In a real democracy, people shouldn’t have to guess whether an arrest is lawful. If someone’s being taken away in front of you, it should be immediately clear who is acting under legal authority and what they’re doing. That’s not a luxury. That’s the bare minimum. When aggressors of unknown affiliation show up without insignia, without explanation, in unmarked vehicles, and drag someone off the street, it doesn’t matter what badge they flash after the fact. That is not how democracy functions. It’s how fear works. It’s how authoritarian systems operate. The law isn’t supposed to be hidden. It’s supposed to be visible. Predictable. Something the public can recognize. That’s what gives it legitimacy. If people can’t tell the difference between a lawful arrest and a kidnapping, that’s not a policing issue, that’s a democratic crisis. And it’s dangerous for everyone. For the person being seized, obviously. But also for the public who might try to intervene. For the aggressors themselves, who might face resistance because no one knows what’s going on. No one should have to pause and wonder if the person getting shoved into a car is about to be booked or disappeared. The state has the burden of clarity. That’s what separates accountable government from raw power. It’s not the public’s job to decode who’s real and who’s not in the heat of the moment. If the process is so opaque that regular people can’t tell the difference between justice and abuse, the problem is not their confusion.