During the aftermath of the San Francisco earthquake of 1906, there's the story of a man who was trapped and about to burn to death. When someone granted his request to be shot so he wouldn't burn to death, the shooter turned himself in to the nearest police officer and was immediately released. Also, when Memorial Hospital was running low on supplies after Hurricane Katrina and everyone was trapped by water, four patients were killed by personnel. After being charged with murder by the district attorney, a grand jury dropped their charges. And then there's this...
http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=CU0rI5Hx0b8
I assume cases like this aren't restricted to killings or other such heinous acts. What do you people think is involved with deciding a crime in the letter of the law should be overlooked? I'm interested in what those with law degrees have to say concerning legal flexibility.