How do you prevent police corruption?
To prevent police corruption, you have to police the police.Cops are around to enforce the laws in a disinterested way - that is, without fear, favour or bias. They see you committing a crime, they arrest you. They discover that you’ve committed a crime, they arrest you.However, that’s all the police do. They don’t put you on trial or convict you, because we strongly believe that cops should not also be judge and jury.Police corruption has to be treated the same way: the police cannot be their own police, judge and jury - not because they’re not trustworthy (gosh, perish the thought), but because it presents an irresolvable conflict of interest.You need an independent body that can investigate complaints against police, compel testimony and evidence, and make findings of fact that can then be referred to the courts. This independent body also needs to have clear rules and laws that set standards for police behaviour and clear penalties for misbehaviour.If these things are in place and you hire people who will do their job with decent competence, you’ll quickly start cracking down on police corruption because corrupt cops will realise there’s a very good chance they’ll get caught.Of course, it’s easier said than done because all of these things have to go right to succeed. But that’s how you’d do it.
Noble cause corruption in Serpico?
Frank Serpico was a whistle blower long before the term was coined. He was surrounded by corruption that had been around for many years and was expected to just go along with it. His refusal to give in to bribery and other vices cost him many friends, his career, and very nearly his life. The book written on him that was the basis for the Movie has one line that sums up his whole outlook. "All Frank Serpico wanted was to be a good cop. Maybe that was the problem, he wanted it too much"
Do cops get paid for the traffic citations they write? Do they also get paid extra for locking up offenders?
wow, that's really surprising. well, in Watertown, WI (which is about 25,000 people) the officers definitely do not get paid. I reviewed their budget substantially... and it almost all gets sent up to the county/state level. The only time the department gets any money is for parking tickets (and that is such a small small fraction of their budget that it's hardly worth mentioning) and it doesn't go directly to the officers in any way. And they don't get anything for arrests (well i guess if they end up paying a citation because of it, the same deal as above). You'd have to look at the budget i guess to figure it out for each place. For this department, anyway, the incentive is to make sure that you are "up to par" with your other officers - if they are writing 20 tickets a week and you are writing 2, your supervisors are going to wonder what the heck you're doing when you're supposed to be working. Again though that is really interesting that they get paid, and that much.. that seems to me like it would invite corruption
What are some experiences to share about corrupt officers that you met?
One could write a multi-volume book on it. Most of the work related crooks are written off as street dogs looking for a biscuit, and they are treated as low forms of life.I will share one traumatic and one humorous personal experience.My passport had got stolen while traveling to the US. The Indian embassy said they could issue a duplicate passport in 3 weeks, or an Emergency Travel Document in 3 days. I opted for the latter and traveled back home on that.On reaching the Delhi immigration, the officer asked me to wait till the queue for passport carrying passengers ends. Flight after flight was landing, and finally my turn came after 4 hours of standing. The person was extremely rude, asked if I had been jailed in the US or deported (none of which would be reason for traveling on ETD). I kept my patience, while he played around, took 2-1/2 hours before he cleared me. His last request was if I could get his son a job in my company. With my clearance in my hand, I told him I will, but he will have to undergo a DNA test to find out his real father.The humorous one - my car was stopped on a Sunday morning at 6.30am on Mehrauli Gurgaon Rd. Apparently I was doing 55 on a 50Kms speed limit road. I stopped my car and saw that there were scores more stopped in front of me. The cop rolled over and said I had been caught on radar. I asked him about the enforcement on a Sunday morning with sparse traffic and no pedestrians, and inquired sarcastically if it was SHO's son's birthday. He said yes, to which I said that hasn't he collected enough for the party.His reply left me guffawing. He had smiled and said, "Sir what can I do, the bastard has twins".
Wanting to write to international prisoners in the Philippines or Indonesia jails?
Sorry to say kid, but your wasting your time. There is no website. Jails in the Phlippines are strictly controlled by the Prison governor. They decide what goes on, who gets what etc. The Philippines is very poor. If your in jail in the Philippines - you dont have any rights. What goes on in those jails is a living hell for anybody stuck there for any period of time. The police and the army in the philppines are a power unto themselves. The corruption is rife - the police and the army do whatever they please. So you can just imagine the power of life and death that the local prison governor has. Only people with money - who can bribe prison wardens and officials - decide what goes on and who does what. If you dont have money to bribe officials to let relatives in to see you and write to you - then you dont have any rights. People are not segregated because of the crime they committed - everyone is but together. Rapists and the worst kind of evil people are put together with people who have stolen something just because they were poor and wanted something to eat. The jails in the Philippines are among the worst in the world - a true disgrace for a democracy. A few years ago, the Philippines government was accused of allowing the police and the military to round up political opposition and put them in jail as well as crimes against political opposition leaders - accusations which have proven all too real after the Mindanao massacres by the mayor Ampatuan. If your serious about pursuing it, i would probably write to Amnesty International and ask about jails in the Philippines. Either that, or you could try the international websites about people in jail for whatever crimes. Or you could try the Philippines Department of Justice and human rights groups and political groups who are demanding changes in the philippines jails. Your heart is in the right place - and i respect that. But the reality in the Philippines is much more darker and hellish.
When caught by traffic police for driving without a valid license, I was asked for a fine of Rs. 100 without a receipt (corrupt way) and Rs. 500 with a receipt. Why shouldn't I choose the corrupt way?
You should always insist on a challan. A challan for Rs. 500 cannot be settled on the spot. It can either be settled in the traffic office or in court. Always opt for court. In fact you insist with the challaning officer that the challan should be sent out to court. But that is before he starts writing on the challan book. After that you should politely and patiently wait for him to finish and hand over the traffic ticket to you.Here is what is going to happen when you insist on a court challan. The cop will have to be present in court and that is something no cop likes doing. The term court challan is just used by the cops to intimidate you. They will say something like it will take 7 days and court can send you to prison. You will need to hire a lawyer etc. etc. These are all tactics to intimidate you so that you settle for less amount or in other words bribe. Don’t fall for this. Stick to your ground and insist on a court challan.You should also know what happens after you get the court challan. Each cop gets a challan book from the traffic office. He needs to submit this challan book to get a new one issued. Normally it takes a cop around 4 to 5 days to completely use all the tickets in that book. Once he submits the challan book along with all the documents that he had confiscated, the challans are processed by the traffic office. Depending upon city to city, it takes between 7 to 15 days before they send your challan to the court. You can go to traffic office after 7 days, show them your challan and insist on court date. They will give you a court date. On the given date, go to the court. Do not hire any lawyer. Plead your own case and inform the court about the mitigating circumstances. For example if you have forgotten the DL, present the court with your current DL and explain how you forgot to carry the DL with you. If you were caught speeding, explain why you were speeding and what was the nature of your emergency. Usually for genuine reasons, courts are quite understanding and may just let you go by giving you a warning or a small fine.Having said all that, you should, always remember to follow traffic rules. You should also carry all the requisite documents with you while driving. These are:1. Driving License - Original2. RC - Attested Photocopy or Original.3. Insurance - - Attested Photocopy or Original.4. PUC - Pollution Under Control Certificate - Original.There will be no reason for the cops to harass you then.