So, define corruption (or misconduct)...

[Penta]

It's a fairly boring Saturday, so I've been thinking. Reading and thinking about all sorts of things, when my mind tripped over something out of nowhere...perhaps prompted by reading the NJ rules of professional conduct for attorneys and paralegals (ugh, coma).

Basically, there are people who define corruption and misconduct very broadly. There are people who define it very narrowly, where nothing short of the truly obvious qualifies. I'm curious to see where people here fall along the spectrum, and (for the current and retired LEOs among us) where various agencies draw the line (if people would be so kind as to check their agency's regulations). Maybe it'll prove to vary, sometimes dramatically, from person to person, agency to agency, location to location (basically, this is my hypothesis as I write this), or maybe it won't except for a few outliers (which would surprise me).

But, I'm not content with stopping there. I'm curious, enough so that I'm going to lay out a scenario and ask people to give me their opinion (and if you're a LEO, your agency's stance as far as you know it) on what seem to me like gray areas, or points where opinions are likely to vary. These situations aren't sorted in any way, just typing them as I think them up. (I'll throw in my opinions after there's been a few responses, so as not to lose focus on the scenarios.)

1. You're a rookie cop, maybe even in the police academy (or about to go into the academy), hunting for an apartment or condo. The landlord and you talk, etc. as they show you the place, and you give over the usual info for a credit check, income verification, etc. Along the way, your police affiliation comes up (or just comes out) somehow. The landlord gives you terms that seem special in some way (free utilities where that isn't common, a lower-than-expected rent, waiving security deposit, a longer-than-usual lease), but doesn't come out and say why.

2. The classic one, where opinions seem to vary whenever someone brings it up - you're in uniform, or someone spots the badge/credentials you carry while off-duty, and you get free drinks/free coffee/a free meal at a restaurant. I guess answers will probably vary with whether you're on-duty or not.

3. Another one people always bring up, and that (to me, at least) seems to wobble along the line (of course, I don't/can't drive, something to keep in mind), the "show a PBA card, get out of a ticket" thing. (It always sounds like an urban legend...And then I see it brought up here, apparently credibly, and not by drivers that got pulled over. How the heck is that supposed to work, anyway? What are the limits?)

Thanks for reading.

[Switchback]

These sound a lot like homework questions.

[Citicop]

I got half price rent at an apartment for the entire time I stayed there in exchange for "security work."

I disclosed this to my department (per policy) and faced no ethical issue at all.

-Citicop.

[Penta]

These sound a lot like homework questions.

They're not - semester doesn't start up for me for another 2 weeks or so.

No, it's even worse - rampant boredom on a weekend.

If they sound like homework questions, that's possibly because I was rather sparse (upon rereading) in the detail I provided, in an effort to keep it short.

[Samuel]

Some of these topics/scenarios have been covered numerous times - try searching this website...

[BP348]

I got half price rent at an apartment for the entire time I stayed there in exchange for "security work."

I disclosed this to my department (per policy) and faced no ethical issue at all.

-Citicop.

This ^

I know several local LEO's who received discounts on rent for providing "security" for their complex.

[retdetsgt]

Corruption is anything just below my standard of conduct.

[Penta]

OK, looking over my post again, I realize most of this would probably have been better searched for...My uselessness at the search function is no excuse. I'm not sure all my questions are answered with a search, and in my defense the search function with this board software leaves a bit to be desired (it doesn't search for three-character phrases, for example, so searching "PBA card" is out...I still have never found a good explanation of that...), but for most of it, a well-done search would have answered my questions.

Sorry, all. If a mod wants to lock the thread (or just beat me over the head with a stick, or make me write "I will use the search function" 10000 times...Or otherwise repent in some fashion that's new to me), that's fine.