OPERATION: Luke Skywalker
Is there a New Hope to expose institutionalized corruption within our government agencies?
Leadership in Law Enforcement is compromised. The senior ranks of most departments, from local to Federal, are compromised in some way. That's why things stay the same, why basic questions sometimes don't get answered about major events that affect us all. It only takes a few bad apples corrupted by a lust for politics, power, rank, money, vice, and racism. This post is not about the bad officers.
This post is about the good officers.
“YOU ARE OUR ONLY HOPE”
Corruption gets institutionalized in our government agencies, including law enforcement, from the top down. The chief, the unit commander, discourages the people that they have control over to not pursue certain issues; “Do not investigate this further,” “Stop your investigation here. Going further is not authorized.” This stops corruption from being uncovered and it stops justice being realized through prosecuting those responsible for criminal acts based in corruption. Since corruption in organizations is controlled from the top down, if there's any Hope to expose corruption, it has to come from the bottom up.
Allow me to introduce to you, “Operation: Luke Skywalker.” In the original Star Wars movie (A New Hope), a lone pilot, Luke Skywalker, was able to take down the most powerful star-ship in the Galactic Empire, the Death Star.
As Admiral Dodonna explained to Luke and the Rebel pilots in the briefing before the Battle of Yavin:
“The battle station's defenses are designed around a direct large-scale assault. A small, one-man fighter should be able to penetrate the outer defense. The Empire doesn't consider a small one-man fighter to be any threat.”
One Lone Hero Makes a Difference
The majority of law enforcement officers and government employees are good, honest people. They chose their careers wanting to make a difference; like most of us, they too want justice and fairness. National statistics show that 90% of cops are never investigated for misconduct. These are the officers that I am talking to in this article. You are the heroes of Operation: Luke Skywalker.
We need the rank and file good agents to step up for Truth and Justice, and to expose the Bad Apples, even if they are your boss. YOU can make a difference!
It is risky to pursue what's right. It can be daunting. You might worry about your career advancement, your pension, threats to your safety. When I joined the fight for criminal justice as a defense attorney, I too had to sacrifice financial security, and in many ways my personal freedom. Go for what's right. Commit yourself to it.
I got into law because truth and justice were important to me. If you got into law enforcement because truth and justice were important to you, the time has come for you to start doing the job for which you signed up. Keep your eyes open, take notes, start building cases. Work late, come in on weekends. Put in the work. When you are ready, do not take it up the chain of command. They're going to squash your work, then destroy you.
Resist the temptation to take down anyone you have beef with. Don't go after anyone because you don't like them. Don't pursue anybody for political agendas. Any personal bias will be used to impugn you. Let justice and the law be your guide, nothing else.
Who Can You Trust?
Find a good prosecutor that you can trust. Cops know who the dirty prosecutors are, and they certainly know the ones that don't bend or break the law for a guilty verdict. These are your advocates. Bring your evidence to a prosecutor who shares your beliefs in pursuing justice, no matter who it is against. We must clean house within our institutions to root out corruption, from the bottom up.
This is a grassroots movement of low to mid-level law enforcement agents and other government workers to start exposing corruption within their ranks. Innocent lives are relying on you to protect them. Even if it is your boss – your supervisor, know you are doing the right thing. We can't have a two-tiered system of justice.
If we are to have any hope in our future, it will come from reforming, not de-funding law enforcement. We need to believe in law enforcement. For this to happen, we need to know that law enforcement is pursuing the law, in a blind, non-biased way, against anyone who is harming our society. This can only happen when we know that the corruption within our government agencies is being tackled head on. Reform must come from within.
You can do it. Please. Our entire country is depending on you. And, since America is still a beacon of freedom to the world, the entire world is depending on you too.
