Mesirah (nonfiction)

Mesirah (or mesira, Hebrew: to turn over‎) is the action in which one Jew reports the conduct of another Jew to a non-rabbinic authority in a manner and under the circumstances forbidden by rabbinic Law. This may not necessarily apply to reporting legitimate crimes to responsible authority, but does apply to turning over a Jew to an abusive authority, or to a legitimate one who would punish the criminal in ways seen as excessive by Jewish community, though "excessive" punishment by non-Jews may be permissible if a precept of the Torah has been violated.

The term for an individual who commits mesirah is moser (HE:מוסר) or mossur. A person who repeatedly violates this law by informing on his fellow Jews is considered subject to "Din Moser" (law of the informer), which is analogous to "Din rodef" in that both prescribe death for the offender, and according to some, in some circumstances he may be killed without warning.

See also

• Mesirah @ Wikipedia