Policy Text
DEPARTMENTAL GENERAL ORDER E-1 Index as: Departmental Subpoena Service Effective Date:
15 Jul 11
Evaluation Coordinator:
BFO Administrative Commander
Evaluation Due Date:
16 Jan 12
Automatic Revision Cycle:
3 Years
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DEPARTMENTAL SUBPOENA SERVICE
The purpose of this order is to set forth Department policy and pr ocedures for serving
Superior and Federal Court criminal or civil subpoenas within the Department for
members and employees, and to private persons . This order additionally establishes new
procedures for electronic subpoena service to fa cilitate the eliminati on of inherent delays
of hardcopy subpoe na service.
I. SUBPOENA SOURCE AND TYPE
A. The Court Liaison Unit shall be the pr imary point of contact and receive
and process subpoenas for members and employees.
B. Subpoenas shall be logged in the DA LITE computer and/or the database
maintained by the C ourt Liaison Unit.
C. Subpoenas are received via two (2) sources: 1. DALITE Subpoenas
: Subpoenas generated by Alameda County
District Attorney’s Office DALITE Computer System for criminal
cases.
2. Individual Subpoenas: Subpoenas received from Superior or
Federal Courts and other sources (s uch as traffic, defense and civil
attorneys, and outside jurisdictions).
3. The Department also receives subpoe nas from other counties and is
required by law to at tempt service.
DEPARTMENTAL GENERAL ORDER E-1 Effective Date:
15 Jul 11 OAKLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT
II. COURT LIAISON UNIT SUBPOENA SERVICE PROCESSING
Upon receipt of a subpoena, th e Court Liaison Unit shall:
A. Ensure the timely service1 of subpoenas, criminal or civil, to members and
employees.
B. Determine if the named member or employee is presently employed with
the Department and on active duty st atus by reviewing the automated
scheduling and staffing management system (T eleStaff) and Personnel
Orders.
C. Immediately notify the initiating entity of non-service if a person has left
the Department or is otherw ise unavailable for service.
D. Ensure the return of succes sfully served subpoenas.
E. Confer with the District Attorney’s Office to facilitate court appearance
scheduling of members and employees.
F. Maintain and update the Department’s Court Log and update the Alameda
County Subpoena Log Sheet in the DALITE System regarding the service
of subpoenas.
G. Track member and employee court a ttendance for overtime purposes.
H. Monitor and provide information on continuances, subpoena cancellations,
plea changes, and other factors that af fect the status of scheduled court
appearances of members and employees.
I. Liaison with organizational un its and Alameda County Court
Administration, the Office of the City Attorney and private firms, to
resolve issues that may arise.
J. Update the Department’s Court L og and update th e Alameda County
Subpoena Log Sheet (criminal s ubpoenas only) with the following
information after verifying the availa bility of each member or employee:
1 The Court Liaison shall use the options button (on the Outlook Toolbar) to request both a delivery
receipt and read receipt from the su bpoenaed member/employee. The elec tronic receipt is sent back to
Court Liaison as proof of service.
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DEPARTMENTAL GENERAL ORDER E-1 Effective Date:
15 Jul 11 OAKLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT
1. Name, serial number, a nd rank or position title;
2. Date forwarded to organizational unit;
3. Date subpoena returned or electr onic verification received to the
Court Liaison Unit; and
4. Court and scheduled appearance ti me, date, docket number, and
attorney.
K. Forward subpoenas to appropriate or ganizational units for service as
follows:
1. Criminal
a. From the Alameda County District Attorney Forward electronic subpoena vi a OPD email system to the
subpoenaed member or employee.
b. Other Jurisdictions (Federal/County)
Hand-deliver subpoenas to th e subpoenaed member or
employee’s organizational un it commander or designee for
service to the subpoenaed member or employee.
c. Other (Traffic, Civil, Public Defender, Private Attorney) Hand-deliver subpoenas to th e subpoenaed member or
employee’s organizational un it commander or designee for
service to the subpoenaed member or employee.
2. CPRB
A CPRB subpoena shall be processed in accordance with the provisions of DGO M-3.2, CPRB.
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DEPARTMENTAL GENERAL ORDER E-1 Effective Date:
15 Jul 11 OAKLAND POLICE DEPARTMENT
III. POST-SERVICE SUBPOENA PROCESSING
Delivery of a subpoena sha ll be established by one of the following means:
A. Successful Service - Upon receipt of a signed hardcopy subpoena or
documentation (email read recei pt) denoting the subpoena was
opened/read. Return all signed subpoenas indicating successful service to
the initiating entity. The Court Liaison Unit shall update the Department’s Court log and, if necessary, the Alameda County Subpoe na Log Sheet with the date of
service.
B. Non-Service – The return of the hard copy subpoena with an appropriate
notation indicating why serv ice was not made; or
Email documentation denoting the electronic subpoena was not
opened/read (e.g., Deleted, Mailbox full, email off-line).
1. In the event a READ receipt is