Arcadia effectively functions as an independent city-state. It exists as
a self-contained entity in which the government was created to rule, and
the people exist to both serve and be served. The City Council is
Arcadia's sole official ruling body. It enacts the laws of city, manages
its public utilities, and directs the city's law enforcement branch, the
Arcadia Security Force (this city's "police" department). Newcomers to
the city realize quickly that despite all appearances, this is not a
municipality governed by the rule of law. The old rules of the United
States no longer apply. There is no Constitution. Police generally
arrest at a whim (though they know to stay clear of anything involving the
Corporations). Arcadia's courts are tuned for expediency, not justice.
There are no appeals and generally only the well-connected manage to avoid
conviction.
Outside of Arcadia, there is no recognized law at all. It is survival of
the fittest, might makes right. If there is anything at all remaining of
federal or state powers, no one in this blasted wasteland knows anything
about it.
The Council
The City Council is a puppet of, and entirely chosen by, the Corporations.
Each one has in place their own two representatives on its roster. One
member is selected to bear the title of Council Speaker every six months.
This person, the most influential member of the legislature, is elected by
a vote of the council... by tradition (and fear of reprisal) he or she has
always been the person chosen by the most dominant Corporation (when there
is one). The Speaker has no real power, only moderate control over
procedural matters. Still, the Corporation generally regarded as the most
influential has always been able to take the fullest advantage of the
role.
The perceived strength of Corporations changes almost daily. On the few
occasions when a Speaker vote has taken place and no single Corporation
has been viewed as plainly preeminent, the vote is usually a deadlock of
rival and abstaining votes. In such cases, the outgoing Speak retains his
title for another six months.
The Corporations and their Council have found that they must walk a fine
line between exploiting and appeasing the teeming masses of Arcadia. On
the one hand, the Council has the technological superiority to maintain
its own grip on power. However, the particular economical model of the
city means that the Corporations (and thus, the Council) depend on the
vast work-force and free market of Arcadia's rabble. In addition, even a
group with the most advanced and devastating weaponry could not hold back
the incredible number of Arcadian inhabitants if they, by some miracle,
united in singular revolt.
Arcadia Security Force
The city's para-military police agency, the Arcadia Security Force is
tasked with enforcing the laws, keeping the peace, and bring criminals to
the harsh justice of the city's justice system. There are two basic levels
to the security force:
Enforcers: Heavily armed and armored, Enforcers are street cops and
infantry combined. Their main responsibility is to keep the peace and
quell disorder. This is often accomplished by the liberal application of
lethal force. Enforcers do try to take suspects into custody when they
can, though, since occasionally the person in question is an agent or
collaborator of the government or, worse, a powerful corporation. Among
the force are widely circulated rumors of officers who quietly disappeared
or turned up dead after unintentionally eliminating an undercover
Regulator or an important gang member in the employ of a corporate power.
So while Enforcers never hesitate to respond to force with force, they try
to be very careful about shooting unless they think it's necessary. The
typical Enforcer wears a full suit of body armor and carries an assault
rifle, occasionally with a grenade launcher. Specialist squads train in
the use of more advanced weaponry and equipment.
Regulators: Those Enforcers with at least a modicum of intelligence
and sense are usually promoted to Regulators after a few years of service.
While these security agents can get down and dirty with the best of them
in a firefight, their main purpose is investigation and undercover
infiltration of criminal groups (excluding the corps, of course).
Regulators have nearly unfettered authority to search a person or place on
a whim, and are known for their effective (and often brutal) skills at
interrogation. Most inhabitants become nervous at the mere mention of the
word "Regulator", so formidable is their reputation.
The Courts and the Justice System
Justice in Arcadia is swift, simple, and brutally efficient. With no
Constitution or concept of inherent rights in this metropolis, the
conviction rate is usually around 95%. It's common knowledge that only
the well-connected or affluent citizens can manage to avoid a guilty
verdict. Rulings are severe by 21st century standards, with death
sentences not uncommon in robbery or assaults.
Magistrates, Arcadia's judges, run the courts with ruthless efficiency.
Speed and a conclusion are their primary goals, not justice. The position
of Magistrate is often a gift to government workers as reward for their
service to powerful corporations.
Arcadia Prison
Those who manage to survive incarceration in this harsh and terrible place
often swear to die before ever returning. The conditions are, not
surprisingly, dreadful. A majority of inmates die before their sentences
are completed (there is basically no concept of parole, though a sentence
can be commuted through the generous application of money). The most
common causes of death include disease, murder by a fellow inmate, or
being killed by a prison guard. Arcadia's prison is heavy on
"incarceration" and light on the idea of "rehabilitation".