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To: microgood

So that innocent citizens can pay for police misconduct? That is trying to make Right out of two Wrongs.


35 posted on 07/18/2008 12:57:06 PM PDT by stop_fascism
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To: stop_fascism
So that innocent citizens can pay for police misconduct? That is trying to make Right out of two Wrongs.

It is just a matter of understanding power and human nature. If police are not restrained they will show no restraint. If the exclusionary rule is eliminated, no police officer will ever get a search warrant again. They will kick down any door they want any time they want. That is just a fact of human nature.
37 posted on 07/18/2008 1:01:14 PM PDT by microgood
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To: stop_fascism
So that innocent citizens can pay for police misconduct? That is trying to make Right out of two Wrongs.

Absent the exclusionary rule, cops who use illegal means to get evidence that yields convictions will tend to get a "NEVER DO THAT AGAIN (wink wink)" from their bosses. Prosecutors have little incentive to go after cops who help them get convictions, and judges don't have any authority to punish such cops themselves.

On the other hand, if a cop uses illegal means to get evidence and cases get thrown out as a result, the cops' bosses are going to be very unhappy. Since cops don't want to anger their bosses, they'll have a strong incentive to avoid having their cases thrown out.

If the police mess up 0.1% of the time, then letting 0.1% of criminals get another chance to prey on society because of the exclusionary rule is a small price to pay for having a lawful police force. If police mess up 10% of the time, the 10% of criminals who are let go will be a small problem compared to the ones on the force.

64 posted on 07/18/2008 6:04:16 PM PDT by supercat
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