A large area inside a famous park in the US has been labelled the 'Zone of Death' due to a legal loophole that in theory allows people commit a crime without fear of conviction - including murder.
Yellowstone National Park, which is mostly in Wyoming, covers 3,500 square miles and is packed with wild animals, stunning scenery and more than half of the world's active geysers.
But an isolated 50-mile stretch within its borders is technically a lawless piece of land where anything goes.
Under the Sixth Amendment of the US constitution, if someone commits a crime then they are entitled to a 'speedy and public trail by an impartial jury of the state and district wherein the crime shall have been committed'.
The park is under the jurisdiction of Wyoming but the uninhabited zone of death is in the neighbouring states of Idaho.
YouTuber Tom Scott explained on his YouTube channel : "“Congress gave all of Yellowstone to Wyoming despite the fact that some of the park is in Idaho.
“So right now in this 50 square mile area I’m standing in the state of Idaho but the federal district for Wyoming.
“So for crimes committed in this weird little overlap zone a jury would have to be picked from just the people who live in Idaho State and Wyoming district and the population here is zero.
“So no jury which means no trial which in theory means no conviction."
However, he pointed out that although he could technically murder someone scott-free that he had no intentions of doing so because he is "not an idiot".
To date, no known murders have been committed within the specific area since it was pointed out by law professor Brian Kalt in his 2005 essay called 'The Perfect Crime'.
The loophole could be straightened out by Congress passing a law switching ownership of the zone to the District of Idaho - but despite lobbying by Kalt the legal quirk still remains.
Still, Kalt commented : "But breaking the law is breaking the law, whatever happens to the person who does it.
"I don’t think the prosecution would just give up."
