re: #5 Disloyal Archangel

This guy needs to be fired.
Out of a cannon.
INTO THE SUN.

Just asked this on Twitter, but maybe Lawhawk can chime in here: what is the practical threshhold for charging someone with the crime of Depraved Indifference?

I mean, this is the textbook definition, but in the real world, how is this prosecuted?

the prosecution generally must show that the defendant caused a death by knowingly engaging in conduct that created a grave risk of death. A person acts with depraved indifference when he or she shows such utter disregard for human life that it is apparent he or she was completely indifferent about creating a risk of death to another human being. This standard focuses on the risk that the defendant’s conduct created and his or her lack of concern related to that risk.

Some jurisdictions also use the depraved indifference standard to enhance what would otherwise be a manslaughter charge to murder. Manslaughter often requires only a showing of recklessness. Although malice aforethought or premeditation are common hallmarks of a murder charge, in cases where the defendant acted with depraved indifference, he or she might be charged with murder despite the fact that the death was unintentional. An example of a situation where depraved indifference could be used to enhance what would otherwise be a manslaughter charge to murder is a death caused by a drunk driver. The driver might not have set out to kill someone nor had malice in his or her heart when he or she acted, but by driving while intoxicated, he or she might have had such utter disregard for human life that his or her actions produced a grave risk of harm — ultimately resulting in another person’s death.