There are some examples of private regulation that work in today's society, sports prominently among them. There are limits to the regulatory authority of sports governing bodies, and we're seeing those limits playing out with the now infamous hockey fight which injured Colorado Avalanche player Steve Moore.
Andy Duncan wrote a bit about private regulation in sport, and how well it works, in Samizdata a couple of months ago. Here's a snip:
Notice, also, that little in the way of policing is required. The referee makes a decision, and that's it. Self-restraint and the need to save face in the 'society' of the game, gets most players obeying 'The Law', though occasionally team-mates and linesmen, acting as proxy-police, are needed to suppress hotspots of dissent. Notice also how powerful this effect of self-restraint becomes, before the face of this flimsy anarchist law. You've got a six-foot-five, 32-inch-waisted, nineteen-stone man, pumped with adrenaline, who has just had his testicles gouged with a bullocking boot, who has retaliated in kind, and who is shouting and remonstrating at an eleven stone referee, and yet the merest display of a red piece of plastic and the point of a finger gets this beast of a man to turn, to walk away, and to obey the instruction to leave 'The Pitch'. Okay, so he's often unhappy, and lip readers refuse to reveal what he's saying on family television, but he does ultimately do what he's told, even if kicking some form of bench, or bench official, on his way off.
So speedy inexpensive legal decisions, competitive judges, competitive systems of law, the lack of a need for much policing, binding second level arbitration, legal stability, and a complete acceptance of all parties as to the ultimate legitimacy of 'The Law'. Ladies and Gentlemen. I give you a fully-functioning anarcho-capitalist legal system, in action. It can work.
There's also an off-field level of regulation in league sports, and Vancouver Canuck player Todd Bertuzzi now finds himself at the mercy of NHL administrators. This case is also being investigated by local police, as the incident was so brutal as to catch their attention. There is a precedent for this action. In 2000, also in Vancouver, hockey player Donald Brashear was severely injured when Marty McSorley hit him in the head with a stick during a game. McSorley was given a lengthy suspension, and he never played in the NHL again. He was also sentenced to probation by the courts. Considering a professional hockey player's salary, losing a career, or even just a big chunk of a season, is a much more serious punishment than anything the courts are likely to impose.
Even Brashear agrees, and he hopes the courts won't get involved in the current case.
It would be useful if sports governing authorities codified the situations where they would prefer law enforcement to get involved. That's a better idea than waiting for lawmakers to do it.
Posted by Walter at March 11, 2004 09:45 AMI agree with you, mostly. I don't really mind if Bertuzzi is brought up on criminal charges, but I think the case for them is (slightly) fuzzier than it was for McSorley.
McSorley slashed Brashear in the head with an obvious weapon after the game was offcially over, and the video was pretty damning. He looked like he was really trying to kill the guy. This current case had worse injuries, but I think we all agree that killing or maiming Moore wasn't Bertuzzi's intent. People should be punished for the repercussions of their actions, but I think you have to take intent into account here.
But... McSorley wasn't goaded into his actions by teammates, coaches, or the team's management (that I know of), and Bertuzzi was almost definitely encouraged to take Moore out. That adds (possibly) provable premeditation and conspiracy to the mix, and makes the case for criminal charges stronger.
Posted by: Matt Moore at March 11, 2004 11:38 AM"... and yet the merest display of a red piece of plastic and the point of a finger gets this beast of a man to turn, to walk away, and to obey the instruction to leave 'The Pitch'. Okay, so he's often unhappy, and lip readers refuse to reveal what he's saying on family television, but he does ultimately do what he's told, even if kicking some form of bench, or bench official, on his way off."
I'm confused. Did I miss a law being passed declaring sports areas exempt from law, or granted extra-territoriality status? If the hypothetical fellow in question turned and snapped someone's neck with intent to kill, wouldn't they be prosecuted and put in jail if found guilty? Did this threat disappear at some time from sports arenas and I didn't notice? I don't follow sports, per se, so I suppose it's possible.
Posted by: Gary Farber at March 11, 2004 05:49 PM Actually, yes, the courts have found that certain acts which would be criminal outside of sporting arenas are legal within. Attempted murder's usually not legal, but willful acts have resulted in death in auto races, with no legal repercussions.
The dividing line between legal and criminal acts in sports isn't clearly defined, and that's why I think sports governing bodies should step up and do the defining, before incidents like the Moore injury prompt legislatures to do it.