Can the private sector provide police and courts?
Sep 13th, 2011 @ 08:00 am › Edward Peter Stringham
I was pleased to be able to present this paper at the most recent Mises Circle in Las Vegas where I got to see some great people.
The realm of law is usually the foundation of government, and the suggestion that central control be abandoned shocks most people as something impossible. Philosophers, from Hobbes to Rand, believe that for all encounters there must exist one authority to create and enforce laws. They are baffled by what would happen if two parties had a conflict without an overarching judicial system. They assume that only the public sector can prevent and resolve disputes, but they have failed to notice the many private arrangements already in existence to deal with such dilemmas.
In the current world numerous non-government institutions protect individuals on both local and global levels. Examining these arrangements can give insight on how private law enforcement can function, thereby eliminating any need to speculate on how future firms might operate. The market allows consumers to choose different types and degrees of services and this could extended in the realm of law. Choice does not mean chaos and does not mean that people will be forced to deal with laws that they have not chosen. Most legal problems probably can be attributed to public law enforcement, so we do not need to assume that private law would be perplexed with the same dilemmas. A private legal system could allow individuals to agree ahead of time to follow certain rules. Judges would not need to compare individuals’ utilities; they would solely make judgments in accordance with consumers’ agreed-upon wants.
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Edward Stringham, Hackley Endowed Professor for the Study of Capitalism and Free Enterprise, Fayetteville State University
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25 Responses
Nope. There’s a private capacity for private security guards to deter would-be criminals and private business abitration where both parties want quick resolution. However where hardcore crimes are involved there’s no incentive for anyone to submit to anything. The police can get search warrants, enter private property, seize items as evidence, tape off an area to prevent evidence being destroyed or contaminated, inform suspects that they can’t leave the jurisdiction, arrest and detain a suspect until their court appearance, etc. The courts can force people to take the stand, to force people to tell the truth or face punishment, force people out of their workplace into jury service, etc.
The romantic private alternative for some here is refusal to do business with someone who has committed a heinous crime. Though the realistic versions are either the vitcim’s family, friends, hired goons simply take their revenge on how they think is the culprit or those who with very large landownerships can coalesce into a private city-state and create a private monopoly of force/justice.
“However where hardcore crimes are involved there’s no incentive for anyone to submit to anything.”
Based on…?
“The romantic private alternative for some here is refusal to do business with someone who has committed a heinous crime. Though the realistic versions are either the vitcim’s family, friends, hired goons simply take their revenge on how they think is the culprit or those who with very large landownerships can coalesce into a private city-state and create a private monopoly of force/justice.”
Which is pure ipse dixit.
Brinks Home Security has done more to protect my home and my family than the county police department.
Just saying.
I wonder what the statistics would be of gun owners if we weren’t so reliant on the state for protection.
Whom do they dispatch to your home when they get an alarm from your location?
“Rent-a-cops” are cut from the same bolt as mercenaries in war zones. They have different agendas than enlisted persons.
Creds:
Husband= military
father = police officer
Unless the worst a muderer fears is ostracism and mean stares then murderer will everything tamper with the evidence, forbid investigations and have the capacity to leave, etc., which are illegal to do now but not so in a Libertarian country. It’s even worse if the murderer did the crime on his own private property has no obligation to allow PDA to enter his property, search for evidence, seize his personal items, etc. Similarly if he has access to his PDA who are equally shady and will fight the investigating PDA tooth and nail then such a scenario would simply reward the strong and violent – i.e. violent gangs leading to either chaos or a Dictatorship.
Please map up how this could happen. Because I don’t see how it could happen.
Enlisted persons get paid don’t they? I fail to see any difference.
Here in South Africa peaceable people are basically dependent upon private security for the provision of protection. Private agents outnumber the police over 3:1 yet I am constantly threatened by, and afraid of, the socialist band of badge-bearers who are usually lurking around waiting to harass and extort whereas their private counterparts, whilst ubiquitous, mind their own business and let private people be.
Every time I’ve ever called the police for help they have failed to show up. Every time I’ve ever called private agents for help they always show up.
Just last week my house alarm went off three times, but only due to a technical fault. The private agents still showed up each time to check everything was okay and then helped to fix the fault. What happens if you call in false alarms to the government police? Oh, they could arrest and charge you for such a thing.
I wrote an article recently regarding these issues here: http://www.mises.co.za/2011/08/defending-the-gunslinger/
@ Hard Rain
gosh – a comment posted from SA . Here. Coo, stap me vitals etc.
Here I thought I was one of perhaps 10 austrian-influenced people in SA…..
Im embarrassed to say I had never heard of Mises.co.za until now…..er, we havent met have we? reply offline if you wish…..
Mises.co.za was started very recently and is just beginning to get underway
My emai address is featured at the bottom of the article so feel free to drop me a line. There’s a budgeoning community of Libertarian-minded people in S.A. We have monthly meetings in JHB, PTA and CPT and I’ll gladly forward you the details if you like
No, PDAs that need to justify an intrusion on the property of another must do so with rational basis, and other PDAs will be the judge of their actions.
A market of justice will provide the best assurances against abuses of justice.
Mises.co.za started very recently
My email address is at the bottom of my article. Feel free to drop me a line.
I had dinner with the JHB libdin people just last week…….. Have yet to attend a CT one tho……… nws thats where I usually live
Do you have any clue WHAT they get paid? Really. . . Apples and oranges. Different agendas.
No, what do they get paid?
But someone who refuses to enter legal proceedings is for all effects and purposes an outlaw, meaning far worse things than ostracism could happen. A PDA -could- come to their defence but that brings them back in the realm of “law”, unless it’s basically a collection of thugs rather than a PDA. So the incentive is certainly there to be present at and comply with legal proceedings and arbitration. It’s true that PDAs won’t enjoy the same privileges as modern cops, but why the hell should they? For that matter, why should cops now enjoy them?
It’s not too different in Norway. Well, not as extreme, but private security is very big “here”. I see the UK going that way eventually. Already private firms rely significantly on other private firms to provide actual protection to their holdings, given how utterly useless the police are. I’ve heard SA is even further “gone” along the way of this process. It’s good. People need to learn that the police are not really there to protect them.
How were private bodyguards and security guards ever banned? As long as you can afford such services you can get them. It’s like the days of non-compulsory, private -only education – those who could afford it got it while the poorer children went straight into the workforce.
An outlaw to whom? Who gets to decide the law? Someone who refuses to stand trial for doing drugs wouldn’t be an outlaw to Libertarians but would be to famliy-friendly Conservatives.
I live in a gated community. We have our own security. I know many people do not have this luxury.
Nevertheless, I am sure they do not do the investigation and arresting when an actual crime occurs. But if you live in a place where crime does not occur, well then, more power to you and blessings.
Well, they start with GS1, and that’s probably available on the web, but it’s been awhile since my husband was on active duty. But I must confess to you that the benefits are unbelievably wonderful. It certainly made our tour worthwhile. So our servicemen in the US probaly do all right in the long run. God bless them and keep them safe.
Yeah and now everyone has to go – whether they can afford it or not!