Two weeks ago in this section, I explained how the enforcement system failed in the Pegasus case: the police, the prosecutor's office, the ombudsman and the judges.
Many now understand that this is a scandal that requires a state commission of inquiry.
The findings of the "examination team" are not enough, even if no violations of the law are found.
First, in the face of the possibility of invading privacy through destructive spyware, it is not possible to settle for an "investigation team".
Second, the team is looking for documentation of the violation of the law by the police, which is the suspect, and therefore a commission of inquiry with powers to summon witnesses and interrogate them is required.
On top of that, even if they failed to break into phones, the experience is serious and threatening.
Sufficient evidence was found, including inspections of the instruments of former government officials pointing to break-ins, the interrogation findings of the "investigation team" regarding attempted burglary of several phones, and the burglary of witness Pilber's phone - which the police confirmed was unusual - to require a thorough investigation. Even if orders were issued, since the wiretapping law does not allow searching information on the phone, the police appear to have misled the judges.
The provision should be used as a lever to improve the system.
The police have about 30,000 police officers, a huge budget of about NIS 14.5 billion (80% of salary; senior executives) and enormous powers to violate civil rights, through searches of our homes and bodies, arrest, wiretapping, interrogation and more.
It is wrong to think that the world is divided into normative "good" versus "bad" criminals, and that as the powers of the police increase, our confidence will increase.
The police may be in many cases harmlessly and without proportion, as opposed to ultra-Orthodox demonstrators, the young people of the Ethiopian community and more.
The "Pegasus" case illustrates that the police may harm us all and trample on our privacy, even in the absence of suspicion.
Effective supervisory and audit mechanisms are required so that the police will act in accordance with the law: from the prosecutor's office that accompanies investigations to judges who automatically approve requests for arrest warrants, search and interception.
According to the U.S. Registry of Post-Criminal Credits, which includes thousands of cases, misconduct by the police is the first factor in convicting innocent people.
A decisive response to police violence is required.
DIP should be made effective. The American "Ried" method of interrogation, which focuses on pressuring the interrogee to confess, must give way to advanced methods, such as the English "Peace" method. When the police chose to invest capital in Blade 433 for “corruption” investigations and neglected law enforcement in Arab localities.
When police officers who are supposed to act in the face of violent crime are sent to act in the face of normative civilians, such as enforcing corona practices or in some demonstrations, there is a problem.
There is a need to reorganize the police, reduce manpower and budget, and transfer order to a body that will provide service to citizens - inspectors without powers to exercise power and with a sensitivity to rights.
The millions saved will be diverted to community welfare programs, which are expected to reduce crime - as demonstrated in Camden, USA, where the cluttered police were disbanded, a new community-oriented police force was set up, and crime was reduced.
Until fundamental change, civil liberties are in the hands of judges, who do not do enough to preserve it.
The Prosecution Review Commissioner, David Rosen, ruled that police officers are lying to the arresting judges.
Judges must treat police officers with "heaviness and suspicion" and carefully examine whether there is justification for the orders;
Not to allow a "bleaching order" after an illegal search;
And cease to base convictions on evidence obtained unlawfully - thus removing the incentive to break the law.
The prosecution should assist in overseeing the investigations and finding out how the evidence was obtained.
Finally, when the police request powers, Knesset members are offered to imagine that their children are suspects or protesters, and to restrict the golem that has risen up against its creator.
Were we wrong?
Fixed!
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