On: Woman allegedly impersonated prosecutor, dropped charges against herself

[eru]

However, do compare wrongful death claims in the US which are handled in a civil suit.

O.J. Simpson famously got off with 'not guilty' in the murder case, but lost the civil suit.

See https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wrongful_death_claim and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O._J._Simpson_murder_case#Civi...

[kbenson → eru]

Yes, civil suits are brought be individuals, so are less about societal pressure and more about recompense, while criminal cases are brought by the state. I believe there's also a lower bar, and civil court works by "a preponderance of the evidence" as opposed to "beyond a reasonable doubt". The courts serve different purposes.

[dragonwriter → kbenson]

> Yes, civil suits are brought be individuals, so are less about societal pressure and more about recompense, while criminal cases are brought by the state.

This is somewhat inaccurate; while it is true that criminal cases can only be brought by the State, civil cases can be brought by the State or private parties.

[kbenson → dragonwriter]

Oh, good to know, I wasn't aware of that. Thanks! :)

[eru → kbenson]

Though as far as I can tell, the state only gets treated like any other private party in a civil suit.