01-25-2018, 01:21 PM
(01-25-2018, 01:05 PM)Sociopathicsteelerfan Wrote: This is why I enjoy discussing things with you. Well argued.
The NYPD cards are wholly unethical, especially if they are expected to work as no questions asked, you're free to go. The argument I am making regarding discretion is that, if you have the discretion to let someone off of a citation, then it's hard to make a fact based argument that you are abusing said discretion. If you only let fellow LEO's off that would be abuse. If you let other people off, dependent on the circumstances, then it would not. I'd also like to stress, for others trying to engage in this discussion, that we are talking about citations, not criminal acts. Letting someone off for a criminal act would not be ethical, regardless of who committed said act.
So here is where I think we are diverging in our scenarios. If an officer exercises discretion in handing out a citation based on contextual circumstances, more often than not it is initiated by the officer. In my scenario, the scenario at the DMV, or someone pulling out a card from the NYPD, this is someone asking for preferential treatment. I may be a bureaucrat, but I know that black and white policies/rules don't cover every situation and there has to be flexibility, which leads to discretion. However, when someone seeks preferential treatment because of their position or because of who they know, they are acting unethically and so too is the one acquiescing.
I hope my argument makes sense.
