Need Help With Writing a Legal Memo on the Word "Offend"

[MechMan]

So basically this deals with the transportation of bodily fluids or waste via mail. The law on it says that if you send such materials for the purpose to offend, harass or otherwise harm the recipient, the crime is Assault, Battery, and a whole host of federal crimes once the package crosses state lines.

On the "offend" part I know it deal with for example if a disgruntled person decided to mail a turd (feces) to a person for mean purposes, this is technically illegal, because doing so means you can expose said person and the other people handling the mail to diseases and so forth.

The part that I have to write a legal memo discussing is on the word offend and why it matters, or should not matter, in this case. I honestly have no clue on why offend would matter, I mean I can understand it being illegal for the harm and harass aspect, but on offending them, I am confused.

The thing is, this is my first ever legal memo however, and I have no clue where to start. Are there court cases regarding this issue I can look up to refer to? I have done Googling on the "legal definition" of offend but gotten nothing (just definitions of "offender" and the dictionary definition of offend seems useless).

I know I have to present a balanced argument on this, but I am just so confused, don't know where to begin, please help. I don't know how to argue the aspect that such an act should be illegal because it can offend the recipient (or necessarily why it should be legal either, but from my understanding, you don't have a right to not be offended...?).

Any suggestions welcome, please help (and not asking for anyone to write the thing for me, just need some guidance). The memo can be no longer than 20,000 words, but I am assuming it thus must be detailed and long still (20,000 words double-spaced is 80 pages).

[Tutor]

Hi MechMan,

Don't get too overly-technical in dealing with the term "offend." I know that in law school it seems like everything must or should have a technical answer or technical definition. This probably grows out the uber-competitive atmosphere of law school, which puts pressure on everyone to be the "smartest" and to come up with the most novel, complicated, or intricate answer possible even to a seemingly simple question.

However, as you'll see when you get out into practice, the best and most effective lawyers are those who keep things short and simple wherever possible: if there's a simple, straightforward manner in which to address a problem, that's the approach they follow -- and, believe it or not, that's the one most people (including the judges and juries deciding the cases that lawyers litigate) appreciate. Despite all the emphasis on theory and deep analytical thinking in law school, law professors are like anyone else: they like to read memos, hear argument, and critique essays in which the ideas are conveyed in a simple, clear, and straightforward fashion.

All this relates directly to your concerns about the word "offend." In my experience as an attorney, there is no technical definition of that word specific to the field of law. Instead, this is one of those terms that must be construed in the context of its normal, everyday meaning. Seriously, think about what it means to be offended from the perspective of the average person of normal sensibilities, and that's the "definition" you're looking for.

As far as the meaning of that term in the context of the statute at issue, I obviously haven't seen the exact language of the statute. However, based upon how you have described it, I would be thinking of the issue in this way: The statute includes the element that the waste must be sent with a knowing purpose to offend, harass, or otherwise harm the recipient. This is undoubtedly because the statute only seeks to punish those who mail such materials with nefarious motives in mind. Surely, there are legitimate reasons to mail such materials: laboratories, hospitals, and other medical offices are in the business of running tests on such materials, and they should not be penalized for mailing the materials. The statute focuses only on those who send such materials to -- as the statute says -- offend, harass, or harm the recipient. And, again, "offend" in this context carries its normal, everyday meaning, just like the terms "harass," and "harm."

I know this appears to be a duanting project. But step back from it, keep it simple, and think about the term "offend" in terms of the purpose of the statute from the perspective of a reasonable person of ordinary sensibilities. Stay there and craft your memo. You'll do just fine.

Tutor