is it against the law for a police officer to not arrest someone because of their relationship with the person?
for example - if an officer married a drug dealer (or some other form of criminal), and the officer knew about his/hers partners addiction - is it against the law for the officer not to arrest his partner?
im not a cop or anything... im just interested =]
2007-12-04 18:30:35 · 3 answers · asked by curRy xox luva <3 2 in Politics & Government ➔ Law & Ethics
No it's not illegal in and of itself. It is a violation of the ethics governing law enforcement, as well as the policy of every law enforcement agency I have ever known of. It is also illegal to have material evidence or knowledge of a crime / felony and not report it. It's called being an accessory, and that is illegal.
2007-12-04 18:38:35 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, it's not.
It would quite likely violate various disciplinary rules of the police department, but it's not illegal.
Police have virtually total discretion over whether or not to make an arrest.
Richard
2007-12-04 18:34:45 · answer #2 · answered by rickinnocal 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Rick is right. But the department might be justified in firing the officer for their close relation to criminal elements.
2007-12-04 18:38:48 · answer #3 · answered by Marco R 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋