Bizarre rumours are circulating social media claiming that Queen Elizabeth has “confirmed” that she could legally kill Donald Trump with a sword should he visit the UK on a state visit.
To quickly debunk such nonsense, we start off with this – such rumours derive from a British satirical website called The Daily Mash. The story is entirely fictional, the Queen has not confirmed any such thing. However the headline of the article managed to separate from its original satirical source leading some to believe it to be true.
In many cases the silly rumour has since morphed into something less patently absurd and more of an irrelevant yet curiosity-baiting assertion – the Queen could theoretically kill Trump and be immune from prosecution.
The question many are now asking is that whether that is true? (Not whether the Queen actually confirmed she could, which is obviously ridiculous.)
Theory and practise in law often differ, and while traditionally the Queen cannot be prosecuted for committing illegal acts (since British courts use her name – The Crown – for the prosecution side of the legal table) the answer would very much depend on which legal or constitutional expert you asked. British law, European law, (and the European Court of Human Rights) Constitutional law, British Parliament, crown immunity, forced abdication and a variety of other factors could certainly come into play.
And of course the situation would be made indefinitely more complex given the victim at the business end of the Queens sword was the President of the United States of America.
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So, what would happen to the Queen if she executed Donald Trump (or anyone else, for that matter?)
There is simply no modern-day precedent to answer such a question specifically or definitively, but it is likely that the British or European courts (of which the UK is – at the time of writing – still a member) and their respective justice systems would work out such a way that would ensure justice would be done.
Basically, ‘one’ would not just simply “get away with it”.