Recent orders
Undercover work & using informants (US)
Undercover work & using informants (US)
Introduction
There are many times that informants are utilized in order to find incriminating information. In turn, most people have referred to this whole process as being dirty business. It really is true because most of the informants are people in the underworld who choose to help law enforcers with investigative work. Often in most criminal cases, the informant is used in order to provide evidence that would not be usually obtained. During the U.S. v. Bernal-Obseo the court noted that “Criminals caught in our system understand they can mitigate their own problems with the law by becoming a witness against someone else” (Brown, 2007). This paper seeks to give a critical analysis of the civilian, confidential and criminal informants used during undercover work.
Confidential Informants and Undercover work
In the undercover world, the confidential informants are known as ‘rats’, ‘snakes’, ‘turncoats’ and ‘pigeons’, among other words. They tend to exaggerate and lie in order to suit their own purposes. According to the Ninth Circuit, the American judicial history has had many cases whereby, informants often pointed fingers of guilt to defendants as well as suspects. This then created a high risk to innocent people who were later on sent to prison. It cannot be denied that informants have a vital role to play during the investigation of different types of crime and, especially drug trafficking (Brown, 2007). It is because people who are involved in various illegal enterprises tend to be naturally obsessed with matters of secrecy. Therefore, the people who have the ability of obtaining inside information that will support search warrants and arrests are fellow hoodlums and felons. The information provided by them is usually quite accurate as evidence suggests. There is a high percentage of search warrants that are quite productive because of their tips. This is why the American Supreme Court summed everything by saying that an informer is part and parcel of the defensive arsenal of a case.
Confidential Informants will therefore refuse to offer assistance to officers for obvious reasons; unless they are assured that their identity will not be known. In fact, the Court of Appeal claims that most of the information it obtains concerning crime comes from various informants. The informants would not be willing to provide the information if their identity would not be concealed. This has made the law to give officers a privilege or right to refuse to provide information about the identity of any informants. The privilege protects the name of the informant as well as the portions of communication about and from the informant that would make their identity known (Neubauer & Fradella, 2013).
The privilege is thus absolute and an officer is never required to identify any informants. At times, the defendant can file a Motion in order to disclose the informant, in what is known as an MDI. In this case, if a court establishes that an Informant is a key witness for defense, it has to dismiss all the charges held against the defendant and the officer no longer has the privilege. The consequences are extremely severe because if the officer refuses to identify the material witness, the defendant will not have a fair trial. The testimony by the witness cannot be able to assist the defendant and the attorney knows this fact (Khalil, 2012).
Civilian Informants and Undercover Work
In a recent story in the Chicago Sun-Times, a lot of information was given about how the use of civilian informants often leads to their deaths. In this case, the civilian informant was meant to carry out some undercover work for the FBI in exchange for his freedom. Earlier on, the informant known as Timothy Frost, a jail guard had been found guilty of having a truckload of stolen DVD’s. In order to obtain his freedom he had to give Henderson an arms dealer, $15000 in order to buy illegal hand grenades and guns. However, everything did not go on as planned and Frost lost his life after being shot in the head. In a judgment by Michelle Simmons, Henderson was sentenced to 80 years in prison. The issue that arises here is that there are cavalier risks associated with the use of civilian informants. It means that law enforcement officers continue to disregard the safety of civilians who chose to take part in undercover work. For example, in Illinois, there are no laws that seek to protect the informants and this has raised the number of undercover deaths. Civilians tend to be put in situations whereby, in reality no sane agent or officer would agree to be in (Jansenn, 2013).
The case of Forest proves that civilians are untrained to participate in undercover work. They then go and participate in extremely dangerous forms of police work according to Lance Block, a lawyer based in Florida. The use of civilian informants in dangerous operations takes place on a daily basis, all over the United States. However, there are no existing checks and balances to protect informants who will be coerced so as to cooperate. According to the FBI, they have Justice Department booklet that has 26 pages, but it only has 2 sentences about the security of informants. The FBI claims that it is in their interests to ensure that the informants are safe. The agents make it their mission to ensure that the tough situations can be dealt with by the informants. Some of the informants are lucky to be alive but they suffer from trauma most of their lives. It is not a happy feeling to know that you are responsible for the death of other people. The use of civilian informants is not a valuable tool for fighting crime because of its many disadvantages. The FBI has gone to claim many times that it offers the best protection for informants as it does to its agents (Jansenn, 2013).
Criminal Informants and Undercover Work
It seems that the utilization of criminal informants is not visible to the public, but in fact it takes place almost everywhere in the American justice system. From the prisons to court houses, jails to street corners, this is going on. The deals tend to be off the record and are subjected to very little and few oversight and rules. The criminal informants are key investigative tools and their usage has lead to the reduction of some costs. Unfortunately, these informants continue with their criminal activities while providing officers with unreliable information. This has in turn created problems in the American justice system because of the problematic aspect associated with using criminal informants (Natapoff, 2010).
This practice of using guilt to obtain information is quite pervasive and it has turned out to be a flourishing business. An example is that of Ann Colomb and her sons, who were in the year 2006, wrongfully convicted of having a cocaine business in Louisiana. They were found guilty after jailhouse informants gave fabricated testimonies as part of a snitch ring. The ring was made up of prisoners who gave information to the prosecutors so as to get reduced sentences. Police who tend to rely on information provided by criminal informants can make innocent people suffer by paying a heavy price. Some of these criminal informants have created crimes, yet they are working for the government. An example is Albert Gonzalez, a secret service informant found guilty of running a theft ring involving credit card data. Gonzalez used his government connections in order to run the illegal activities and assist other hackers from being detected. The use of criminal informants needs to stop and public policy should be established to address this issue. Many lives, as well as millions of dollars are being wasted because of this issue. It should not be allowed to exist either in the shadows or off-record (Natapoff, 2010).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the use of informants in detective work has had many disadvantages and advantages. There are some people who believe in the use of informants can help catch criminals, but this is not always the case. A lot needs to be addressed to ensure that innocent civilians do not lose their lives as well as be wrongfully accused for crimes they did not commit. Informants should be credible people who can provide the needed evidence to get hold of criminals. Therefore, the criminal justice system still has a long way till it can have an effective policy concerning undercover work and informants.
References
Brown, Ethan. (2007). Snitch: Informants, Cooperators, and the Corruption of Justice. New York: Public Affairs.
Jansenn, Kim. (2013). FBI use of civilian informants raises questions after Timothy Forrest’s murder. Chicago Sun Times. Retrieved from HYPERLINK “http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/19155601-418/fbi-undercover-work-too-risky-for-civilians.html” http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/19155601-418/fbi-undercover-work-too-risky-for-civilians.html
Khalil, Adam. (2012). Knock, Knock, Who’s There?: Undercover Officers, Police Informants, and the “Consent Once Removed” Doctrine. Seton Hall Law Review, 4, 41, 1569-1597.
Natapoff, Alexandra. (2010). Snitching: Criminal Informants and the Erosion of American Justice. New York: New York University Press.
Neubauer, David. & Fradella, Henry. (2013). America’s Courts and the Criminal Justice System. New York: Cengage Learning.
Under what conditions might government intervention, in an economy improve the market outcome
Economics 1
Contents
TOC o “1-3” h z u HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805392” Under what conditions might government intervention, in an economy improve the market outcome? give an examples why and how the government can intervene PAGEREF _Toc377805392 h 1
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805393” – When there is exploitation of the larger society by the few commercial individuals. PAGEREF _Toc377805393 h 1
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805394” Suppose that the residents of Vegpia spend all of their income on cauliflower, broccoli and carrots. In 2009 they buy 100 heads of cauliflower for $200, 50 bunches of broccoli for $75 and 500 carrots for $50. In 2010 they buy 75 heads of cauliflower for $225, 80 bunches of broccoli for $ 120 and 500 carrots for $100. If the base year is 2009 what is the CPI in both years? What is the inflation rate in 2010? PAGEREF _Toc377805394 h 3
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805395” Describe three problems that make the consumer price index an imperfect measure of cost of living PAGEREF _Toc377805395 h 3
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805396” It does not take into consideration the change in quality PAGEREF _Toc377805396 h 4
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805397” 3.CPI does not put into consideration improvement in technology PAGEREF _Toc377805397 h 4
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805398” Referring to statistics Canada’s web site PAGEREF _Toc377805398 h 4
HYPERLINK l “_Toc377805399” 6.in order to support the Canadian dollar, suppose the bank of Canada buys an amount of Euros from some major commercial Canadian banks (a type of operation the bank of Canada rarely undertakes). PAGEREF _Toc377805399 h 7
Under what conditions might government intervention, in an economy improve the market outcome? give an examples why and how the government can interveneThe market forces are always believed to bring the market back to equilibrium: this is the premise of free trade. However there is always need for government intervention when the following happens:
– When there is exploitation of the larger society by the few commercial individuals.
This can be done by hoarding commodities in order to create an artificial shortage of the good and increase the price (Wolf, 1993). If left unsolved this can lead to demand pull inflation where too little goods are chased by a lot of money.
– When the rights to property and safety for the people has been tampered with.
The responsibility of the government is to ensure that all the goods and services offered to the public are up to standard and do not pose any harm or danger to the people. If the consumption of some commodities pose any physical or psychological harm to the people the government has to intervene.
– When there is lack of equality and monopolization of markets.
Equality in a market is when there is equal access to inputs and equal access to market. The actions of one producer should not hinder those of another producer at any point of the production or distribution process (Wolf, 1993). Monopolies are sometimes formed as a result of mergers and amalgamations of many firms. This has to be controlled and closely monitored by the government as monopolies are known for exploitation and not catering for the welfare of its clients.
Generally in a market there is usually an equilibrium point that is comfortable and efficient for both the consumers and the producers. All the above factors tamper with the equilibrium point and the market does not clear, this leads to market failure. The government in this case has to intervene by setting a price for the commodities or supplying more of the goods into the market and bringing the price down to the initial equilibrium point.
A good example is the money market, when there is inflation in the country, the Canadian dollar will depreciate against the American dollar and there will be a high demand for the Canadian dollar, the government will have to buy off all the excess money and in the process fiscal and monetary policies will lead to appreciation of the dollar.
Suppose that the residents of Vegpia spend all of their income on cauliflower, broccoli and carrots. In 2009 they buy 100 heads of cauliflower for $200, 50 bunches of broccoli for $75 and 500 carrots for $50. In 2010 they buy 75 heads of cauliflower for $225, 80 bunches of broccoli for $ 120 and 500 carrots for $100. If the base year is 2009 what is the CPI in both years? What is the inflation rate in 2010?CPI is the change in the cost of goods over a period of time (Hall, 2009). In this case we are using 2009 as the base year, so the reference will be the prices that were in 2009.
2009- Cauliflower 200/100 = $2.00
Broccoli 75/50 = $1.50
Carrots 50/500 = $0.10
(2.00 + 1.50 + 0.10) = (3.60 / 3.60) × 100 = 100
CPI1 = 100
2010 – Cauliflower 225/75 = $3.00
Broccoli 120/ 80 = $ 1.50
Carrots 100/500 = $0.20
(3.00 + 1.50 + 0.20) = (4.70/ 3.60) × 100 = 130.56
CPI 2 = 130.56
The inflation rate between the two years will be:
CPI 1 –CPI 2 = 130.56 – 100 = 30.56% is the inflation
Describe three problems that make the consumer price index an imperfect measure of cost of livingchange in preferences
CPI does not take into account the changes in the tastes and preferences of the consumers. CPI is mostly measured using a specific good basket that is considered to be of the basic commodities that almost all households consume. The most common and famous brand is picked and is used to calculate. However the one thing that CPI does not consider is the natural behavior of consumers (Baker, 1998). When good become expensive they shift from using those goods and start using others and if it is possible to completely do away with it then they will.
It does not take into consideration the change in qualityThe commodity can have an increase in price over time because it has improved in its quality with time. In order for a firm to produce high quality products it has to use better inputs and improved technology increasing the production cost (Hall, 2009). This will automatically increase the price of the final product. The difference in the quality of the goods is not considered by CPI. There will be inflation even if the quality of goods that the consumers are purchasing, are more standard and better than they previously were.
3.CPI does not put into consideration improvement in technologyCPI does not put into consideration changes in the technology. This is because technology leads to change in taste and preference especially in the contemporary world (Baker, 1998). Currently technology is changing at a very high speed; this only renders CPI as inaccurate when it is used to measure the level of inflation in an economy. CPI is only effective where the level of technology has no impact on the production and consumption patterns.
Referring to statistics Canada’s web sitea). which three provinces had the greatest real GDP per capita in 2008?
Ontario
b). calculate the shares of each of these provinces in Canada’s real GDP in 2008
Region 2008 GDP Share
Canada1 1,583,164 100%
Newfoundland and Labrador 29,425 1.86%
Prince Edward Island 4,665 0.295%
Nova Scotia 34,685 2.19%
New Brunswick 28,226 1.783%
Quebec 310,687 19.624%
Ontario 596,722 37.691%
Manitoba 51,241 3.24%
Saskatchewan 54,776 3.46%
Alberta 262,864 16.603%
British Columbia 199,228 12.584%
Yukon 1,990 0.126%
Northwest Territories 4,280 0.27%
Nunavut 1,518 0.0959%
Outside Canada 665 0.042%
c). in which province was the consumer price index the highest in each of the years 2006 to 2009? Can you think of an explanation?
Alberta, because it has the fastest increasing population and there is a high demand for goods and services to cater for the needs of the increasing market.
5. Consider a closed economy. Use the supply and demand for loanable fund model to predict the effects of the following events on interest rates and investment. Label graph completely for full marks
a). The government introduces a tax credit for savings accounts of up to $5000 per year
Red represents the demand for loanable funds while the blue represents the supply for loanable funds from people’s savings (Sexton, 2011). The point where the two intersect represents the equilibrium point where the amount saved is equal to the amount borrowed for investment.
The supply will increase and the supply curve will shift to the green line.
b). The government a tax credit for savings accounts of up to $5000 per year, and at the same time it repeals an investment tax exemption provision
The demand for loanable funds will increase and there will be a shift in the demand curve from the red one to the yellow one. The supply of loanable funds will have increased and the green curve will be its new curve. This will lead to a new equilibrium point. The interest rates will remain the same but the equilibrium quantity will increase.
c). The government raises the tax rates
An increase in the taxes will decrease the rate of investment and decrease the demand for loanable funds. This will shift the demand curve from the red line to the purple line and there will also be a decrease in interest rates charged (Sexton, 2011).
d). The government issues bonds worth $10 billion
This will decrease the supply of loanable funds as more people will withdraw their cash in order to purchase the bonds. This will shift the supply curve inwards from the blue line to the brown line. The interest rates will increase.
6.in order to support the Canadian dollar, suppose the bank of Canada buys an amount of Euros from some major commercial Canadian banks (a type of operation the bank of Canada rarely undertakes).
a. when the bank of Canada purchases Euros from the commercial banks, it means they are willing to make Euros more available to the public at a cheaper price. It will increase the quantity of money that is in supply in the economy. This has the immediate effect of making the Canadian dollar to appreciate. However in the long run forces of the market will bring the value back to the equilibrium point. This is because a strong currency in the long run leads to a trade deficit and in order to bring the balance of trade to equilibrium there must be some form of depreciation.
b. if the bank of Canada does not wish to affect the money supply, it can increase the reserve requirement and limit the amount of money that the commercial banks can advance to the public in the form of loans. This will ensure that the currency swap does not affect the quantity of money that is circulating in the economy.
References
Baker, D. (1998). Getting Prices Right: The debate Over the Consumer Price Index, Columbia Publishers
Hall, E. R. Lieberman, M. (2009). HYPERLINK “http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=q5S1uMWg-WUC&pg=PA229&dq=loanable+fund+model&hl=en&sa=X&ei=i1hLUpHYC4f80QXrzYCoBg&ved=0CEsQ6AEwBQ”Macroeconomics: Principles and Applications: Principles and Theory, Macmillan Publishers
HYPERLINK “http://www.statcan.gc.ca/start-debut-eng.html/Economic_accounts/gross_domestic_product/summary_tables”http://www.statcan.gc.ca/start-debut-eng.html/Economic_accounts/gross_domestic_product/summary_tables
Sexton, L. R. (2011). HYPERLINK “http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=37NKvBnugLcC&pg=PA360&dq=loanable+fund+model&hl=en&sa=X&ei=i1hLUpHYC4f80QXrzYCoBg&ved=0CDQQ6AEwAQ”Exploring Macroeconomics, 6th edition, Oxford University Press
HYPERLINK “http://books.google.co.ke/books?id=nRPYOUTcB-4C&pg=PA35&dq=government+intervention+in+markets&hl=en&sa=X&ei=y1dLUuSiJbSg0wXPsoDwBQ&ved=0CDsQ6AEwAg”Wolf, C. (1993). Markets or Governments: Choosing Between Imperfect Alternatives, Pearson Press Print, NJ
Under the Partnership Act of 1891
ILAC
Author’s Name
Institutional Affiliations
Date
ILAC
ISSUES:
Under the Partnership Act of 1891
Was the presence of Christian in the business in harmony with the Act?
If Christian was legally a partner in the business, did he have to get permission from the other members before he made the decision of purchasing the chairs?
Is it possible for Fantastic to file a case against the business in order to claim his balance?
If it is legal for Fantastic to file a suit against the business, does he do so against Christian alone or against all the partners in the business?
LAW: Business Law – Partnership
Statute: Partnership Act 1891(Qld)
Chapter 17.50: continuation of a partnership business
Chapter 17.57: Business created with the main aim of making profit
Chapter 17.220: Oblique conditions in a partnership
Chapter 17.350: How partners relate to a third party
Common Law:
M Young Legal Associates Ltd v Zahid (2006) WLR 2562- States that, a person is can be a partner even if this person does no want a share of the profit generated from the business
Construction Engineering (Aust) Pty Ltd v Hexyl Pty Ltd (1985) 155 CLR 541- This section states that each partner is a manager of the business and the other partners for the rationale of the partnership business.
APPLICATION
According to Chapter 17 of the Partnership Act of 1891, the responsibility of verification, the applicant who is Fantastic, must set up these elements in order to demonstrate that he should get back his balance:
Whether Christian is a valid partner of the business
He entered into the business agreement with Christian on the grounds of noticeable power
Should Fantastic’s prove all this without any discrepancy, then the defendant has no choice than to make a defense and the appropriate remedies will be evaluate
There are several legal issues which come in this case. For one to reach an effectual clarification, he/she must consider all the legal issues in this case. The basic issue in this case is how the three friends: Harry, Allan and Christian are determined to create a business relationship. Considering the type of business they want to venture into, it is good to understand whether the type of business is an appropriate partnership kind of business or not. The legal issue here is whether Christian is an applicable partner in the business or not. Looking deeper at the partnership kind of business, parties involved must run the business together and they must all be enthusiastic to run the business and the main aim of running the business is profit making. The partners can make an agreement amongst themselves orally or in writings. The second and last legal issue to be looked at is whether it is possible for Fantastic to claim the remaining balance of $ 4,000 or not from the business.
The law that can be used to rule out the matters occurring in this case is the Partnership Act of 1891. Chapter 17 of the Act explains the word partnership into details as a form of business between two or more people and the main aim of such a business is to profit making. The three friends: Harry, Allan and Christian sat down and reached an agreement to venture into the hospitality business. Their main aim was to generate profit from the business. The partners agreed to the business without any complain. This kind of agreement and business goes in line with the partnership kind of business.
The three friends had to come with a business plan for their business in order to make their business flow smoothly. This is clearly spelt out in the chapter 17.50 of the act as it is stated in the act that, for a business to run smoothly and grow the business must have a plan. Allan, Harry and Christian fulfilled the rule as stated in the chapter 17.50 of the act as they had a business plan for a restaurant.
When Allan and Harry asked Christian to join them in their business, Christian accepted but on conditions that, he will only be part of the business but will neither contribute any capital nor will he share the profits of the business though he must be entitled to a yearly retainer. The issue creates a controversy because it is not clear whether Christian’s conditions were in line with partnership business or not. In the Act, the answer to Christian’s case is seen in Chapter 17.57 where it is stated that, people can be partners in business even if they don’t contribute any capital or claim a share of the profit made. The vital part of this issue is depicted in the verdict of M Young Legal Associates Ltd v Zahid (2006) WLR 2562. Whether or not Christian contributed capital does not bar him from being a partner in the business.
It is now clear that Christian is a legal partner of the business. The next part is to understand the rights and duties that business partners have. Chapter 17.220 shows that the duties and privileges of partners. The privileges and duties of partners are that, each member of the partnership business is allowed to conduct major management of the business. Christian had the duty of purchasing for the business and supervising what Allan and Harry were doing and giving them appropriate advice.
Chapter 17.350 of the Act: Construction Engineering (Aust) Pty Ltd v Hexyl Pty Ltd (1985) 155 CLR 541. Support Christian’s act of buying chairs from Fantastic. According to the Act, Christian did so because he had the powers to do so as part of the partnership. In order to approve the fact that Christian was part of the business, the letter he faxed to Fantastic had the business’s letter head. Whatever Christian did was not wrong because he acted on behalf of the other members of the business.
Fantastic can therefore claim his balance from the business because Christian’s act was not against the Partnership Act of 1891. Christian did not act as an individual but acted as part of the business and he acted on behalf of the other members of the business as stated in the Act.