The maze of fan theories on Reddit can lead to some bizarre places. One such theory attempts to uncover why Batman’s villains apparently never go to prison. Why does Joker always end up in Arkham Asylum? Is he really mentally insane? Why would Bane, or whichever criminal on the wrong side of the law, not go to prison?
Batman’s a No-Show
Some fans have found that these criminals rarely end up at Black Gate Prison; some do, but most are sent to Arkham Asylum instead, despite all of them being fit to stand trial and would not be considered criminally insane. Most of these villains are entirely aware of what they are doing, and no accurate psych evaluation would deem them mentally incapacitated and recommend they be shunted off the looney bin. So, what gives?
One theory holds that Batman is to blame for this state of affairs. Arkham is not the best place to house these fiends; it’s too easy to escape from, and before you know it, someone like Joker or the Riddler busts themselves out or is released for some silly reason. So, why aren’t they in the slammer instead? Well, blame Batman for not showing up at court.
As the arresting officer, Batman never testifies at the trial of these villains. Hence, due to a lack of evidence and credible eyewitnesses, they can’t be found guilty and sent to prison. Rather than sending them back onto the streets, prosecutors are forced to deem them criminally insane and send them to Arkham instead. Once Mr Freeze or the Penguin are at Arkham Asylum, Batman again doesn’t appear for hearings, and soon after, these villains have to be released or paroled.
The Law of the Land
This “Why Batman’s Villains Never Go to Prison” theory has many holes. It was rightly critiqued by level-headed fans who mentioned that Batman is not an officer of the law. He does not arrest criminals but only captures them and lets GCPD officers know where the evidence is. They also pointed out that for Batman to testify, he would have to reveal his identity, which is obviously an outrageous proposal that cannot be followed through with.
Some also believe that Batman’s involvement as a vigilante taints the entire crime scene and makes prosecuting these criminals impossible. Therefore, the District Attorney’s office and the courts have bent the rules a little by letting criminals caught by Batman be brought before a judge and sentenced to Black Gate or Arkham. For criminals caught by Batman and then sentenced to Black Gate or Arkham Asylum, it is against the law because due process was never followed (something along those lines).
Another major hole in the theory is the notion that prosecutors can simply allow or instead declare criminals insane. If we’re following the law, then this would be perjury or some legal term like that. Prosecutors have no such powers and hence would be unable to send criminals to Arkham without due process after eyewitness testimony was considered and, in conjunction with the evidence, the accused was found guilty. After this, the defence can plead insanity, and the judge and jury would have to consider the report of a credible psych evaluation.
It gets really technical when you think about all these legal matters and begin to question why these thugs are shipped off to Arkham instead of Black Gate. It’s best to get a real lawyer and ask them instead.
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What do you think about this theory, and does it hold up to scrutiny? Why don’t Batman’s villains go to prison?
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