Then there is the relationship between the cooperator and the person against whom they testify.

FORBES: Why do people have a negative view of cooperators?

She said if news of his arrest were made public, he might be identified as a cooperator.

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The life of a government cooperator is not an easy one but it does have benefits when it comes to reducing prison time.

FORBES: Connect

"The publicly available information may then be used to harass the cooperator and the cooperator's family in a variety of ways, " she said.

WSJ: FBI's 'Sabu' Hacker Was a Model Informant

In a 1970s organized-crime trial, the late Norman Ostrow cross-examined Jimmy "The Weasel" Frattiano, a government cooperator who had admitted to a number of grisly murders.

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In addition, you have the personal circumstance of the cooperator.

FORBES: Why do people have a negative view of cooperators?

Add to that a situation where the cooperation is in the context of an unfair persecution of a friend, and the moral standing of the cooperator becomes even lower.

FORBES: Why do people have a negative view of cooperators?

However, if the cooperator is culpable in the horrific behavior, it is hard to have sympathy for the cooperator simply because he testified against his partner in crime in exchange for a lighter sentence.

FORBES: Why do people have a negative view of cooperators?