So, I've been replaying AA lately and I'm on the second part of Rise From The Ashes, in which Officer Marshall explains to Phoenix and Ema in the guard station what is the "evidence transferal". From what I've gathered, the case is solved, the file is archived and the evidence is kept in the lead detective's locker to be supervised by him until two years after the solving, when the evidence is transferred to the vault and the case is officially closed.

In Marshall's words, the case is "dead" and "never to be reopened". And we have Goodman's last words regarding SL-9 as proof; minutes before he was stabbed by Gant, he told him that "it would be too late" if he re-investigated the case later, meaning the evidence would be transferred and the case closed forever.

HOWEVER!

During Turnabout Goodbyes, Edgeworth introduces us to the statute of limitations, in which a case ceases to exist 15 years after the beginning of the investigation.

So, what I am to understand, according to what Marshall and Edgeworth tell us is that:

A case is officially dead after two years, then it ceases to exist 15 years after.

So, two questions:

1. Why the 13-year interval if the case is never going to be reopened anyway?
2. When Edgeworth confessed to be the DL-6 murderer, DL-6 had already crossed the 2-year line. Then, why was he tried for a crime which case supposedly was already "dead"? Hell, even the evidence wasn't transferred at all, von Karma and Phoenix just up and got them to use in court.


So, please tell me if I'm missing anything here or PW law is just stupid. It's just that this confusion drives me crazy.

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I could be wrong, but I think you're mixing up two concepts. The two year thing was for solved cases, The 15 year thing was for unsolved cases. I'm not entirely sure though.

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Damn, I forgot about that, DL-6 was unsolved and SL-9 was, well, "solved". Guess that makes sense then, even if it is very vague.

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On a side note, statute of limitations depends on the crime; 15 years is for murders, but it can be less for other crimes (for example in GK2 it's said that it's 7 years for thefts).

Huh, that's news to me. I haven't played GK2, so I didn't know about that. Glad they revived the concept, hahaha

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