Wikipedia:No get out of jail free cards
 | This is an essay on the Blocking policy. It contains the advice or opinions of one or more Wikipedia contributors. This page is not an encyclopedia article, nor is it one of Wikipedia's policies or guidelines, as it has not been thoroughly vetted by the community. Some essays represent widespread norms; others only represent minority viewpoints. |
 | This page in a nutshell: There are no 'get out of jail free' cards on Wikipedia. Being an established user or an admin does not exempt you from investigation. |
In the game of Monopoly, one of the cards that you can get by landing on 'Chance' or 'Community Chest' is 'Get out of jail free'. This does exactly what it says on the tin: if you are sent to jail in the game, you can use the card to 'escape' immediately, without having to pay the $50 or wait the three turns mandated by the rules.
There are no such 'let-out' clauses on Wikipedia. Just because:
- You are an established editor
- You have created/helped to create FAs, GAs or FLs
- You are a recent changes/new-page patroller
- You are an administrator
- You are a bot operator or developer
does not mean that you are exempt from blocks, having your conduct discussed at WP:ANI, having a request for arbitration opened about you or being subject to other policies.
A prompt apology and recognition of any failures can mitigate an incident, especially if it was a genuine mistake, but experience and contributions will not grant you complete immunity.