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Why Do Dangerous Financial Criminals Roam Free?
http://www.alternet.org/economy/153997/why_do_dangerous_financial_criminals_roam_free/American Public Media's "Marketplace" had a recent segment focused on why it has taken so long to bring criminal prosecutions related to the financial crisis. Reporters observed that at the beginning of the crisis, the Obama administration wanted to calm the financial industry rather than impose accountability. They speculated, along with Tea Party and Occupy Wall Street participants, many of whom have been calling for prosecutions, that Obamas creation of a new group to prosecute mortgage fraud led by New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman was likely to be politically motivated. And they indicated that financial crimes are complex and prosecutors need time to develop their cases.
But here's what they didn't say: A major reason the prosecutions dont exist is that President George W. Bush took the cops off the beat.
Think about street crime. Imagine, for example, a protection racket in which gangs extort payment from fearful shopkeepers. Prosecutors rarely initiate criminal prosecutions; indeed, they may not even know that the crime is occurring. The police pound the beats that keep them aware of the increase in crime, respond to complaints, investigate, determine that a crime may have occurred that warrants attention, create a file and send it to the prosecutors office. In routine cases, the prosecution proceeds on the basis of the police report alone. In more complex cases, the prosecutor may supplement the police investigation. But prosecutors rarely initiate cases. Even when a task force is appointed to target crime in a particular sector, it typically involves prosecutors working with the police. The prosecutors simply dont have the skills or the manpower to detect crime, conduct investigations and make the record necessary to prosecute.
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Why Do Dangerous Financial Criminals Roam Free? (Original Post)
xchrom
Feb 2012
OP
They roam free because our government wants them nearby to recycle..it's a green thing. n/t
Jefferson23
Feb 2012
#4
ZombieHorde
(29,047 posts)1. They have awesome lobbyists, awesome lawyers, and strategic donations? nt
bemildred
(90,061 posts)2. And lots of our politicians are self-serving cowards. nt
Jefferson23
(30,099 posts)4. They roam free because our government wants them nearby to recycle..it's a green thing. n/t
bemildred
(90,061 posts)5. Where else can you get really big campaign contributions? nt
gopiscrap
(23,765 posts)7. One reason only
Huge campaign contributions...in our system a candidate could eat a baby on live tv and if he/she promised to open the spigots to business then he/she would still be financed to the hilt by those businesses. Nothing in this cou ntry matters anymore except making a buck!!!