Reward Law Reform (and How to Calculate Rewards) Eight major problems with current reward laws are: (1) Excessive cost to amend State and federal (reward) laws every year. As a result many such laws are seldom updated. Specific dollar amount for rewards aren't increased as often as they should be to keep up with inflation to make the amount relevant to the times and increasing risks. Such reward laws wither on the vine. They are no longer effective or used. (2) Too many variations of reward laws so that they're buried in different Titles and Sections of the law. By including them within the framework of specific laws, one at a time, here, there and anywhere, they effectively buried them. Very few laymen, law officers, or lawyers know they exist. There should be only one such State or Federal reward law for all felonies and serious misdemeanors. (3) Paying rewards at the "discretion" of government agents. I understand the need to size the reward in proportion to the amount of time, expense, and personal risk of the informer. That's fair enough and what was obviously intended by lawmakers. But, this phrase has an ambiguous effect, and seriously detracts from the intended incentive of rewards. It also makes negotiations for suitable rewards a prerequisite to disclosure, which isn't always possible or practical, and encourages shopping for rewards. (4) Paying rewards upon conviction. Rewards should always be paid upon the arrest, as in USCS 3059. The requirement of a conviction further decreases the incentives because of the long delays which often include appeals and may take years to get a conviction. In the meantime, witnesses "disappear," evidence is often lost, and the case eventually dismissed. When a person knows he may have to wait many years, and is also subject to errors and omissions from prosecutors and others who are beyond his control, it significantly detracts from the incentive rewards are supposed to provide. (5) There are very few Federal or State rewards paid for information on "serious" misdemeanors. Poachers, for example, are extremely dangerous. (Game wardens are seven times more likely to be shot at and nine times more likely to die as a result of injuries sustained than regular police officers.) Yet poaching is "just" a misdemeanor by itself. Knowing the risk and small rewards paid, it's just not smart for a citizen to take big risks for small rewards of about $250 paid by Operation Game Thief. Drunk driving is "just" a misdemeanor for the first two or three offenses, but drunk drivers kill and maim thousands of innocent people every year. Enforcement is minimal. The odds of being caught are about 1,000 to 1. But there are no rewards to encourage citizens to hound and harrass drunk drivers. There should be. The CrimeFighters' DDT Patrol will be more effective than once-a-year setting up drunk driver "check points" and stopping hundreds of innocent drivers to catch a very small percentage of seasonal drunk drivers. Police and federal agents don't want to waste their time on small fry (or misdemeanors) so they are pretty much left alone. That encourages more misdemeanor violations, creates disrespect for the law, and usually leads to more serious felony violations. (6) Non-negotiable rewards. If rewards aren't negotiated, payment can be anything bureaucrats may, arbitrarily, decide how much to pay. Negotiating for serious rewards is required and recommended. But, there may be times when immediate action is required and there is no time to negotiate. If there is no written agreement, there is no obligation to pay. The need to negotiate rewards is evident, but not always practical -- thereby reducing incentives to take immediate action and risks to apprehend lawbreakers. (7) Requirement to report to specific bodies. Most rewards are contingent of reporting the information to the appropriate branch of government and letting them make the arrests and prosecutions. If they are bypassed by reporting the vital information to the police department, Crime Stoppers or WE-TIP, the reward won't be paid. This causes confusion. Who should it be reported to? If you guess wrong, instead of a possible $25,000 reward from the FBI, all you might get is $250 from Crime Stoppers or WE-TIP. There should be only one place to report serious criminal activity, such as the FBI, regardless of which department may have jurisdiction. Ideally, using the phone and dialing 911 should be the first place to report ALL criminal activity pending or in progress to get the fastest action to make more arrests. But, if you dial 911, you lose any rewards payable. Present reporting requirements discourage immediate response. (8) Sharing rewards. Most federal and state forfeiture laws mention the sharing of fines and forfeitures. In most reward laws, half is paid to the informer and half paid into a fund from which the law enforcement agency responsible for the prosecution may draw upon the fund for future law enforcement purposes. The annual surplus, if any, is paid to the state or federal government. If State reward laws are not enhanced, CrimeFighters will use federal laws, with 50% of the fines and forfeitures going to the Federal government. That's fair, because they pay the rewards. But communities suffer from the effects of crime. They need the money for local law enforcement. If city, county or state governments want to share in the rewards, often millions of dollars per case, they should pass a reward law that will make it more attractive for CrimeFighters to use County or State reward laws for prosecution. When they don't have such a law, they will lose these funds to the Federal government. Reward Law Recommendations Add a new State law via initiatives, or ask legislators to introduce a bill to make ONE state reward law to replace all Federal reward laws. That's far easier than trying to get the Federal government to revise a dozen or more complex laws relating to sentencing and payment of rewards. The following State reward law would eliminate the necessity of changing dozens of existing Federal laws; eliminate the need for negotiation; have only one place (911) to expedite report of criminal activity; would give full credit and realistic rewards to provide maximum incentives; have a specific amount and reasonable payment time to make it attractive and effective; We-Tip, CrimeStoppers and similar organizations would still be active in the same manner as they are now, to provide confidentiality when desired, but could advertise significantly larger state rewards without having to obtain reward money via donations and fund raising events. A (Proposed) Crime Fighter Reward Law (1) Any person, not a law enforcement officer of any state or federal government, who supplies original information directly or indirectly to any law enforcement agency, which leads to the arrest of a lawbreaker, or successful prosecution of a civil suit of any individual or business organization for any violation of a state felony or misdemeanor law, shall be paid a monetary reward and an equal share of any fines and forfeitures collected by the court. (a) The reward to be calculated at the rate of $1,000 for each year, or proportionately for any fraction thereof, of the maximum jail sentence possible according to the penalties prescribed by Title 18 USCS 3581, (or the Revised Statutes of the state), for the class of felony or misdemeanor committed. (b) The above reward amount to be paid within 30 days after the arrest of lawbreakers and based on the original charges deemed appropriate and supported by evidence obtained by the arresting officers or citizens. (c) Regardless of the outcome of the case, whether the original charges are later dismissed or reduced by the prosecutor by plea bargaining, or the prosecutor fails to obtain a conviction, or if the sentence or fine, or both, are dismissed, suspended or deferred by the court, the reward in (a) shall not be reduced or withheld from payment. (d) When multiple sentences are possible, the largest individual sentence possible for each defendant shall be used to calculate the reward. (e) When two or more persons are arrested for the same or directly related criminal activity, or fines and forfeitures are levied against two or more persons or business entities, the reward shall be based on their combined largest individual sentences and on all fines and forfeitures. (f) Payment of the above reward to be made, within 30 days after the arrest, by the state Attorney General. (g) The court shall pay the crime fighter half of any fines and forfeitures within 30 days after they are collected or paid to the court. The other half of all fines and forfeitures shall be paid to the police department or law enforcement agency that is in charge of the of the prosecution. (h) When the items forfeited are prohibited items that can not be sold or legally used, such as, but not limited to, machineguns, drugs, marijuana, or other prohibited items, they shall be retained by the law enforcement agency involved for law enforcement purposes, drugs may be sold to hospitals, or destroyed. In such an event, the crime fighter shall be paid a bonus reward of 25% of the estimated retail value of all such prohibited items seized. The retail value of such items to be calculated by the prosecutor immediately after the arrest and forfeiture of the prohibited items. This bonus payment shall be paid to the crime fighter within 30 days after the arrest. (i) In the event the forfeited items are perishable or subject to rapid depreciation or storage and insurance costs, either the crime fighter or the law enforcement agency involved shall be authorized to take delivery of any such forfeited items and sell them at the best possible price. The proceeds of such sale shall be shared by both parties on an equal basis. (j) Recognizing that sentences may remain the same for many years with the same effect and result but a dollar gradually depreciates in value, the dollar amounts mentioned in (a) shall be increased each year, on January 1st, by the same annual percentage of the Consumer Price Index, rounded to the nearest multiple of $100, $1,000, $5,000 or $10,000, as appropriate, to maintain current value and effectiveness of this reward law. * * * * * * Memo to lawmakers: Title 28 USCS 2461 is a sample of how civil monetary penalties laws are updated via the Consumer Price Index. It provides a useful formula for rounding a fine to the nearest multiple of $100 or $1,000. Unfortunately, it doesn't apply to fines for criminal offenses. The Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1984 and other Criminal Statutes enacted by the 98th Congress, has revised and updated most of the major criminal laws. However, many smaller, or less important reward laws are overlooked. Updates usually take about ten years. In the meantime, the overlooked laws "shrink" with inflation and wither on the vine * * * * * * Calculating CrimeFighter Rewards/Awards Prison Terms: Guidelines State laws vary but are similar to Federal laws. Use the following as guidelines. I've added a dollar amount in brackets ($x,xxx) to show the proposed CrimeFighter's reward. A possible sentence of "life" would be provide a $50,000 reward to keep it in proportion to the other rewards. Title 18 USCS 3581 (a) In general. A defendant who has been found guilty of an offense may be sentenced to a term of imprisonment. (b) Authorized terms. The authorized terms of imprisonment are - (1) for a Class A felony, the duration of the defendant's life or any period of time; ($50,000) (2) for a Class B felony, not more than twenty-five years; ($25,000) (3) for a Class C felony, not more than twelve years; ($12,000) (4) for a Class D felony, not more than six years; ($6,000) (5) for a Class E felony, not more than three years; ($3,000) (6) for a Class A misdemeanor, not more than one year; ($1,000) (7) for a Class B misdemeanor, not more than six months; ($500) (8) for a Class C misdemeanor, not more than thirty days; ($100) and (9) for an infraction, not more than five days. ($0) (A similar listing of fines and forfeitures is listed in Chapter 5. They are repeated here for your convenience. Chapter 10 lists sentences and fines for drug related offenses.) 18 USCS 3571 Sentence of fine. (a) In general. A defendant who has been found guilty of an offense may be sentenced to pay a fine. (b) Fines for individuals. Except as provided in this subsection (e) of this section, an individual who has been found guilty of an offense may be fined not more than the greatest of - (1) the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense; (2) the applicable amount under subsection (d) of this section; (3) for a felony, not more than $250,000; (4) for a misdemeanor resulting in death not more than $250,000; (5) for a Class A misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $100,000; (6) for a Class B or C misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $5,000; or (7) for an infraction, not more than $5,000. (c) Fines for organizations. Except as provided in subsection (e) of this section, an organization that has been found guilty of an offense may be fined not more than the greatest of - (1) the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense; (2) the applicable amount under subsection (d) of this section; (3) for a felony, not more than $500,000; (4) for a misdemeanor resulting in death, not more than $500,000; (5) for a Class A misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $200,000; (6) for a Class B or C misdemeanor that does not result in death, not more than $10,000; or (7) for an infraction, not more than $10,000. (d) Alternative fines based on gain or loss. If any person derives pecuniary gain from the offense, or if the offense results in pecuniary loss to a person other than the defendant, the defendant may be fined not more than the greater of twice the gross gain or twice the gross loss, unless imposition of a fine under this subsection would unduly complicate or prolong the sentencing process. (e) Special rule for lower fine specified in substantive provisions. If a law setting forth an offense specifies no fine or a fine that is lower than the fine otherwise applicable under this section and such law, by specific reference, exempts the offense from the applicability of the fine otherwise applicable under this section, the defendant may not be fined more than the amount specified in the law setting forth the offense." * * * * * * Comment: Note that under ordinary law, sub-paragraph (d) allows a fine to be doubled, as in a case of fraud or swindle, such as those often used by con artists and unethical businesses via illegal practices. Also note that organizations also pay twice as much in fines resulting in a maximum fine of up to four times the illegal profit. However, the amount and imposition of fines are contingent on individual personal or business finances of the defendant. Note: The above fines are based on Federal law. Compare your State law on fines and forfeitures to see which is the best to use. If state (reward) laws are weak or non-existent, hound, harry and harrass your lawmakers to do something about it. Having strong, effective reward laws is the first step to recruit 100,000 or more crime fighters to fight the war on crime. Crime Stoppers' and We-Tip's Participation When such a law is passed, all misdemeanors and felonies could be reported to the local Chapter of Crime Stoppers or We-Tip. They would relay the information to local police departments the same as they do now. The difference would be: no need for any negotiations; no need to shop for rewards; and no need for the CrimeFighter to worry that rewards won't be paid because someone else makes a mistake or makes a deal with the D.A. In emergencies, such as witnessing a crime or warning of a pending crime, 911 could be used to get immediate action. The switchboard operator would first ask for details to initiate an immediate police response, then the operator would ask for the CrimeFighter's name and address. If the tipster wants to retain confidentiality, the operator would assign a number to the case and advise the CrimeFighter to quote that number when they contact We- Tip or Crime Stoppers for payment of rewards. We-Tip, CrimeStoppers and similar organizations could, when asked, apply for the reward on behalf of the anonymous caller, make a cash payment, and provide confidentiality. CrimeFighters will know they will receive at least a minimum reward and perhaps more, depending on the severity of the crime and related sentence, as well as the possibility of their sharing in fines and forfeitures. When a State law similar to the above is passed, CrimeFighters would be eligible for the equivalent of federal laws and rewards; CrimeFighters could perform the (simple) role of prosecutor for all guilty pleas that doesn't require a jury trial. Or, when a jury trial is required, and there is sufficient financial incentive, CrimeFighters would be encouraged to hire their own lawyers to be their assistant prosecutors. In both cases, it relieves about 90% of the cases sent to the state prosecutor; Rent-a-Judges could be used to do the sentencing of those who plead guilty, reducing the number of cases heard by regular judges; and local police departments would share in the fines and forfeitures to help offset their operating costs. Recommendation for CrimeFighters Until State laws are changed, the best way to protect your financial interests is to assert your right to be the official prosecutor. If any plea bargaining is done, it should be under your control. An analysis should be made to ascertain which Federal law provides the maximum reward. When the lawbreaker has significant assets, and the law provides for fines and forfeitures, the reward to a CrimeFighter may be considerably larger through fines and forfeitures via RICO and USCS 3059 than weak or non-existent State (reward) laws. Most State reward laws are way out of date, pay piddly amounts, if and when they pay any. When Federal laws can be used, use them for best results. F9 for next Chapter