Policy Text
CATEGORY DATE ADOPTED LAST REVIEW NEXT REVIEW
4 05/25/2015 07/14/2022 07/14/2026
BUENA PARK POLICE DEPARTMENT GENERAL ORDERS
_____ __________________ ______
GO 358 - Major Incident Notification 1 POLICY 358 MAJOR INCIDENT NOTIFICATION
358.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE
This policy provide s guidance to Department employee s for determining when, how , and whom to
notify when major incidents occur .
358.1.1 ACCREDITATION STANDARDS
This policy pertains to the following CALEA Standards: 11.3.3, 41.2.4
358.2 POLICY
The Buena Park Police Department recognizes that certain incidents should be brought to the
attention of Department supervisors , managers, and Command Staff to facilitate the coordination
of activities and ensure inquiries from the news media and the public are properly addressed.
358.3 MINIMUM CRITERIA FOR NOTIFICATION
Most situations where the news media show a s trong interest are also of interest to the Chief of
Police and the affected Division Commander. The following list of incident types is provided as a
guide for notification and is not intended to be all -inclusive .
a) Homicides
b) Traffic accidents with fataliti es
c) Officer -involved shooting , on or off duty ( see BPPD Policy § 310, Officer -Involved Shooting ,
for special notifications)
d) Significant injury or death to employee , on or off duty
e) Death of a prominent Buena Park official
f) Arrest of a Department employee or p rominent Buena Park official
g) Aircraft , railroad, or common carrier incidents with major damage and/or injury or death
h) In-custody deaths
i) Significant fires, floods , or other disasters
j) Multiple casualty incident s
k) Any incident resulting in the extended deployment of multiple officers and significant
resources
l) Any time a news -media representative or a freelance journalist is on scene
358.4 WATCH COMMANDER RESPONSIBILITY
The Watch Commander is responsible for notifying the Chief of Police or his/her designee, via the
chain of command, o f all incidents that may raise a question of Department liability , and those that
may result in a heightened community interest. The City Manager and the City Council will be
notified by the on -duty Watch Commander at the direction of the Chief of Police or his/her designee.
Before notification, t he Watch Commander shall make reasonable attempts to obtain as much
CATEGORY DATE ADOPTED LAST REVIEW NEXT REVIEW
4 05/25/2015 07/14/2022 07/14/2026
BUENA PARK POLICE DEPARTMENT GENERAL ORDERS
_____ __________________ ______
GO 358 - Major Incident Notification 2 information on the incident as possible. The Watch Commander shall attempt to make the
notifications as soon as practicable.
The Watch Commander should note all incidents requiring notif ications i n the Watch Commander’s
Recap as soon as practical .
358.4.1 STAFF NOTI FICATION
In the event an incident occurs as described in § 358. 3, the Chief of Police shall be notified along
with the affected Division Commander and the Detective Lieutenant , if that division is affected.
358.4.2 DETECTIVE NOTIFICATION
If the incident requires a Detective to respond from home, the Detective Lieutenant or his/her
designee shall be contacted . The contactee will then contact the immediate supervisor of the
appropriate detail .
358.4.3 TRAFFIC UNIT NOTIFICATION
In the event of a traffic fatality or major injury accident that may result in a fatality , the Traffic
Sergeant shall be notified , who will then contact the appropriate accident investigator. The Traffic
Sergeant will notify the Traffic Lieutenant.
358.4.4 PUBLIC INFORMATION OFFICER (PIO)
The PIO sh ould be called after Department employee s have been notified if it appears the media
may have a significant interest in the incident.