Comment by morganvachon | Hacker News Reader

Comment by morganvachon | Hacker News Reader

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I worked as technical support staff in law enforcement for many years before transitioning to knowledge work, and I assure you this very scenario (even without facial recognition oopsies) happens all the time, especially to people of color. It's one of the main reasons I got disgusted with the career and got out. People get arrested based on bad-faith tips, usually on a Friday so they can be held all weekend since detectives generally work banker's hours. If a suspect is in a holding cell they generally don't have access to a water fountain and must ask for water from jailers/guards who have already judged them as less than human and will "forget" to get them food and water. When Monday comes and the CID commander shows up, he will make the decision to cut the suspect loose because they never should have been detained in the first place, the detective(s) involved move on to the next suspect, and the cycle repeats.

It's disgusting and amoral and dehumanizing, and that's why I hated the job even though I had no direct involvement apart from running background checks and processing evidence.

That sounds really horrible. ..so they just snatch people up and abuse them on any slight pretext, depriving them of even water for days?

That seems bad enough like someone should've tried to fix it by now. I guess there'd be issues making it difficult to improve?

Those most critical of the system tend to be former employees, and some lose their jobs because they speak up. I wasn't that brave, I kept my mouth shut while I worked there but that in turn led to me hating the job, and myself, even more.

And I'm not saying that my experience or the man in the article's experience is "normal", but it certainly does seem widespread. There have been efforts to improve the situation in pre-trial jails; the PREA (Prison Rape Elimination Act) has had a measurable positive effect on it even though its focus is more on post-conviction incarceration, but I have observed jail staff laughing at and making fun of county jail PREA training (I worked as a training officer for a while at the end of my career, my effort in trying to make things better). There is simply a lack of empathy and compassion that is part of the job requirement; if you show a heart you are pushed out of the career by the heartless ones. By and large, especially at the ground level in booking/processing/housing, the workforce is mostly bullies and sadists with a few more-or-less "normal" people in the mix to try and keep it under control.

Accept that the behavior is basic human nature. No one can fix it.

You can say this about any social problem. It's a lazy way to avoid having to try and make it better.

Surely you can't be detained for more than 24hrs without charge?

Please note this is the process where I worked but it is different depending on where you are and which level of government you're dealing with (municipal, county, state, federal, etc.) Also I am not a legal expert, this is simply my experience while working in the system.

It varies by jurisdiction, but in most cases you can be arrested on a warrant and held for "first appearance" before a judge, where you are either formally charged by the court or the charges are dropped. If you are arrested on a Friday evening in a jurisdiction that doesn't do weekend court (usually smaller cities and counties), you will stew in jail until said first appearance on Monday. If the charges are dropped at first appearance (which is usually held by videoconference) you are released but the arrest remains on your record until you have it expunged. If you are formally charged at first appearance, you then either receive a bail/bond amount, are released on your own recognizance, or else bound over for indictment. Once indicted, you again may be able to make bail unless the charges/circumstances determine you are to be held without bail (i.e. you are considered a danger to yourself/others/your alleged victim, or you are a flight risk).

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