# The Purge Films & T.V. Show - What happens if you commit a crime MINUTES before commencement? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [August 21, 2019, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027 "2019-08-21T23:22:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![edgarthelawsson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/e8c25b/32.png) [@edgarthelawsson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/edgarthelawsson)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2019, 11:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/1 "2019-08-21T23:22:08Z")
(Please excuse me if this is the wrong section to post this thread in) Scenario 1: Suppose you robbed a bank and held it up till 4 minutes before Purge commencement. If you walk out of the bank after the 3 sirens go off, would you be arrested or would the police take off from the scene - allowing you to escape (since all crime, including murder, is 100% legal)? Scenario 2: Let’s say you shoplift or commit some type of crime and police catch up with you and it’s 3-4 minutes before the Purge starts. By the time they handcuff you, get you in the back of the squad car and haul you off to the station… the Purge would begin. So, I’d assume they would just go home at that point? Another thing that always got me thinking… what would happen if you decided to break someone out of prison or jail during the Purge? I mean, police, fire and medical services aren’t in service during the 12 hours… so I guess the jailhouse or prison is up for grabs? Doesn’t seem to me like there would be anyone out to stop you (since all crime is legal). Just somethings I was thinking about after watching the films and the T.V. show. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2019, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/2 "2019-08-21T23:32:39Z")
> [@](#): > > (Please excuse me if this is the wrong section to post this thread in) Did you make any effort to find out? Read over the forum descriptions. They’re not that long. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Shine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr_shine/32/464_2.png) [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/3 "2019-08-22T14:15:54Z")
Hopefully **edgarthelawsson** hasn’t ([https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=880792](https://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=880792)) completely and would possibly like an attempt to be made at his questions, so here goes Scenario 1: Suppose you robbed a bank and held it up till 4 minutes before Purge commencement. If you walk out of the bank after the 3 sirens go off, would you be arrested or would the police take off from the scene - allowing you to escape (since all crime, including murder, is 100% legal)? Scenario 2: Let’s say you shoplift or commit some type of crime and police catch up with you and it’s 3-4 minutes before the Purge starts. By the time they handcuff you, get you in the back of the squad car and haul you off to the station… the Purge would begin. So, I’d assume they would just go home at that point? Another thing that always got me thinking… what would happen if you decided to break someone out of prison or jail during the Purge? I mean, police, fire and medical services aren’t in service during the 12 hours… so I guess the jailhouse or prison is up for grabs? Doesn’t seem to me like there would be anyone out to stop you (since all crime is legal). Just somethings I was thinking about after watching the films and the T.V. show. **edgarthelawsson** , if you do see this thread I hope you stick around. ---
**Author:** ![Mr\_Shine](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mr_shine/32/464_2.png) [@Mr\_Shine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr_Shine)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/4 "2019-08-22T14:18:24Z")
For the record I’ve never seen any of them. The concept just seemed too stupid for me so I can’t help. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/5 "2019-08-22T14:45:14Z")
What happens if you feed a gremlin after midnight and then put him on a plane and fly him to a time zone that’s _before_ midnight? ---
**Author:** ![GreedySmurf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a698b9/32.png) [@GreedySmurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GreedySmurf)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/6 "2019-08-22T15:52:55Z")
The whole concept is utterly stupid, but for the sake of the discussion. I’ve only seen the original, so my 8mpression is only based on that. If a crime call came up 10 minutes to Purge time, I have to wonder if the cops would even respond to the call. But as to specifics, Scenario 1 - I presume you get away for the moment, but the crime was still committed prior to Purge time, so I imagine tomorrow an investigation and manhunt is started for you. Scenario 2 - see above. I can’t see the cops coming out for a shoplifter without enough time to make it back before the siren. However if there was a delay and you’re already in the cop car when the siren gets close, I think you’re in big trouble. Would the cops just let you out, or wait for the siren and shoot you in the face? In the world posited I know which is more likely. The prison one is interesting. Your jailbreak attempt is free and clear, but the felon is still subject to a sentence, and I imagine would be attempted to be recaptured post-purge. I could imagine prisons being heavily fortified and defended from the outside world. I think however that the life expectancy of any prisoner would be very short. How many guards will take the Purge as an opportunity to s8mply walk along the row of cells executing everyone inside. Fish in a Barrel as it were. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 7:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/7 "2019-08-22T19:24:15Z")
Its actually pretty simple in either case – you’re out after purge, anyone can and will kill you, cops included, and will get to take what you stole or shoplifted. The whole plot of the second movie is someone arming himself up so he can survive the Purge long enough to go kill someone who got away with a crime on a technicality, Minutes, hours, days, months … even years – miss him on this purge, go get him on the next one – it all doesn’t matter. We had a couple of threads already on the subject (which I suspect is why the original O.P. go shot down so hard,) and web pages like [Cracked.com](http://Cracked.com) \*et al \*have concluded, the rules of the purge just don’t make sense. ---
**Author:** ![Arkcon](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/96bed5/32.png) [@Arkcon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arkcon)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/8 "2019-08-22T19:26:57Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > What happens if you feed a gremlin after midnight and then put him on a plane and fly him to a time zone that’s _before_ midnight? Well, wait … isn’t it always after midnight? I mean, until midnight, its always after one midnight, even the one before. The mythology would have been a lot simpler if they just said, “Don’t feed between sundown and sun up.” Now that’s clear to understand. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [August 22, 2019, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/9 "2019-08-22T23:55:34Z")
Re-opened, but moved to Cafe Society. (Since the rules are based on fiction, I’ll let that fictional society’s rules apply.) ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 12:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/10 "2019-08-23T00:17:38Z")
Yeah, my apologies for perhaps coming across a bit too harshly. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/11 "2019-08-23T06:37:47Z")
My guess is, crimes are only legal if they BEGIN after the Purge has started. So you are not off the hook for a crime committed, or begun, just before the event officially kicks off. That being said, the Purge is an utterly cataclysmic, chaotic event. Chances are law enforcement would be so busy with all kinds of duties (protecting certain important people or facilities that are officially off-limits, for instance), that they couldn’t be bothered with dealing with some of the crimes the OP posits. ---
**Author:** ![bucketybuck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/898d66/32.png) [@bucketybuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bucketybuck)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 7:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/12 "2019-08-23T07:34:07Z")
I haven’t seen the films but I would assume that even if there was an official start time for something like the Purge, that people would be sorting themselves out well ahead of that time. So are there really going to be any cops on patrol 3/4 minutes before it starts? A bank robbery lasting 12 hours up to the Purge time might be different, but if a Purge was due I would imagine most cops are slinking off to their holes well before the start time. > [@Chronos](#): > > Yeah, my apologies for perhaps coming across a bit too harshly. A bit too harsh isn’t the description I would have used. ---
**Author:** ![SlackerInc](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slackerinc/32/275_2.png) [@SlackerInc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SlackerInc)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 11:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/13 "2019-08-23T11:55:24Z")
Relatedly, how about if you kidnap someone’s child during the purge? But you aren’t able to arrange ransom or whatever before that time elapses. The coldly logical thing to do is to just kill the kid five minutes before the end of the Purge. But the parents beg you to give them more time, or you start to soften because you like the kid, or whatever. Are you risking massive prison time if you don’t kill the kid and he’s still in your house after the Purge ends? Can you call the police and arrange to have him get picked up? Let’s assume it’s someone too young to just be let out to wander the streets, like a two year old. ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 12:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/14 "2019-08-23T12:12:18Z")
[We have some questions about The Purge?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5TpY7ZjmFro) ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 2:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/15 "2019-08-23T14:56:36Z")
It’s not specifically mentioned afaik but some facilities would have to be exempt from the purge. Couldn’t have your military bases turn into instant battle fields. But since the “secret” behind the purge was population control, prisons don’t seem like a candidate for immunity. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 4:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/16 "2019-08-23T16:34:29Z")
> [@CarnalK](#): > > It’s not specifically mentioned afaik but some facilities would have to be exempt from the purge. Couldn’t have your military bases turn into instant battle fields. But since the “secret” behind the purge was population control, prisons don’t seem like a candidate for immunity. I figure prisons just go on full lockdown during the purge. ---
**Author:** ![CarnalK](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/carnalk/32/486_2.png) [@CarnalK](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CarnalK)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 4:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/17 "2019-08-23T16:39:15Z")
> [@AlsoNamedBort](#): > > I figure prisons just go on full lockdown during the purge. I guess they’d have to. While killing off prisoners would certainly be OK to the New Founding Fathers, you would be setting up a situation where every crime that carried a sentence which included a purge day would be a death sentence. I could see that messing with plea agreements. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 5:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/18 "2019-08-23T17:01:42Z")
Regarding prisons, I have to figure that if you’ve been arrested for any reason, you are de facto purgable. Isn’t the conceit of the premise that crimes outside of the Purge itself have fallen to record lows? If you’re enough of an anomaly to commit a crime anyway (and dumb enough to get caught for it), then screw you, buddy. _blam!_ Do prisons even exist in Purge-world? ---
**Author:** ![Death\_of\_Rats](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/a6a055/32.png) [@Death\_of\_Rats](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Death_of_Rats)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 7:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/19 "2019-08-23T19:22:13Z")
You also have to factor in that cops are just as much citizens as the rest of us. If you are handcuffed and helpless in the back of a police car when the purge starts there is no reason the cops have to free you as opposed to torturing/raping/killing you. At that point, you are less prisoner and more helpless, easily accessible victim. If you are holding hostages when the purge starts, there is nothing stopping them from coming in guns blazing to kill everyone when the purge starts. ---
**Author:** ![Velocity](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/velocity/32/18006_2.png) [@Velocity](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Velocity)\ **Post date:** [August 23, 2019, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027/20 "2019-08-23T22:22:53Z")
> [@Death\_of\_Rats](#): > > You also have to factor in that cops are just as much citizens as the rest of us. If you are handcuffed and helpless in the back of a police car when the purge starts there is no reason the cops have to free you as opposed to torturing/raping/killing you. At that point, you are less prisoner and more helpless, easily accessible victim. If you are holding hostages when the purge starts, there is nothing stopping them from coming in guns blazing to kill everyone when the purge starts. Cops also have families. With a Purge coming, I don’t think cops would be out on the streets or in patrol cars when they’d be better off hunkering down at home with their guns, protecting their families like anyone else, until the mayhem is over. Especially when every would-be cop killer or someone who has been hankering for some payback against the police would see the Purge as a prime opportunity to get it. Cops wouldn’t want to be seen anywhere by anyone. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-purge-films-t-v-show-what-happens-if-you-commit-a-crime-minutes-before-commencement/839027.md?page=2)