wholettheblogsout:

So up until like the 1300s, the victim of a crime brought an action called an appeal of felony.

there basically were no cops, so if your alleged attacker didnt show up, then you were out of luck.

but it doesnt end there. even if he did show up to court, the wrongdoer had 2 choices: trial by jury, or TRIAL BY BATTLE

what is trial by battle?  exactly what it f*cking sounds like - basically a DEATH MATCH.

so, to illustrate, if someone killed your uncle, there were no cops to arrest him, and no prosecutors to prosecute him.   butyou could bring a lawsuit and you could have a trial by jury. However, if the guy chose trial by battle YOU WOULD HAVE TO FIGHT HIM AND YOU MIGHT DIE.