Quote:
Originally Posted by Bent Wookie
I disagree. The problem is, everyone begs for discretion. I good friend of mine is troubled by what he sees as the the 'random' application of the law. That police shouldn't have discretion as they are simply tools of state.
|
I can't agree with that, there is a risk of corruption with the exercise of the power of discretion, but that can be minimized by proper recruitment, training and oversight. No individual should be a "tool of the state", we are free citizens, not automatons.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bent Wookie
No. I was just pointing out the reality of 'discretion'. If a cop does exercise discretion, the person that did get the ticket for the same offense wonders why. If he does give the ticket, people wonder why the cop didnt' use discretion.
|
This is a problem, yes, but that is because the nature of the world is that people aren't truly interested in what is fair and just, but rather in that any injustice be spread equally or tilted in their favour. This is something that isn't going to ever go away.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Bent Wookie
Unfair? What is unfair about it? He applied the law. Poor judgement I guess is a matter of opinion. I have trouble arriving at that conclusion based solely on the information provided by the ticketee.
|
What's unfair is that it wasn't his car. Is it *reasonable* to expect someone to borrow a car and check to see if he has some expired insurance documents along with his valid one? Is it *reasonable* that after stopping someone and searching the car for weapons or drugs or whatever they were looking for, that upon finding nothing the logical next step is to give them a traffic ticket for an offence that had nothing to do with the original reason for search?
"I stopped you by mistake, therefore making you give me your insurance, which then technically put you in violation of an obscure law, so the correct thing to do now to give you a ticket on top of wasting your time and making you feel like a criminal." Yah, that sounds like a winning formula all the way.