In a modern world, is there such thing as a reliable authority? If so, who or what?

There can never be completely reliable authority. Regardless of who or what the authority is, because humans are neither completely good nor evil, there will be those who choose to be reliable as well as those who choose to be unreliable. The best we can hope for is for more who wish to choose to be reliable will make the majority of the authoritarian figures, rather than those who wish not to be, who will then punish those of us who find ourselves in times of need and need dependable and trustworthy authority.

How Does "Crime and Punishment" address my BIG QUESTION?

Crime and Punishment illustrates my question, are humans inherently good or evil through Raskolnikov's struggle of whether or not to turn himself in for his crime and the illnesses he obtains from his stress and worry of wondering if he is yet been found out. It seems as though he would he would be evil because of his murders, but his conscience drags him down so much through the great amount of guilt he feels, that it makes one look again and wonder if maybe the murder just happened, and he is not really evil. But if this is true, he still cannot be good!
Also, Crime and Punishment relates to my question in the same way as my independent study novel, East of Eden. They both have various characters all along the good vs. evil spectrum, allowing for much philosophical discussion over the question, but never allowing one to come to a clear answer.