Inside the ‘zone of death’ where bizarre legal loophole means people could legally get away with murder

Many countries still have outdated or little-used laws on the books, though in reality they are not enforced.

But one location in the US has a very different legal oddity to an archaic or eccentric-sounding law.

That's because, in this location, a series of legal circumstances combine to mean that you would theoretically be able to get away with any crime if you committed it here, including murder.

Before we continue, it's worth stressing that this is strictly theoretical, we don't suggest anyone puts it to the test.

So with that caveat, how is it possible to be able to theoretically 'get away with murder'?

Stay with me, this is a little technical.

The so-called 'Zone of Death' is marked out in red here. (National Park Service via Wiki Commons)

The location is the so-called 'Zone of Death', which is in Yellowstone National Park, specifically where the national park crosses between the states of Wyoming and Idaho.

United States District Court for the District of Wyoming is the court which has jurisdiction over all of the park.

Because Wyoming courts don't have jurisdiction in Idaho, this section of park is under the exclusive jurisdiction of the federal government.

This is where the loophole comes into play, and the loophole comes from an obscure, little-known legal document called the 'US Constitution'.

You might have heard of this document. (TIMOTHY A. CLARY/AFP via Getty Images)

The Sixth Amendment to the constitution deals with criminal trials, and says: "The accused shall enjoy the right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of the State and district wherein the crime shall have been committed."

Basically, the jurors have to be from the state or district where the alleged crime happened.

Because this small section is under the exclusive control of the federal courts, you couldn't go to the whole of Idaho to source a jury - they'd have to come from that specific region.

The problem is the region itself is a remote part of the Yellowstone National Park and is more or less completely uninhabited.

The location is in Yellowstone National Park. (George Rose/Getty Images)

That means that it would be technically impossible to form a jury which met the requirements of the Sixth Amendment, so theoretically you could not be given a constitutional trial.

Law professor Brian C. Kalt discovered the loophole, and worked to have it closed before it could be taken advantage of.

Before anyone gets any ideas, this loophole was in fact tested in 2005 when a poacher called Michael Belderrain shot an elk illegally.

Belderrain attempted to use the 'zone of death' argument in court, but the court rejected the argument.

A federal judge also ruled that he could be tried in the District Court of Wyoming.

In the end, he took a plea deal which had a reduced sentence, but he couldn't appeal the 'Zone of Death' rule any further.

So, while it might still be a theoretical loophole, in reality the courts quickly found a way to deal with it.