[WikiEN-l] David Hager is listed as convicted rapist

Mon Dec 5 09:14:08 UTC 2005

On 12/4/05, JAY JG <jayjg at hotmail.com> wrote:
> I've been have a months-long debate with another editor on this topic.  I've
> been stating that we include people in "Criminals" categories if they have
> been convicted of a crime by an independent judiciary.  The other editor
> insists that we have to decide (by some means) whether or not they have
> actually committed a crime, conviction is not enough a good enough
> yardstick.  I'd be interested in other thoughts here.
>
Jay, it would be original research to claim that someone is a
"criminal" even though they haven't been convicted. Committing a crime
is not just the apparent performance of a prohibited act, but is also
(usually) connected to the actor's state of mind at the time,
something a court rules on based on the available evidence. Wikipedia
editors are not in a position to judge what a court would have ruled,
no matter how obvious the case might seem (e.g. a public figure
admitting they once stole something from a store).

Sarah