Given that the Show Trial option apparently has -gold, +karma, -corruption (good results at a price), I *think* the idea is more "public trial" than "show trial". His guilt is already established, but by making the trial public you also get the message out that corrupt behavior WILL be punished, thereby discouraging others from doing the same.

And unlike just executing him, you don't take a karma hit.

I meant too 'show trial' as public trial, I didn't know that in english they mean different things. I meant that, if the guy repented and you 'kindly' fine him and leave him in his office, or if he bribes you and keeps his office, there wouldn't be any difference. He loses money, you get the money, he keeps his office. You gain money from this, you want a karma increase too? In real life it would be also wrong. Taxpayers pay trials.. I don't think it's a good reason not to make trials when somebody breaks the law. And if the guy confessed, there isn't even much to pay since the outcome of the trial is rather obvious anyway. Also, who loses a trial generally pays the expenses.

That actually makes a lot of sense in the context of the situation. I guess this is just a case of some subtleties getting lost in the translation (which is totally understandable, in fact I'm already impressed at how well translated the game is).

Nowhere does it says that fining him leaves him in office. In real life if someone pleads guilty then there is no trial, only sentencing which admitted occurs at a court. (followed perhaps by appeals to reduce the punishment). The whole process takes under 10 minutes. It is why at the begining of every trial they ask "how do you plead", if they say "guilty" they receive their punishment and thats it; if they say "not guilty" then a trial is done to determine their guilt.

Show trials are done in corrupt countries as a form of PR, where the outcome of the trial is known in advance but the people are given a spectacle to ensure they see how "just" the government is

@taltamir - The setting is more comparitable to medieval times than it is modern times. In that context, you would assume that he was NOT removed from office if you fined him unless it expressly said he was.

I don't know about you, but I am not an expert on medieval law. Fun fact, holliwood lies when it creates "authentic historical recreation" of things.

The bottom line is that fine and bribe are different things and this entire thing is a translation error combined with extremely vague instructions.

There is far too much left for people to "assume" based on their knowledge (and that of the developer's) of medieval legal practices and implied by the exact turn of phrase the developers chose (in a different language) rather then explicitly stated.

If it said "Tell him if he pays me a % as a fine, he can keep his office and continue to collect bribes and we will keep it a secret" then it would be clear that the translators incorrectly put "fine" in there (or that you are being "sneaky" or something).
While if it said "Remove him from office, reclaim all the money he stole + claim all his current property as a fine" then its clear something completely different happens.

Likewise if it said "Hold a show trial where he is judged and sentenced fairly as per the existing laws of the land" vs "have my propaganda experts hold a show trial and then publically execute him, even though the penalty for his crime is supposedly imprisonment"... again, clear and very very different things.

We are left to imagine too much here which, when combined with potential translation issues just doesn't clearly indicate what is going on (and thus it is really really hard to guess what effect it has on karma and corruption)

Actually, translation error could be only in "impale the scum". Russian variant is about vertical impalement through rectum.

crosses his heart that he took the bribes to support his family, and swears by the gods that he won't do it anymore
So, If you fine him - you take money from innocent family, because he didn't use it himself.

This is a good opportunity to arrange a demonstration to teach the other corrupted officials a lesson
Answer2: Arrange a court trial for show. (-300 $ );
Answer3: Impale the scum!;
Any other answer is not a lesson(read - any other variant doesn't decrease corruption). I saw on TV something like "this monopolist got 10 millions of unfair profit, was fined for 100k". Pft.

I am not quite sure what your argument is with the last post...
Are you saying that it is perfectly clear as is?

Game have a lot of traps, and they intended by design.
Like with slave traders - is killing them and stealing their gold +karma variant? Many of novice players think "yes".

I wouldn't say that this is perfectly clear, but it is not extremely vague either. Just need careful thinking.
Fines don't stop corruption. And fining him means that you take money from his poor family. If you don't believe to his words - you are bad person :)

Maybe so, but that is still a clear case of poor translation where the word "bribe" was mistranslated as "fine" even though they are the polar opposite of each other. further exacerbated by the players needing to guess what action they are choosing to due because its vague about what each choice is. Like those dialog wheels on newer bioware games that give you a single word to guess what you are going to say from

This is an old post but I have to say about trials that all trials must be public. No justice is ever just if it is done in secret. Repenting of a crime does not absolve one of it and the harm it has done to others is not revoked by that.
Also, in the context of the game, you are the lord, so there is no "wasting of taxpayer money". It is *your* money that you use in such a way as to demonstrate to the people under your rule that justice is served in your Kingdom.
Also, who ever said that fighting corruption is cheap? Saving/making money is the only reason corruption thrives. This logic is exactly what feeds corruption over justice.

Also, in the context of game, "Fining" a criminal and letting him go is, as Gremlion said, essentially taking money from him under the table to let him go on doing his thing undisturbed. This is what modern governments do with Corporations that get rich on the backs of the people they harm. Government fines them(making money for themselves), but the people suffer and the Corporations get richer. So, no, fines are not a "punishment", really, in these cases. It is a bribe beautified using a different word.
Fine is a punishment when the one that is fined has gotten no profits from the offense he committed. Like when a driver gets fined for overspeeding.
Just using the same word, does not make it the same thing. It only helps with creating impressions. Any logical person can understand that, in my opinion.

Leaving aside your political views of corporations, you outright admit that it is actually a bribe which is falsely presented as a fine to be "beautified" and further admit that in some scenarios fines ARE actual punishment.
By that argument you might as well argue that "when the game asks you if you want to hold a democratic election CLEARLY it means be a dictator with a fake democracy because that is how some people do it while calling it democracy as a form of beautification; even though real democracy exists".
This is not a mere trap choice, it is outright LYING to the gamer about what their choice IS (not its result, what they choose to do)

LYING to the gamer? LMAO