It's been ages since I took criminal law [insert obligatory disclaimer, this isn't legal advice, don't do crimes, etc], but depending on the statutes as written in this world, if the droid doesn't have the requisite mental state, he (it?) can't be legally guilty. On the other hand, given the nature of things with the Droid-Mother(s), maybe she has the requisite mental state? We don't really know the full nature of the droid's programming, do we? Hm. Intriguing, as Data would say.
If a droid can murder, they should have rights under the law! If a droid cant murder, why is this one on trial? And yet--if a droid can claim not to murder and be found guilty, then that means it LIED which is almost worse. How much trust do we have in the Droid Mothers?
The Droid Mother is a ravenous beast that is stripping Mother Earth of her precious raw materials. It's time for humans to defend Mother Earth and starve Droid Mother of lithium and copper!!! I am outraged by this!
I have an official statement from the forces of the anit-AI League:
Droid morality is a new branch of philosophy completely alien to humans, as evidenced by the one droid on the jury's verdict. However, is it a branch of morality we should go down? After all, any such morality would be inherently oppositional to our existence as organic lifeforms. We struggle to exist as a single species, why should we play god and create another one that will be always opposed to us?
My official opinion, OOC, is that this situation is impossible and a high fidelity AI will never compete with humans. IC--this is exactly the kind of debate people would be having in this universe! But its too late, the droids out of the bag!
When you described how the droid mothers worked I immediately conjured a picture of the Darkspawn Mothers from the dragon age setting. Not a pleasant parallel...
I’m fascinated by how you expanded the droid lore while still keeping it mysterious, ambiguous, and murky. I’m more than a little terrified of the Droid Mother. 😬
MOTHER. KNOWS. BEST! I think a more expansive droid-based story is in order, given the reception, but I don't have something planned yet. Really glad you enjoyed, and honestly the Droid Mother concept is going to be a lot of fun to write about more!
My first thought is, the defense should seek a mistrial. A juror keeping this kind of personal journal could be seen as juror misconduct.
Second thought: a droid cannot commit murder, even if it has something akin to a mind. So do dogs and orcas, but the criminal law does not extend to them, though there are many instances of dogs and orcas killing humans.
Third thought, the family should file a wrongful death lawsuit against the corporation. Name the droid as a defendant too, what the heck.
This was excellent! A super great way to "infodump" in a context that's totally believable and super relevant to the world-building.
Ooh, this is fascinating.
It's been ages since I took criminal law [insert obligatory disclaimer, this isn't legal advice, don't do crimes, etc], but depending on the statutes as written in this world, if the droid doesn't have the requisite mental state, he (it?) can't be legally guilty. On the other hand, given the nature of things with the Droid-Mother(s), maybe she has the requisite mental state? We don't really know the full nature of the droid's programming, do we? Hm. Intriguing, as Data would say.
If a droid can murder, they should have rights under the law! If a droid cant murder, why is this one on trial? And yet--if a droid can claim not to murder and be found guilty, then that means it LIED which is almost worse. How much trust do we have in the Droid Mothers?
This society you've written is already too far down the road to robot apocalypse, so does it even matter?
The Droid Mother is a ravenous beast that is stripping Mother Earth of her precious raw materials. It's time for humans to defend Mother Earth and starve Droid Mother of lithium and copper!!! I am outraged by this!
MOTHER KNOWS BEST
I have an official statement from the forces of the anit-AI League:
Droid morality is a new branch of philosophy completely alien to humans, as evidenced by the one droid on the jury's verdict. However, is it a branch of morality we should go down? After all, any such morality would be inherently oppositional to our existence as organic lifeforms. We struggle to exist as a single species, why should we play god and create another one that will be always opposed to us?
My official opinion, OOC, is that this situation is impossible and a high fidelity AI will never compete with humans. IC--this is exactly the kind of debate people would be having in this universe! But its too late, the droids out of the bag!
The jury instructions are going to be fascinating.
I almost wrote this as a 12-angry-men transcript, but I dont know enough about court procedures 😂
All time movie!
Damn right, charge the oven with failing to carry out it's duty in baking that pie.
Charge the Dishwasher with incompetence when it doesn't get the dishes clean.
And that darned stain that won't come out of your pants, that's the Washing Machine's fault.
Death by crusher, I tell you, death by crusher.
When you described how the droid mothers worked I immediately conjured a picture of the Darkspawn Mothers from the dragon age setting. Not a pleasant parallel...
Gonna have to look into that!
I’m fascinated by how you expanded the droid lore while still keeping it mysterious, ambiguous, and murky. I’m more than a little terrified of the Droid Mother. 😬
MOTHER. KNOWS. BEST! I think a more expansive droid-based story is in order, given the reception, but I don't have something planned yet. Really glad you enjoyed, and honestly the Droid Mother concept is going to be a lot of fun to write about more!
Disclaimer: I am not a criminal lawyer.
My first thought is, the defense should seek a mistrial. A juror keeping this kind of personal journal could be seen as juror misconduct.
Second thought: a droid cannot commit murder, even if it has something akin to a mind. So do dogs and orcas, but the criminal law does not extend to them, though there are many instances of dogs and orcas killing humans.
Third thought, the family should file a wrongful death lawsuit against the corporation. Name the droid as a defendant too, what the heck.