RANKED: The Most Corrupt States

[xchrom]

http://www.businessinsider.com/most-corrupt-states-and-territories-2013-9

This weekend, the New York Times' Nick Madigan called Florida a "hothouse of corruption," reporting the Sunshine State saw the greatest number of people convicted of public corruption between 2000 and 2010.

That's technically true. But it's not the full story.

To get a true sense of the most corrupt state, we need to know how many convictions there have been on a population basis.

So we went back to Justice Department data cited by Madigan, to see which states saw the greatest number of convictions per 100,000 (Madigan actually appears to cite slightly outdated data; the latest covers the period between 2002 and 2011).



Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/most-corrupt-states-and-territories-2013-9#ixzz2dvJZHHZJ

[madokie]

1. We're 15th from the top down

Not sure I wasn't expecting that to be up further

[HereSince1628]

2. Couldn't corruption actually influence convictions as in prevent investigations and prosecutions?

I'm not sure that this is the best way to consider this problem.

[FSogol]

4. True. SC as the least corrupt? I don't buy it. n/t

[mercuryblues]

11. neither do I

Or what does it say about government corruption when SC is the least corrupt?

Lt gov resigned for misuse of campaign funds. Anyone remember Alvin Greene fiasco? When Haley was in the legislature, she was a paid consultant for Lexington Medical Center, she voted to approve their expansion. As gov, she vetoed a bill to block dredging the Port of Savannah, after a big fundraiser in Georgia. The SC side of the river ended up with all the muck, Georgia got a deeper port. The port of Charleston, well they don't fundraise for her, so who cares.

She "forgot" to file taxes, and when she did, she forgot to list her income from Lexington MC.

Using state vehicles and sled drivers to attend a fundraiser in NC, where she was involved in an accident. It wasn't revealed for months.

Giving her cabinet HUGE raises, while firing teachers and freezing state employee wages.

Her trip to France, that cost a bundle. Her entourage was almost 30 people. Her reason was to bring jobs to SC, no new jobs yet.

And this is just off the top of my head.

But hey,

Have a great day in South Carolina, or get fired.

[adirondacker]

14. Yup. When you have Nevada and SC listed as less corrupt than Vermont a little bell should ring.

Tis a poorly designed "study". But that's why they get payed the big bucks.

[FSogol]

3. How many of the top 10 have Republican Governors?

[hobbit709]

5. TX is way more corrupt than that. It's getting a conviction for corruption is difficult

Higher conviction rate just means there's actually something being done about it.

[LeftishBrit]

6. Is number of convictions always a reliable measure?

Those states with more convictions could have more aggressive prosecutors, or their corrupt officials and businesspeople might be less competent at avoiding detection rather than fewer in number.

[Kolesar]

8. Florida's attorney general ignored "mortgage document fraud", so there were no "convictions"

...and, hence, the data looked better. You and other posters made that same point, broadly.

[LonePirate]

7. It's interesting how the top 8 are all red states.

[davidpdx]

9. Oregon is the 2nd least corrupt state

Cool

[Scuba]

10. Still misleading. Wisconsin looks honest but that's 'cause our courts are corrupt.

[1-Old-Man]

12. Hmmm, it seems to me that the more corrupt the state the less likely to see convictions

If the state is really corrupted no one will go to court in the first place. For that reason the listing seems to be awfully flawed.

[mnhtnbb]

13. I'm kinda surprised that Texas isn't closer to the top of that chart.

[magical thyme]

15. the list is wrong. It only shows the stupid corruption. The slickest don't get convicted, sillies.

[Bunnahabhain]

16. Detroit alone should have put Michigan in the top five

I've very surprised.