A Thought About Financial Disclosure
A four-part series of thoughts submitted by an LAPPL member. The author wishes to remain anonymous.
Take a minute to look at your equipment. Check out your Sam Brown; notice the things you check out of the kitroom; look in your black and white; look at the vehicle itself.
What do these things have to do with financial disclosure? The fact is that everything that you use on a daily basis needs to be purchased. From your Pelican flashlight to your Ford Police Interceptor … think about it … your Taser, your bean bag, your 870, your pepper spray, your Rover, in-car cameras, everything.
Who does this purchasing? The LAPD. That may seem obvious, but look at it closer. Who inside the LAPD is making these decisions? Which employee is making the judgment that awards these potentially multi-milliondollar contracts for the things that you need to do your job? Have you ever been involved in that selection process? Maybe at a ground level, but in reality, people far removed from patrol make those choices. Does the Big Chief make all those decisions? He is a busy man, and so most likely rubberstamps the recommendations of those to whom he has delegated the responsibility.
Here is what this has to do with financial disclosure: Does IAID have the ability to audit their bank accounts to check for kickbacks? Do they sign a financial disclosure? Ask yourself why not. They make decisions regarding millions of potential dollars to companies seeking lucrative contracts with the famous LAPD.
The sad but very real truth is that they don’t need watching because they aren’t street cops. They don’t need to sign a financial disclosure because they are trustworthy, and you need to sign because you aren’t.
To sign a financial disclosure is to accept the premise that you are a thief.
