[DRAFT]: @@NAMEINITIALS@@PD Blue: Criminal Mind...SI

[Southeast Aleatory]

The name for this issue is so long that I had to abbreviate it in the thread name. My main issue with this is the text markups: for example, the "Submit Issue] form uses [name], but the old FAQ says @@NAME@@. Which is format is correct, and are the options (NAME, DEMONYMADJECTIVE, RANDOMMALENAME, etc.) still the same?

First Draft

[TITLE]: @@NAMEINITIALS@@PD Blue: Criminal Mind Scene Investigation

[DESCRIPTION] A notorious serial killer known only as "@@RANDOMFIRSTNAME@@ the Dripper" has struck again after a 15-year disappearance. An outraged public is demanding answers as to how--or if--the Dripper and their criminally insane ilk can be stopped...

[VALIDITY] all

[OPTION] "The Dripper is truly a fascinating individual!" exclaims Dr. @@RANDOMNAME@@, criminologist and mystery novelist. "An M.O of tainting water coolers with agricultural pesticides every other @@DEMONYM@@ Flag Day suggests a highly obsessive and meticulous personality. This is no mere criminal, so @@NAME@@ can't settle for any mere police squad! We should set up criminal profiling units to find the Dripper and others like them. At the very least, this investigation could be a novel experiment."

[EFFECT] @@NAME@@'s murder mystery novels are all based on true stories

[OPTION] "Big talk from an academic snob that's never cased a crime scene," snaps Captain @@RANDOMNAME@@ of the @@CAPITAL@@ Police Department. "Our boys in blue have taken down all sorts of crooks and crazies, and a murderer is a murderer, no matter how gruesome or 'clever' they are. We don't need any help to catch the Dripper! Get the forensic cranks out of our hair, and let us handle this the old-fashioned way."

[EFFECT] every water cooler in @@CAPITAL@@ is under police surveillance

[OPTION] "Can we be so sure the Dripper knows what they're doing?" asks freshman psychology student @@RANDOMNAME@@. "Their behavior is ultimately a product of their environment, upbringing, and 'internal wiring'; things over which they had no control. It's all in the mind. If psychiatric evaluations and therapy were mandatory for all citizens, we might never have another Dripper again! There may be false positives, but they'll be in good hands at a clinic."

[EFFECT] shy teenagers are sent to insane asylums for "treatment"

[OPTION] A voice in your head cackles "What does it all mean!? We're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad. Let's agree to disagree! We'll be meat buddies riding the death train forever and ever!"

[EFFECT] mobs of giggling, axe-waving psychos prowl the streets at night

Second Draft
[TITLE]: @@NAMEINITIALS@@PD Blue: Criminal Mind Scene Investigation

[DESCRIPTION] A notorious serial killer known only as "The Dripper" has struck again after a 15-year disappearance--right in the heart of @@CAPITAL@@. However, their first murders occurred in a small town on the opposite side of @@NAME@@, and neither city's police can account for the gap in time and place. Due to the lack of coordination between police departments, the public is calling @@NAME@@'s decentralized approach to criminal investigation into question.

[VALIDITY] low Law Enforcement

[OPTION] "This is an outrage!" says retired @@CAPITAL@@ Police Department officer @@RANDOMNAME@@. "How can we be sure the Dripper just laid low for 15 years? For all we know they could have been killing people all across @@NAME@@ without locals batting an eyelash. Clearly these sorts of investigations are beyond the capabilities of ordinary police. We need a central law enforcement agency to coordinate large-scale investigations and help local law enforcement when they're in over their heads."

[EFFECT] small-town murder mysteries are shadowed by federal agents

[OPTION] Captain @@RANDOMNAME@@ of the @@RANDOMLASTNAME@@ville Police Department argues "Our boys in blue have taken down all sorts of crooks and crazies, no matter how 'clever' they were. We didn't need any help to find the Dripper in our town, and neither should @@CAPITAL@@. Sure, the Dripper got away before we could learn their identity, but they're not our problem anymore. Keep the federal government out of our hair, and let us cops handle our own cases without getting wrapped up in anyone else's."

[EFFECT] @@NAME@@'s local police only learn about crimes in other jurisdictions by hearsay

[OPTION] "The issue isn't coordination, it's technique!" exclaims Dr. @@RANDOMNAME@@, criminologist and mystery novelist. "Sophisticated criminals requires sophisticated investigations. For example, the Dripper's M.O of tainting water coolers with agricultural pesticides every other @@DEMONYM@@ Flag Day suggests a highly obsessive and meticulous personality. Instead of wasting money on a central police or leaving things to clueless flatfoots, we should educated police about the nuances of the criminal mind."

[EFFECT] joining @@NAME@@'s police requires a PhD in psychology

[OPTION] "Can we be so sure the Dripper knows what they're doing?" asks freshman psychology student @@RANDOMNAME@@. "Their behavior is ultimately a product of their environment, upbringing, and 'internal wiring'; things over which they had no control. It's all in the mind. What if we studied and treated troubled individuals instead of letting them go off and hurt people? There may be false positives, but they'll be in good hands at a clinic."

[EFFECT] shy teenagers are sent to insane asylums for "treatment"

[Australian rePublic]

What makes him different to any other serial killer?

[Southeast Aleatory]

Sorry about the late response.

What makes him different to any other serial killer?

There don't seem to be a whole lot of issues related to handling psychologically motivated criminals as far as law enforcement issues go, but simply saying "There are serial killers, do something about it" isn't very fun. The case of @@NAME@@ the Dripper is meant to be an example of the sort of sick suckaducks that the nation's law enforcement is (presumably) investigating like any other case, as opposed to using the sorts of cool techniques that the criminologist in Option 1 suggests.

[Candlewhisper Archive]

I'd have thought that a serial killer would be a problem for the police to deal with, not parliament. I can see the options make it clear you're talking about policy decisions in response to this, but it doesn't flow naturally as a narrative - the discovery of a serial killer wouldn't seem to result in a review of the police force structure.

Serial killers are mentioned a few times in the issues, in 240, 648, 828, 835 and 1143, though always within the context of a broader issue, rather than just asking about what should be done about serial killers.

I think the broad question of police approach could still be asked, but maybe more context is needed to explain how it as become a government issue

[Bears Armed]

I'd have thought that a serial killer would be a problem for the police to deal with, not parliament. I can see the options make it clear you're talking about policy decisions in response to this, but it doesn't flow naturally as a narrative - the discovery of a serial killer wouldn't seem to result in a review of the police force structure.

Serial killers are mentioned a few times in the issues, in 240, 648, 828, 835 and 1143, though always within the context of a broader issue, rather than just asking about what should be done about serial killers.

I think the broad question of police approach could still be asked, but maybe more context is needed to explain how it as become a government issue

Maybe he's been active for all that time, but this wasn't spotted until recently because he's been operating across multiple jurisdictions whose separate police forces haven't been sharing information with each other... and so, now, it's being suggested that the government should either set up a national agency to collect/collate/redistribute policing information or merge all of the local police forces into a single, national one?

[Southeast Aleatory]

Maybe he's been active for all that time, but this wasn't spotted until recently because he's been operating across multiple jurisdictions whose separate police forces haven't been sharing information with each other... and so, now, it's being suggested that the government should either set up a national agency to collect/collate/redistribute policing information or merge all of the local police forces into a single, national one?

Essentially this. Option 1 is asking for some sort of behavioral analysis unit and more advanced criminological techniques in investigating violent crimes, while Option 2 just treats the Dripper as "just another murderer" and wants to keep crime investigation a simple, local affair. Perhaps I should add something that makes it only valid for nations without an advanced police force. I'll write up another draft.

[Southeast Aleatory]

Second Draft:
* Clarified the description paragraph
* First two options cover police coordination, while second two options concern investigative techniques
* Got rid of the "joke" option

[Southeast Aleatory]

Since I haven't seen any responses or calls for change in over a week, is it good enough to submit?

[Bears Armed]

[EFFECT] small-town murder mysteries are shadowed by federal agents

Not all nations are federations...