Want to commit the perfect crime? Go to Yellowstone National Park.

Brian C. Kalt, an associate professor at the Michigan State University College of Law, has found a loophole in the 6th Amendment that would allow the perfect crime to be committed in two specific parts of Yellowstone National Park. He has written an article for the Georgetown Law Journal about the legal oddity called "The Perfect Crime."

The federal district court for the district of Wyoming is defined as including all of Yellowstone National Park including 50 square miles in Idaho. However, the 6th Amendment requires that when a crime is committed, the jury be drawn from the state and district where the crime was committed. So by commiting your crime in the Idaho part of the park, the jury would need to be drawn from Idaho but also the district of Wyoming... population zero. Therefore, it would be impossible for a speedy and public trial because there is no possible jury pool. (In the Montana part of the park, there are only 40 people eligble for jury duty but it would be hard to get a jury of 12 people.)

The catch? Don't plan your crime or receive some assistance somewhere else because then you could be tried in that other area for planning the crime there.

Want a map?

Listen: Brian C. Kalt talks about his article on NPR's All Things Considered.