There is a more insidious problem at work here. Police are, by dint of their daily work, good at understanding how the law works and how people get away with crimes.
This means that if you treat them equally to a random person, they have the knowledge to/will get away with more crimes.
The only problem with holding them to a higher standard once you understand this, is that it generates resentment, and the higher standard becomes a different system they learn and game.
I say this as someone committed to justice for who 15 years in policing is receding into the past.
I don't have a perfect solution or I might have stayed in policing, at least kept my badge- I work in security now which scratches the itch that got me into law-enforcement in the first place. (don't tell my coworker devs that- some already think infosec is out to get them- we are not)
It is hard to stay justice oriented no matter where you are- in gov law enforcement or the private sector, startup or big-corp.
This means that if you treat them equally to a random person, they have the knowledge to/will get away with more crimes.
The only problem with holding them to a higher standard once you understand this, is that it generates resentment, and the higher standard becomes a different system they learn and game.
I say this as someone committed to justice for who 15 years in policing is receding into the past.
I don't have a perfect solution or I might have stayed in policing, at least kept my badge- I work in security now which scratches the itch that got me into law-enforcement in the first place. (don't tell my coworker devs that- some already think infosec is out to get them- we are not) It is hard to stay justice oriented no matter where you are- in gov law enforcement or the private sector, startup or big-corp.