[Video: A friendly message from your local Defense Committee.]

[originaldragoon]

[Greeting Haven! The video starts and shows you quiet an odd group. Rose is standing closest to the camera with Smokescreen close by. In the background, there looms Tarn, being his usual charming self. Ladies and gentlemen, meet the Defense committee.

[Rose is holding a pad and clears her throat some before addressing the camera and, thus, the rest of Haven.]

Hello. As some of you may know, Smokescreen, Tarn, and I consist of the Defense branch of the Law Committee. As such, it is our duty to oversee the operations of the Police Force. So after some meetings we have decided on some policies concerning the Police Force and the rights for anyone who has been accused of a crime.

[From the tone of her voice, one can think that those meetings didn't always go smoothly.]

I will like to point out that all the policies were decided on by all three of us agreeing on them.

[She brings up her pad and begins to read off the list of laws.]

First, the Police Force needs to consist of 1/3 Autobot, 1/3 Decepticon, and 1/3 unaligned members.

Second, those who arrive at Haven cannot be persecuted for crimes they have committed in their own world. In other words, everyone gets a clean slate when they first arrive, and thus the Police Force cannot arrest you when you first regain consciousness here, no matter how horrible of a crime you may have committed in your own world.

Third, there will be no arrests unless there is concrete proof that ties an individual to the crime.

Fourth, any accused is innocent until proven guilty.

Fifth, arrests on anyone who is not neutral must be overseen by one Autobot and one Decepticon Police Force member.

Sixth, anyone who has been arrested has the right to any consenting legal representative they want, as long that representative has not also been arrested.

Seventh, any active Police Force members on duty have to work in a group of two or more. On top of that, any on duty Autobot Police Force member must be partnered with a Decepticon and vice-versa.

Finally, should any Autobot or Decepticon wish renounce their affiliation, there will be a form available for you to fill out. Tarn has said he will officiate the ones for the Decepticons. It has yet to be decided who will officiate those for the Autobots.

[She lowers the pad and looks back at the camera.]

If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask Tarn, Smokescreen, and myself.

Comments

[not here exactly]

[songofmypeople]

[]
[You wouldn't know it from the mask, but he just really loves his salads okay. Also politics.]

[not here exactly]

[originaldragoon]

[Yep, you just keep enjoying your salads buddy.]

video;

[namesnotprowl]

So, lemme just get this straight. Nothing we've done in any home dimension or any other dimensional hub before our arrival here c'n be held against us? Absolutely nothin'?

[Barricade can see where this would be a problem - especially in the department of his own revenge - but he can't see it as anything other than delightful at the moment.]

video;

[originaldragoon]

That is correct. You cannot be arrested unless you have committed a crime here.

[video]

[rstlsslegsyndrm]

Tarn agreeing on the second law? And if you wish to defect from the Decepticons, you see him about "filling out the forms"?

...

You're kidding me.

[video]

[originaldragoon]

I hardly kid.

audio;

[thxforthememories]

I'm not Autobot or Decepticon.

And yet you say I must have a partner, regardless?

perma-audio;

[songofmypeople]

For safety reasons on this unpredictable, dangerous planet of ours, and to corroborate your story should it ever fall under scrutiny.

audio;

[originaldragoon]

Showing that Police procedures are not one sided is only part of the reason for partners. There is also the issue of safety for the officers, so even if you are a neutral party you will still need a partner.

I do believe that this is a common practice for law enforcement in other worlds anyway.

[Video]

[warp]

[This? This is Skywarp incredulously laughing for a good few minutes or so (though thankfully he only turned the feed on towards the tail-end of it) until he can calm down and sneers.]

That last one? Any fraggin' Decepticon in this stupid police force that does that could just as well be going straight to Megatron and annoucin' they're quitting. No one with a slagging processor would do that!

Good luck having someone be that stupid.

[And you know... this is Skywarp saying it. Have another (not so) muffled chortle.]

[Video]

[originaldragoon]

[This is Rose, just line facing.]

It is only an option and not a requirement. People do not have to do it, but it is there if someone so desires it. If no Decepticon wishes of renounce their affiliation it will not change how everything is run.

text forever

[raceme]

This is directed at Rose and Smokescreen. [Mostly because Blurr doesn't want to talk to Tarn. But since it's not locked to him, he's more than free to comment on it.]

It's impossible for the Police Force to enforce the first policy due the fact that Thundercracker is the only known Decepticon. We can't force new members to join us, it's a free choice. Wouldn't it be easier to reorganize the groups into A neutral + an Autobot, and Neutral + Decepticon?

Since no one here can count as 'unaligned', we all have glyphs and even the acolytes belong to different FirstForged.

The Second rule makes sense to me, however, many people here have brought up their concerns about Tarn being part of the Llaw Committee and specially him being able to handle any laws due of his deceptive nature.

While not openly violent about it he has show to deliver threatening and hostile comments towards mechs like Rung, Drift, and specially Ambulon. While I understand why this regulations were set, you just don't leave a scraplet inside a room filled with mechs and expect it to behave properly.

I think people's worries concerning Tarn should be taken in consideration by the other Law Committee members and I would like to request another poll to keep Tarn or to remove him from the law committee all together.

text forever

[originaldragoon]

You raise a good point about the lack of Decepticons in the Police Force. I think your idea of one neutral paired with either an Autobot or Decepticon will be a good compromise until there are more Decepticons willing to apply to the Force.

Also, what I meant by unaligned was some who was neither Decepticon nor Autobot, since those seem to be the two major factions that were brought to this world before being aligned to their respective FirstForged. I do apologize for the confusion on that.

I understand your concern about Tarn, but so far, during our meetings he has not brought up anything that has been illogical or one sided. Also, as I said before, all policies have to be agreed upon by all three of us, thus Tarn cannot make policies of his own without Smokescreen and I's consent.

But, if you feel there should be another vote concerning Tarn, feel free to bring it up with the Bureaucracy branch of the Law Committee. Mean time, I can talk with Tarn about his threats, even though he has not acted upon them yet.

[video] sorry for wall o text, not sure what I can manage for replies

[winged_knight]

[Progress makes Wing happy, but no progress is without it's trails and tribulations.]

I appreciate the work you all have done. [Yes, even you Tarn, even if only for the 10% that is not self-serving.] But I do foresee some of these polices as problematic.

Rather than pick them apart in public however--I'll detail the rest of my thoughts and deliver them offline--but I would like to address one important point.

In reality, faction--Autobot or Decepticon--should have NO bearing. They are political alignments from an old regime that lead only to war and destruction, and not a part of this government.

Fostering old ideas is not the way to new and better future. [Come on people, Wing thought we had forward thinkers here.]

If anything, any member that joins should be required to swear allegiance to Haven's government and police force OVER any previous allegiance they had. Otherwise it creates potential conflicts of interest when the strictures or beliefs of both groups contradict each other, with no guidance on how police force members should resolve them other than their own personal judgment, which is certain to lack consistency. [Side note: Being Cybertronian and not having to breathe in order to speak sure has its benefits.]

I can see where keeping the patrols faction mixed is an attempt to mediate--if not prevent-- conflicts of interest, but I firmly believe it's coming at the problem from the wrong angle.

Furthermore, if you remove this rule, it makes partnering for patrols a great deal easier.

Again I do appreciate your efforts in trying to make Haven a better place. This path we're walking is a difficult one to be certain, but taking the time and effort to do it right is worth ever moment. Thank you.

[video] No problem! ^^

[originaldragoon]

I appreciate your feed back, and you do raise some valid points. No knew government is without its flaws after all.

I understand what you are saying about the two factions, but unfortunately there are several others who do not see things that way, as I had witnessed first hand during our meetings. [Seriously, there were times she felt that herding cats would have been easier.] I don't think many of them are going to be willing to put aside their differences completely and swear an oath to the new government just yet.

Blurr also raised some concerns about partnering up the patrols, and has suggested that rather pair Autobot and Decepticon together, pair them with a neutral partner. Would that be a reasonable compromise?

[video]

[sword_redemption]

[Drift's given up on the Police Force, because Tarn. But still.]

What does any of this have to do with 'defense'?

[video]

[originaldragoon]

Overseeing police procedures was just one task given to the Defense branch since it concerns inside threats. The other responsibilities concern handling outside threats and emergencies.

[video]

[fun_police]

[Oh my god you guys.]

Do you three have any idea at all at how an organization like this is run?

[Tarn, don't answer that question.]

[video]

[originaldragoon]

I do actually. I have severed as part of law enforcement several time in the past back on my home world. Though the cultures are different, some of the basics are the same.

[treacherous_widow]

So. It all looks good and pretty. Now lets see if it works.

But, I wonder exactly what constitutes legal representation in a place like this? We don't exactly have lawyers as far as I'm aware.

[songofmypeople]

Glad you agree. Now to see if our police force follows through.

A representative could be anyone -- should they agree -- who's better with their stories.

[originaldragoon]

Based on some of the feed back, there are still things to work out.

At this point, I think anyone who is well acquainted with the laws and rights of the people can pass for legal council.

[not here]

[organ_pharming]

[This is beyond bad. Prowl better keep his word... or the good doctor is going to wind up in pieces. And it will somehow be legal.]

[not here]

[songofmypeople]

[Or you could just try to join him, you big baby.]

[mccrane]

[McCrane is actually pretty pleased by all of this. He likes to see the Law moving forward.]

Acknowledged.

The other officers have brought up some of the points that might need fine-tuning already, so I will simply re-iterate what they have said.

We can abide by these, except for the quotas. As previous crimes do not reflect upon an individual...neither can previous factions.

[originaldragoon]

[Well, it a bit refreshing to not be getting the common angry reaction.]

Good point.

Like I have been saying, these are not set in stone, so feed back is appreciated.

[audio]

[adamndoctor]

Huh. Now let's see just how many people here will actually keep to these laws. I give it one day before someone cracks.

[audio]

[originaldragoon]

[Rose actually sounds quite tired and frustrated at this point. But at least everyone has a valid reason to show some concern towards the policies, so she can't complain.]

They are more like policies then laws, and thus can be flexible. And it wasn't even five minutes after I made the post when people started voicing their opinions.