The law regards cannibalism as a vile and abhorrent practice. Most of the time, a person who is accused of cannibalism is sentenced to the punishments for first-degree murder. Admittedly, America does not have set-in-stone laws about cannibalism, so it is punished on a case by case basis. In most instances of this crime, the person who is accused of cannibalism is convicted for murder and desecrating a corpse. There have been many instances where cannibalism has come up in criminal trials. For example, one famous case, Regina v. Dudley and Stevens, set the standard for nonconsensual cannibalism in desperate measures.
In this case, two men were marooned in the ocean with only two cans of turnips for nutrition. When one of the men fell comatose from dehydration, the other one killed him and sustained himself by eating the dead man's flesh and drinking his blood. In this case, the judge ruled that the defendant was guilty and would need to spend a long time in prison for the crime. That judge argued that if someone is desperate enough to kill another being to survive than he or she should be willing to accept the punishments later on. Recent occurrences of cannibalism have surfaced in the United States this year.
First, there is the famous occurrence of the face-eating man. In May, a young man in Miami with the initials R.E. was walking down the street when he proceeded to take off his clothes and rush towards a homeless man on the boulevard. Security cameras caught the bizarre, long, and agonizing attack on tape. According to the footage, R.E. fell upon a homeless man with the initials R.P.and began eating his face in a violent rage. Witnesses who saw the incident called 9-1-1 immediately, and the police rushed to the scene. One police man lifted his gun when R.E. would not relent in his attack. Eventually, law enforcement officers shot R.E. It took four bullets to weaken him enough to stop his attack. R.P. was rushed to the hospital immediately.
R.E. died from his gunshot wounds. . Once an autopsy is performed, the will determine whether or not R.E. was inhibited by a new street drug coined "bath salts." Supposedly, the new party drug that has recently appeared on the Miami scene provokes violent outbursts. Friends and family of R.E.'s say that this violent, crazed attack was not consistent with his character, and that he must have been chemically influenced. One source says that the victim needs years of facial reconstruction, and his face will always appear mutilated.
Secondly, a Maryland man was accused of killing and devouring his missing roommate at Morgan State University. A.K. was charged with first-degree murder and ordered held without bail on May 31st, 2012. He is 21 years old. The young man supposedly attacked a Ghanaian immigrant who was living with him and then ate his heart and brain. The police have evidence that A.K. dismembered the corpse and stored body parts in his basement for the future. A.K. has also been sentenced with other violent cases recently, including hitting another student repeatedly with a baseball bat.
While cannibalism may come across as revolting, the truth is that these horrible instances happen. Men and woman are prone to do bizarre things, especially when they are hampered by alcohol or drugs. If you have been accused of any sort of crime then you will need a criminal defense lawyer to help you with your case. It is incredibly important that you have the right representation so that you can successfully fight your way towards innocence.
