Constitution of Imperial Newport/Text

### Article I - Justification

We the City Council of democratic Newport hereby relinquish all powers, legislative and judicial, to the Emperor or Empress of the First Newportian Empire. This Constitution shall serve to restrain the power of the reigning Emperor or Empress (hereafter referred to as “the Monarch”) and ensure the rights of the people in the absence of democracy. Should the Monarch be convicted of violating any part of this Constitution by the Court of Common Pleas, the Monarch’s claim to power shall be immediately nullified and the position and powers therein shall transfer to the next in the line of succession. If no Emperor or Empress Consort or heirs exist, an imperial election shall occur three days after the Monarch’s conviction. The Monarch shall not modify or nullify any part of this Constitution for any reason.

### Article II - Imperial Powers

The Monarch shall retain the power to issue imperial edicts, which shall be immediately enacted into law when declared to the people in written form. Edicts shall not contradict any part of this Constitution, nor shall they contradict server law, nor shall they contradict the decrees of the Magic Conch. In the case that an imperial edict is contradicted by a new edict, the latest edict shall take precedence over the previous. The Monarch may also repeal edicts. The following laws of democratic Newport shall remain in effect in the Empire, unless repealed or otherwise overturned by an imperial edict: City Ordinance II, City Ordinance IV, City Ordinance V, City Ordinance VII, City Ordinance IX, City Ordinance X, City Ordinance XI, City Ordinance XII, and City Ordinance XIII. All other ordinances enacted by the Council shall be considered obsolete after the first imperial coronation. The Monarch may issue edicts declaring an official currency for government and public transactions, but shall not regulate the currency used in transactions between private citizens and corporations. The Departments of Transportation, Urban Planning, and Sustainability shall also retain their roles unless disbanded or otherwise modified by an imperial edict.

### Article III - Individual Rights

Under no circumstance shall the Monarch infringe upon the people’s freedom of speech, freedom of the press, or freedom of assembly, nor shall the Monarch intentionally claim, damage, modify, or steal property owned by a private citizen without reasonable compensation paid toward and agreed upon by the property owner, except in the case that the owner has been inactive for a period of no less than thirty-one days, or in the case that the identity of said owner is unclear. Additionally, the Monarch shall not execute any citizen unless said citizen has been convicted by the Court of Common Pleas and sentenced to execution by the Imperial Magistrate. Under no circumstance shall the Monarch subject any citizen to involuntary manual labor without reasonable compensation of at least thirty iron per hour of work or an equivalent payment agreed upon by both parties, nor shall the Monarch demand taxes from citizens unless a specific public works project is declared tax-fundable by a majority of the Court of Common Pleas. Imperial taxes shall always be imposed as a percentage of players’ savings, and shall never exceed 20%.

### Article IV - Judicial Powers

Disputes between private citizens, corporations, and/or organizations may be brought before the Court of Common Pleas to be resolved as a lawsuit. The Court of Common Pleas shall consist of all active and permanent subjects of the Empire, except any involved in the specific lawsuit. In this case, “active” refers to any player that has been online at any point during the week preceding the lawsuit. The Court shall act as the jury in all lawsuits, and shall deliver a verdict by plurality vote after a voting period of twenty-four hours following the closing arguments of the plaintiff and defendant. At the beginning of their reign, each Monarch shall appoint an Imperial Magistrate to act as judge in all lawsuits. Should the verdict vote of the Court be tied, the Imperial Magistrate will decide the verdict. The Imperial Magistrate shall also have the power to dismiss any case deemed unlawful or trivial, ensure all cases adhere to current law, mediate the court process, and impose reasonable penalties on the guilty party, if necessary and allowed, following the verdict of the Court of Common Pleas. The Monarch must approve any sentence to execution by the Imperial Magistrate. In the case that the Imperial Magistrate is directly involved with the lawsuit, the Court of Common Pleas shall appoint a temporary Interim Magistrate from among their ranks. The Interim Magistrate shall assume the role of judge for the duration of the lawsuit involving the Imperial Magistrate. The Imperial Magistrate’s term shall conclude at the end of the Monarch’s reign, when replaced by a new Imperial Magistrate, or at their own resignation.

### Article V - Imperial Succession by Marriage

Should the Monarch be involved in a monogamous marriage, where both the Monarch and their spouse are only pledged to each other, the spouse shall receive the title Emperor or Empress Consort. The Monarch’s spouse shall not receive imperial powers of any kind, but shall immediately assume the position and powers of Emperor or Empress in the case that the reigning Monarch resigns, is legally assassinated, or has been inactive for a period of no less than ten days. Imperial succession by marriage may only occur once per couple; that is, in the case that the first spouse is legally assassinated and the second spouse assumes the role of Monarch, power shall not transfer back to the first spouse if the second spouse resigns. However, should both spouses lose power, imperial succession by marriage may occur again in the case that either of them regains power. All marriages shall be officiated by a High Priest of the Temple of the Magic Conch and blessed by the Magic Conch itself. Conversely, all divorces must be approved by the Magic Conch.

### Article VI - Imperial Succession by Blood

Imperial succession may also occur in the case that the Monarch and Consort have legally adopted an heir. Any married couple may choose to adopt a player as their child, so long as the child in question consents to the arrangement and the child first joined the server later than both potential parents. Under these terms, parents may adopt multiple players, if they so choose. All legally recognized adoptions shall be blessed by the Magic Conch. Only married couples may adopt another player. No single player shall adopt another player, nor shall any one player be claimed by multiple married couples at one time. Once the adoption has occurred, both parents shall be held legally responsible for their adopted child’s health and well-being. In cases of willful parental negligence, the child or children may sue their parents before the Imperial Magistrate and the Court of Common Pleas. Should the Court find the parents guilty of willful negligence, the adoption may be legally revoked by the Imperial Magistrate. Adoptions may only be revoked in light of a conviction of the parents or the child from the Court of Common Pleas. Under no other circumstance shall an adopted child be legally separated from their parents, or vice versa. Any children adopted by the Imperial couple shall remain in the line of succession. Should both Imperial parents resign, be legally assassinated, or remain inactive for the aforementioned minimum period of ten days, the position and powers of the Monarch shall transfer to the first adopted heir. Any subsequent heirs shall similarly remain in the Imperial line of succession, should the first adopted heir resign, be legally assassinated, or remain inactive for the aforementioned minimum period of ten days. Adoptions shall not occur during Purge Nights.

### Article VII - Imperial Succession by Assassination

Imperial succession shall also occur in the case that the Monarch is legally assassinated. Assassination of the Monarch shall be legal only during Purge Nights, during which all murder shall be legal within the domain of the Empire. Purge Nights shall take place every fifteen days for twelve continuous hours, from nine o’clock P.M. to nine o’clock A.M. Central time, beginning on the twentieth day of July in the year two thousand and twenty. During this period, murderers shall be allowed to keep the contents of their victims’ inventories. Should the Monarch be legally assassinated during a Purge Night, the assassin shall immediately assume the position and powers of Emperor or Empress, unless there exists a reigning Emperor or Empress Consort, in which case the position and powers of the legally assassinated Monarch shall be assumed by the Emperor or Empress Consort. Imperial succession to a legal assassin shall only occur once per Purge Night; that is, the legal assassin shall remain Monarch if murdered during the same Purge Night during which they assassinated the previous Monarch. The Monarch reigning during the beginning of each Purge Night shall be online and in Newport for a minimum of one continuous hour during each Purge Night, as should any Emperor or Empress Consort. Should the Monarch refuse or is unable to remain online for the required duration, their absence shall be analogous to their resignation. Imperial succession by legal assassination shall never apply in the case of suicide.

### Article VIII - Imperial Succession by Election

In the case that the Monarch resigns from the position and powers of Emperor or Empress or is inactive for a period of no less than ten days, and no Emperor or Empress Consort or heirs exist, an imperial election shall take place three days after the Monarch’s resignation or the ten-day period of inactivity. During this three-day period, the Imperial Magistrate of the resigned Monarch shall assume the role of Interim Emperor or Empress until the coronation of the newly-elected Monarch, and wield all of the position and powers therein. During an imperial election, any player, citizen or non-citizen, may campaign to assume the role of Emperor or Empress, though only citizens of the Empire may vote in the election. The candidate who receives a plurality of the vote shall assume the position and powers of Emperor or Empress at their coronation. In the case of a tie, the new Monarch shall be chosen by the Magic Conch.

### Article IX - Ratification

We the City Council of democratic Newport unanimously approve this Constitution to usher in a glorious new Imperial Era for our great city.