Baltimore State Attorney Drops Dozens of Cases: Body Cam Shows Drug-Planting
There is an important distinction between someone who doesn&#x27;t misbehave for fear of being watched, and someone who wishes to be watched in fear of the perception of misbehavior.<p>There is no substitute for someone who&#x27;s intent is to try and get away with things, and someone who&#x27;s intent is to serve a cause, be of service, and not get away with anything.<p>So really, we should build a system where the intent of transparency is paramount, not just transparency itself.<p>Two things immediately come to mind.<p>1. Super-incentivize snitching. Reward whistle-blowers to the point where it becomes an easy decision. Not only monetary, but with honor and with medals. Make it the new &quot;right thing to do&quot; in public service. Fight corruption. Easy sell.<p>2. Super-disincentivize ulterior motives and their actions. Treat crimes by officers as far more severe and malicious than of non-officers. And they are. So if a police officer murders a civilian, punishment should be 10x or 100x. Same with stealing a slice of pizza or ignoring a stop sign.<p>The point isn&#x27;t that we should punish officers more. The point is we should all raise them to higher standards, and the officers themselves should willingly accept that higher burden of responsibility.<p>It should be their responsibility to not profile or discriminate based on appearances of anyone or their car. It should be their responsibility to preserve life at all costs, even at a higher risk to themselves.<p>And this will deter crookedness and incompetence. If an officer cannot do their job, they shouldn&#x27;t. And if an officer thinks they can get away with anything, they shouldn&#x27;t. Being a cop or even buying a cop like in the movies should not pose any criminal opportunities.