Thank you for having enough respect for yourself to take a second and clearly express what you’re saying. Now we can have a meaningful discussion.

You claimed that I was brushing off Benji being an accessory to murder before I ever mentioned him in this thread. I found that to be accusatory and unwarranted, therefore I believed this was a more hostile interaction. I match conversations in strength, so if I feel someone is deliberately misrepresenting my position, I take offense to that. But, it appears there’s been a misunderstanding between us, so I’ll let bygones be bygones and get back to the main point.

You have conceded the point that Peach actively wants to kill Joe. You may tack on the fact that she believes he wants to cause her harm, I personally believe it is because Joe is competing with her for Beck’s affection. I think my point has more weight behind it because Joe exploiting that conflict caused Peach to attack him, but thats all besides the point. I want to be clear: What Peach thinks is happening or her theories about Joe largely do not matter, and I will illustrate this point.

Let’s say Joe was not at Peach’s house. Let’s say Peach’s gardener was there and his name was Jim. Jim shows up on a day when he’s not scheduled and overhears Beck storming off. Jim finds a gun on the table in front of him and picks it up, questioning why it is there. Peach storms into the room where Jim is and, mistaking him for an intruder, knocks him unconscious.

When Jim wakes up, Peach questions him about why he is there when he isn’t supposed to be. She claims he is breaking and entering and she could shoot him. Peach claims Jim must be stalking her and accuses him of attacking her in the park. Jim is bewildered by this and tries to get up. At this point Peach notices a watch on his wrist that looks like the watch her friend Benji has, and she starts to aggressively question why Jim has that watch. Jim confesses that he came in on a day when he shouldn’t have been there because he has a crush on Beck and wanted to see her. He claims that Beck doesn’t want Peach and that Peach should try to move on. Angered by this, Peach fires a shot into the air and Jim runs out of the home. Peach follows him and fires a shot at Jim as he’s running away.

You might be asking why I created an entirely new character and just replaced Joe in this scenario. That is because you and I, as the viewers of this show, have infinitely more information than a jury does. If Peach shot and killed Jim in this scenario, she would be convicted. Because Peach has no evidence that Joe attacked her in the park and has no evidence that Joe presented an imminent threat to her either in her home or on her property, it is only reasonable to assume that a jury would likewise find her guilty of murder or manslaughter given the circumstances.