daf bit: Sotah 45

[cellio]

The torah tells us that if a person is found slain outside a city, the elders of the nearest city must testify to their defense and then break a calf's neck in atonement. The mishna says that if the body is found near the frontier, or near a city of mostly heathens, or near a city without a court of justice, they don't break a calf's neck and instead measure the distance to the nearest city that has a court of justice. The g'mara clarifies that we exclude these cases because the torah requires that the enlders of the city participate, and cities such as those do not have suitable elders. (44b mishna, 45b g'mara)

I'm not sure what the purpose of measuring to the nearest (suitable) city is, since we're told explicitly that they're not going to bring a calf. I guess they still testify? If I find out more I'll update this.