There was a time when an office football pool was viewed as sufficient outlet for competition. However, the LA Times now reports that deputies at the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department have been competing to see how many people they can arrest in a 24-hour period. According to an iinternal Sheriff’s Department e-mail “Operation Any Booking” Twas to see who could set the record. Another competition, “Operation Vehicle Impound,” was to find the impound king. The reward, according to reported organizer Lt. James Tatreau, was “bragging rights” for bagging the most citizens. Not only is the competition breathtakingly abusive and stupid, it could not unravel hundreds of cases. Defense lawyers would be insane not to demand that the competition be put forward at trial. When one considers the fluid concepts of reasonable suspicion and even probable cause, such extrinsic motivations for an arrest can have a highly distortive effect. For the full story, click here