Andrea also wouldn't be able to give all the reporters 3-year contracts with non-compete clauses without their knowledge or agreement. They would need to knowingly sign them, and something inserted later wouldn't be binding.
** There's mention of a special election for US Senate. While the US House of Representatives, aka the "People's House," would have special elections to fill vacancies, Senate vacancies are filled by the governors of the several states appointing a replacement, who normally serves until the next regular election time.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E8TheWrathOfRamaKhan The Wrath Of Rama Khan]]". Or rather, law enforcement. Even if the FBI believes that Lena was acting under duress, you'd think they would at least want to bring her in for questioning. Instead, they let her go without further issue.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E15RealityBytes Reality Bytes]]" Nia and Kara act like it's a sure thing Greg will serve time for assaulting Yvette. However, without more evidence (which the police might uncover, like video tape from security cameras nearby) it would still be just her word. Sadly, transphobia exists in the courts too and just the testimony of the victim is not guaranteed for a conviction.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S6E9DreamWeaver Dream Weaver]]" has one. In the United States, judges do not have the power to pardon a convicted criminal. This may have been a flub by the character though (e.g. the judge overturned his conviction or ordered an early release).
* ''Series/Batwoman2019'': As goes with the territory of Arkham being the quintessential BedlamHouse, the experiments Alice describes being conducted on the inmates at Arkham would be very illegal in reality in this century. Also, it's illegal to commit someone to a mental institution against their will without a court order, which Jacob and Kate can't have gotten because they're keeping the fact Alice is related to them secret and she had no trial.
* ''{{Series/Gotham}}'': It's a PoliceProcedural set in the universe that spawns Batman. Some instances can be disregarded as evidence of how crooked Gotham is, others less so.
** Especially bad is its treatment of insanity. People aren't just declared insane, sent to a mental institution and get off completely. Rather, they have to make an {{insanity defense}} at trial, which is very difficult. In the US, most states that still have the insanity defense (some have abolished it) use the M'Naghten rule, which says a person is insane if they're unable to tell right from wrong, or can't comprehend the consequences of their actions (e.g. they harmed someone during a delusion which left them unaware of what was going on). So it's unlikely for most villains to be found insane and committed. There's also no such thing as a real "certificate of sanity".
** Gordon is held due to "suspicion" that he helped a prisoner break out. In reality, there's no such thing--arrests need probable cause, which isn't presented here, otherwise they could be sued and possibly even hit with a civil rights violation. Captain Barnes, who ordered this, is a {{by the book cop}} who you'd think would know better than to try it.
** There's no way the state and federal authorities simply would ignore Gotham city officials allowing Penguin to "license" criminals. Quite a lot of people should be facing RICO indictments.
** You still have to read people their rights even if they know them, otherwise anything they say is not admissible.
* ''Series/WonderWoman2011Pilot'':
** Claiming someone engages in illegal activities without proof is called slander and could easily get someone sued. Wonder Woman calls a press conference to announce this, fully acknowledging her lack of proof, and yet suffers no consequences. She also admitted to the entire world that she has broken the law to stop a crime she can't even prove was committed.
** Doesn't even touch the detective's blatantly illegal (not to mention stupid) advice to WW that if she breaks into the villain's lair, the police will be able to investigate it because it's now a crime scene. Yes it will be, for a crime ''that Wonder Woman committed'', and ''the police let her do''. The only way this works is if Wonder Woman already has blanket immunity to prosecution, which opens a whole new can of worms that's even more terrifying, but would be sadly consistent with everything else we see. Also, if she's deemed to have been an agent of the police in doing this, any evidence they find will be suppressed.
** Worse, matters legal get ''significant'' attention in this series (it is Creator/DavidEKelley writing it, after all). It all serves to keep before us ''exactly'' how illegal every single thing Diana does is, even as the plot treats her like everything she does is right. She ''literally'' commits more crimes than her enemies.
** The show seems to think that because Wonder Woman is not officially connected to any law enforcement agency, she is above the law. That's actually the opposite from the truth, as law enforcement officers have quasi-immunity, while civilians have none.
** Her ex-boyfriend is assigned to investigate her for illegal activities, despite the fact that this is clearly a conflict of interest. At the end, he drops the investigation and declares her clear with a smile, thus showing ''why'' conflict of interest is a problem in the first place.
!!Western Animation
* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' Poison Ivy was once disallowed from going to jail simply because she was apprehended by Batman, not a cop. Even if that were to apply in that particular case in that particular universe, there's all the ''other'' times she's escaped prison for all the ''other'' crimes she's committed (and she's not always caught after she commits a crime, even though gathered evidence implicates her.) Incidentally, in some older stories, Batman has the same legal standing as a police officer, albeit one in tights and a cape. He could also have made a citizen's arrest in any case. Ironically, if he's not an agent of the police, it'd be the opposite: requirements like MirandaRights and warrants only apply to law enforcement. Of course, he'd also have more potential liability than a police officer for misconduct. {{Justified}} by the later revelation that Task Force X exists in the DCAU, so villains are released in exchange for top-secret work, and then they have to lie about it to the public.
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!!Comic Books
* In ''Comicbook/{{Manhunter}}'', Kate Spencer's prosecution of Shadow Thief for the murder of Ron Raymond, aka ComicBook/{{Firestorm|DCComics}}, is ludicrous. It's hard to know where to begin, but consider the fact that Spencer calls a bunch of superheroes to testify without giving their real names without first showing that they or their families would have been in danger. Under ''United States v. Ramos-Cruz'', _ F.3d _ (4th Cir. Jan. 18, 2012); ''United States v. Zelaya'', 336 F. App’x 355 (4th Cir. 2009); and ''United States v. Gutierrez de Lopez'', a witness may testify anonymously only if the prosecution can show that the witnesses or their families would be in danger otherwise (but see the note below), although the issue would be whether an anonymous witness violates either the confrontation clause or due process, and a statute cannot override a constitutional provision. Secondly, most of the witnesses weren't even legitimate witnesses in the first place: they didn't actually see the crime committed, and she just asked them questions about what a hero Firestorm was, and what a great guy he was. None of that would be relevant at trial, although some of it might be allowed at a sentencing hearing, if Shadow Thief were convicted. The bizarre part is that there were other superheroes who were present at the crime and saw it happen, at least one of whom, Comicbook/{{Vixen}}, has a public identity and could have been called as a witness; needless to say, she wasn't.[[note]]In fact, though, trial law in the DCU has been modified to allow superheroes to testify without revealing their identities; this was established in 1985's ''Tales of the Teen Titans #53'' by Marv Wolfman and Rich Buckler, if not earlier. The other points absolutely stand, though.[[/note]]
* ''Comicbook/GreenArrow'':
** #32 features jury nullification with a slight difference: they find him not guilty, but the Judge still rules that he is exiled from the city for life, giving him 24 hours to leave and stating that he will be imprisoned if he returns.
** In addition to that rather dubious ruling, the judge openly states that he could have Ollie thrown in jail anyway, despite the jury acquittal. This is utterly impossible under US law (while you can still end up being found guilty and sentenced for the separate crime of "contempt of court" -- if you actually committed some -- while being acquitted on the original charge, you cannot be sentenced ''for the original charge'' while simultaneously being acquitted of the original charge!) and going on the record with it would probably earn a judge official reprimands at the very least.
** The trial isn't even in the correct venue. Exactly what jurisdiction does a California state court (Star City is in California) have over an alleged murder committed in ''another dimension'', especially when the victim is of unknown nationality? (Prometheus' secret ID has never been cracked.) Even if jurisdiction is being asserted on the grounds of 'well, Oliver Queen is a US citizen and nobody else has any jurisdiction over this entire mess as it happened in territory claimed by no sovereign nation', that should still have landed him in US District Court.
** The crowner of this entire mess is that ''the trial should not be happening at all''. Prometheus died during the course of a lawful arrest by a deputized peacekeeping agent, while on his feet, armed, and facing his killer. How does this qualify as murder? Sure, Oliver Queen went there with the intent of killing Prometheus even if he ''didn't'' resist arrest, but you can't be placed on trial for what you ''would'' have done, only what you actually ''did'' do. And since Prometheus wasn't surrendering and was a highly dangerous felon who has already killed entire squads of cops who've tried to arrest him before, shooting him the instant he makes a sudden move is justifiable homicide. Sure, Ollie's confession as to his intent should have gotten him dismissed from the JLA for going way outside of policy, if not asked to go see a psychiatrist, but it doesn't sustain a charge of murder one. If Ollie had sniped Promethus unawares, then yeah, that's murder -- except he didn't.
*** While it is true that there was only one living witness to the confrontation -- Ollie himself -- given that the arrow hole is in the front and Prometheus was clearly standing when he died and wearing his full battle harness, forensic evidence would entirely support the justifiable homicide interpretation. And while it's possible Ollie confessed to killing the guy cold (even if he didn't) out of some guilt complex, even then the scene would ''still'' contain a plot hole... specifically, that if Ollie had pled guilty then ''there shouldn't have been a jury trial in the first place''.
*** A confession is not the same as a guilty plea, though, so if he'd confessed but didn't then plead guilty to a murder charge there would have to be a trial.
* It's a major plot point of {{Creator/Greg Rucka}}'s ''ComicBook/GothamCentral'' that any case coming from the Internal Affairs Division of the Gotham PD against corrupt Crime Scene Unit technician Jimmy Corrigan would be tainted because Major Crimes Unit Det. Renee Montoya beat certain key information out of Corrigan[[note]]Corrigan had sold one of the bullets from the crime scene to a collector[[/note]] in a fight outside a bar in order to clear her partner, Crispus Allen, in a shooting after being tacitly encouraged to do so by a detective from IAD. Supposedly this means that neither IAD nor MCU can ever touch Corrigan legally. Shockingly, losing a bar brawl to an off-duty cop does not actually give you legal immunity to anything. It is true that none of the information that Montoya beat out of Corrigan would be admissible, but any evidence gathered independently of that would be perfectly admissible. At worst, if Montoya herself were a key witness against Corrigan, his attorney could try to use the fight to call her credibility into question. Of course, it would be very risky for Corrigan's attorney to bring up the fight at all, because it might open the door for the prosecutor to ask what the fight was about, which would probably hurt Corrigan more than the prosecution.
* ''{{ComicBook/Watchmen}}'': Rorschach was sent to Sing Sing before even being tried for his crimes, while in reality he would be held at Riker's Island until trial. He also would likely be kept isolated from other inmates as a notorious vigilante crime fighter, which is not only for his protection but to avoid just such an incident like in the cafeteria.
* ''Franchise/WonderWoman'' [[ComicBook/WonderWoman1942 Vol 1]]: When Paula goes to trial after her HeelFaceTurn it's somewhat unclear ''what she's even on trial for''. The prosecutor brings up the murders she's been convicted of and Diana cuts him off with a mention of Double Jeopardy, but Paula should be in trouble for plotting to blow up a munitions factory (which she then did everything she could to prevent after her daughter was returned to her and the Nazis couldn't use her against Paula) and her escape from prison. While the jury is obviously sympathetic to her being forced to work for the Nazis under duress the woman still killed at least one guard (a murder she's never tried for) and escaped from prison without serving her full term. This is never brought up.
!!Films
* ''Film/TheDarkKnight''
** The film features a scene where, after Lau is captured, Harvey Dent decides to charge the entire mob (as in all the three big crime families in Gotham as a single entity) under RICO. The problem is local district attorneys cannot charge RICO offenses. Not even the local US Attorneys can; it has to come directly from the Department of Justice. Dent's mass-trial would also count, but the movie points out that he doesn't expect it to succeed and it's only proceeding because of his local stature.
** Before that Lau flees to Hong Kong so that he's out of Harvey Dent's jurisdiction and the Chinese won't extradite him. Although it's a moot point since Batman's the one who captures him, Lau is sadly mistaken: Hong Kong has a completely separate legal system from the rest of China and it does have [[http://www.legislation.gov.hk/blis_ind.nsf/e1bf50c09a33d3dc482564840019d2f4/9a61090f8a225bc14825655500235c91?OpenDocument an extradition agreement]] with the United States. Mainland China will not extradite its own citizens ([[http://english.gov.cn/laws/2005-09/22/content_68710.htm see Article 8(1) of Extradition Law of the People's Republic of China]]) but it will try its own citizens for overseas crimes, which can be a bad thing because China has the death penalty and some states don't.
* ''Film/SupermanReturns'': Lex Luthor gets off when the appellate court calls Superman as a witness and he doesn't show. First, appellate courts don't call witnesses or take witness testimony, they only review prior court cases to make sure they followed proper legal procedure. Second, if the appellate court did find a defect in the original conviction, it would result in a new trial. Third, even if the appeals court granted a new trial and Superman was unavailable to testify, that would be grounds for his testimony from the original trial to be entered into evidence.
* ''{{Film/Watchmen}}'': Like in the original comic book, Rorschach was sent to Sing Sing before even being tried for his crimes, while in reality he would be held at Riker's Island until trial. He also would likely be kept isolated from other inmates as a notorious vigilante crime fighter, which is not only for his protection but to avoid an incident like in the cafeteria.
!!Live-Action TV
* Happens all the time in ''Series/{{Arrow}}''.
** One obvious example from the first season is the VillainOfTheWeek arranging for a lawsuit against him to be judged by a man whose reelection campaign he funded. Everyone acts like this guarantees his victory rather than guaranteeing the verdict be instantly overturned on appeal due to the judge having a conflict of interest, and said villain also getting additional sanctions and criminal charges against him.
** In season 2, Laurel Lance is the prosecuting attorney for Moira Queen's trial. The conflict of interest would guarantee the conviction get overturned on appeal, considering not just that she is the ex-girlfriend of the defendant's son (who publicly cheated on Laurel with her sister, leading to said sister's death) but also the fact that her boyfriend was one of the victims. In fact, even the fact that the trial was in Starling City is suspicious, and would probably require a change of venue, because it would be impossible for Moira to get an unbiased jury in the city she tried to destroy.
** In the opening of the seventh season, [[spoiler:Oliver Queen AKA Green Arrow is]] sentenced to prison. Even though they handed themselves over to a federal agent in the previous season, it doesn't stretch disbelief to see them in the same prison as some of the Arrow's previous collars, since their crimes were (almost) all committed in Star City. However, it ''does'' stretch disbelief to see them housed with the general population (genpop) instead of in a more secure portion of the prison given the enormous number of people who absolutely will try to kill them every second of the day.
* In the fifth episode of ''Series/TheFlash2014'', "Plastique," the army, under [[ComicBook/CaptainAtom Gen. Wade Eiling]], shows up early on to take over the investigation from the Central City police. This is of course a blatant violation of the Posse Comitatus Act, which forbids the use of the US Army to enforce the laws of the states (unless authorized to do so for a specific situation by an Executive Order or act of Congress).
** Numerous criminal metahumans are imprisoned at Star Labs over the course of Season 1. However, they lack any authority to do that, therefore this is illegal imprisonment for which they could be prosecuted and sued. Even when it's revealed, there are no legal consequences. It helps that Iron Heights got modified for metahuman prisoners.
** In the real world, police officers involved in shootings are typically placed on administrative leave while the shooting is investigated. Nothing of the sort happens to Joe.
* ''Series/Supergirl2015'':
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S1E9BloodBonds Blood Bonds]]" apparently, Maxwell Lord can just kick federal agents out of an active crime scene, because he says it's his building. Even Alex seems skeptical of this, though it is somewhat justified—Lord was the victim of the crime, and can choose not to cooperate, and the DEO's secretive nature means they can't counter his claim that it was industrial espionage without revealing itself.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S2E3WelcomeToEarth Welcome To Earth]]" PlayedForLaughs. Kara thinks that almost letting the President get killed is "misdemeanor treason."
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S3E12ForGood For Good]]" Edge is arrested shortly after confessing on tape. Thing is, there's no other evidence against him, so his lawyer will be able to easily get him off by claiming that the confession was forced. Based on his reactions, Edge knows he won't stay in jail for long.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E13WhatsSoFunnyAboutTruthJusticeAndTheAmericanWay What's So Funny About Truth, Justice And The American Way?]]". The previous episode made it clear that the President's staff had found a loophole, that Lockwood couldn't be charged because the Patriot Act doesn't apply to aliens. This episode refers to it multiple times as a pardon instead. If you can't be charged, you don't need a pardon.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E18CrimeAndPunishment Crime And Punishment]]":
*** Even under martial law, the military just can't go in and kill an entire prison of civilians hunting down ''one'' enemy -- it'd be a war crime of the highest order. But then again President Baker has never cared about such niceties.
*** Blatantly discriminatory means in enforcing martial law Baker announces are unconstitutional as well, but again he likely isn't concerned.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S4E19AmericanDreamer American Dreamer]]". As a Cabinet Secretary, Lockwood's house should have a security detail to prevent his family being attacked.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E01EventHorizon Event Horizon]]":
*** The non-compete agreement that's so important to the dramatic conflict from this episode is actually ''specifically'' unenforceable in the state of California. This fact is frequently cited as being one of the major "secrets" behind the success of Silicon Valley, making tech employees able to switch jobs and share ideas with ease. In real life Andrea also wouldn't be able to give all the reporters 3-year contracts with non-compete clauses without their knowledge or agreement. They would need to knowingly sign them, and something inserted later wouldn't be binding.
** There's mention of a special election for US Senate. While the US House of Representatives, aka the "People's House," would have special elections to fill vacancies, Senate vacancies are filled by the governors of the several states appointing a replacement, who normally serves until the next regular election time.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E8TheWrathOfRamaKhan The Wrath Of Rama Khan]]". Or rather, law enforcement. Even if the FBI believes that Lena was acting under duress, you'd think they would at least want to bring her in for questioning. Instead, they let her go without further issue.
** In "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S5E15RealityBytes Reality Bytes]]" Nia and Kara act like it's a sure thing Greg will serve time for assaulting Yvette. However, without more evidence (which the police might uncover, like video tape from security cameras nearby) it would still be just her word. Sadly, transphobia exists in the courts too and just the testimony of the victim is not guaranteed for a conviction.
** "[[Recap/Supergirl2015S6E9DreamWeaver Dream Weaver]]" has one. In the United States, judges do not have the power to pardon a convicted criminal. This may have been a flub by the character though (e.g. the judge overturned his conviction or ordered an early release).
* ''Series/Batwoman2019'': As goes with the territory of Arkham being the quintessential BedlamHouse, the experiments Alice describes being conducted on the inmates at Arkham would be very illegal in reality in this century. Also, it's illegal to commit someone to a mental institution against their will without a court order, which Jacob and Kate can't have gotten because they're keeping the fact Alice is related to them secret and she had no trial.
* ''{{Series/Gotham}}'': It's a PoliceProcedural set in the universe that spawns Batman. Some instances can be disregarded as evidence of how crooked Gotham is, others less so.
** Especially bad is its treatment of insanity. People aren't just declared insane, sent to a mental institution and get off completely. Rather, they have to make an {{insanity defense}} at trial, which is very difficult. In the US, most states that still have the insanity defense (some have abolished it) use the M'Naghten rule, which says a person is insane if they're unable to tell right from wrong, or can't comprehend the consequences of their actions (e.g. they harmed someone during a delusion which left them unaware of what was going on). So it's unlikely for most villains to be found insane and committed. There's also no such thing as a real "certificate of sanity".
** Gordon is held due to "suspicion" that he helped a prisoner break out. In reality, there's no such thing--arrests need probable cause, which isn't presented here, otherwise they could be sued and possibly even hit with a civil rights violation. Captain Barnes, who ordered this, is a {{by the book cop}} who you'd think would know better than to try it.
** There's no way the state and federal authorities simply would ignore Gotham city officials allowing Penguin to "license" criminals. Quite a lot of people should be facing RICO indictments.
** You still have to read people their rights even if they know them, otherwise anything they say is not admissible.
* ''Series/WonderWoman2011Pilot'':
** Claiming someone engages in illegal activities without proof is called slander and could easily get someone sued. Wonder Woman calls a press conference to announce this, fully acknowledging her lack of proof, and yet suffers no consequences. She also admitted to the entire world that she has broken the law to stop a crime she can't even prove was committed.
** Doesn't even touch the detective's blatantly illegal (not to mention stupid) advice to WW that if she breaks into the villain's lair, the police will be able to investigate it because it's now a crime scene. Yes it will be, for a crime ''that Wonder Woman committed'', and ''the police let her do''. The only way this works is if Wonder Woman already has blanket immunity to prosecution, which opens a whole new can of worms that's even more terrifying, but would be sadly consistent with everything else we see. Also, if she's deemed to have been an agent of the police in doing this, any evidence they find will be suppressed.
** Worse, matters legal get ''significant'' attention in this series (it is Creator/DavidEKelley writing it, after all). It all serves to keep before us ''exactly'' how illegal every single thing Diana does is, even as the plot treats her like everything she does is right. She ''literally'' commits more crimes than her enemies.
** The show seems to think that because Wonder Woman is not officially connected to any law enforcement agency, she is above the law. That's actually the opposite from the truth, as law enforcement officers have quasi-immunity, while civilians have none.
** Her ex-boyfriend is assigned to investigate her for illegal activities, despite the fact that this is clearly a conflict of interest. At the end, he drops the investigation and declares her clear with a smile, thus showing ''why'' conflict of interest is a problem in the first place.
!!Western Animation
* In ''WesternAnimation/BatmanTheAnimatedSeries'' Poison Ivy was once disallowed from going to jail simply because she was apprehended by Batman, not a cop. Even if that were to apply in that particular case in that particular universe, there's all the ''other'' times she's escaped prison for all the ''other'' crimes she's committed (and she's not always caught after she commits a crime, even though gathered evidence implicates her.) Incidentally, in some older stories, Batman has the same legal standing as a police officer, albeit one in tights and a cape. He could also have made a citizen's arrest in any case. Ironically, if he's not an agent of the police, it'd be the opposite: requirements like MirandaRights and warrants only apply to law enforcement. Of course, he'd also have more potential liability than a police officer for misconduct. {{Justified}} by the later revelation that Task Force X exists in the DCAU, so villains are released in exchange for top-secret work, and then they have to lie about it to the public.
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