Police often tell lies when working a case or in pursuit of the truth. They are permitted to distort facts, create facts, manipulate information, and often times mislead people in order to solve crimes and apprehend the bad guys. Officer will tell a suspect in a crime they have video of him or her committing the offense or they will say they have a witness who can identify them. Some will even go to the extent to pose the question to those under suspicion of whether or not they can explain the presence of their DNA at a crime scene, making them believe it has already been found. This is usually done with little or no backlash from top administration or from the public at large. This kind of deception is seen as acceptable on most levels because …show more content…
Whether it’s to a person they suspect of committing a crime or it’s to figure out who committed a crime deception is considered a value and effective investigative tool. The deception used can be used in varying ways. One way the deception comes into play is when an officer takes on a whole new identity and lives far different than his or her own to uncover how a criminal syndicate operates. We’ve seen this played out in movies like, Donnie Brasco. This film depicted FBI agent Joe Pistone and his infiltration into the Bonnano crime family. Pistone lived a complete lie and dealt first hand with members of a violent mafia organization, getting up close and personal with some of the heads of family, who would’ve killed him had they come to know her true identity. Pistone was able to convince these individuals he was one of them and he was able to gain their trust. This deception lead to the arrest and conviction of several members of the Bonnano mafia syndicate and potentially saved the lives of many people who were targeted to be murdered. This type of deception is never questioned and is seen as acceptable. Mostly because society at large has an image of the mafia and the danger which surrounds this type of organization. The same is true with the officer who lies to solicit prostitution as an underage girl and sets up stings to arrest those who seek this service. Why? Because