Policy Text
Page 1 of 6 - General Order 3-13 – (01/18/24 )
SOCIAL MEDIA
RICHMOND POLICE DEPARTMENT
GENERAL ORDER
Subject: SOCIAL MEDIA
Chapter
3 Number
13 # Pages
6
CALEA Standards: 26.2.4, 45.1.2, 54.1.1
Virginia Code §15.2 -1512.4
City of Richmond Administrative Regulation 2.5, 2.7
Related Orders:
General Orders 1 -1, 3-5,
EO 20 -23 Effective Date: 01/18/2024
Revised By: Review
Prv. Rev. Date: 07/30/2021
Chief of Police :
I. PURPOSE
The Department endorses the secure use of social media to enhance communication,
collaboration, and information exchan ge, streamline processes, and foster productivity.
This policy is also intended to guide employee's conduct regarding their employment or
representation of employment through the numerous social networking venues.
Investigations using Social Networking are specialized investigative operations requiring
an understanding of the new technology and its impact on the community.
These investigations can be very effective in determining the criminal activities of
individuals or groups both online and in our commu nity. This policy establishes the
Department's position on the utility and management of social media and guides its
management, administration, and oversight. This policy is not meant to address one
particular form of social media; instead, social media i n general as advances in technology
will occur and new tools will emerge . [CALEA 54.1.1 ]
II. SUMMARY OF CHANGE
This policy is due for triannual review and remains unchanged .
III. POLICY
Departme nt employees enjoy free speech rights, but such rights are subject to certain
limitations due to the nature of law enforcement work . It is the policy of the Richmond
Police Department to regulate social media activity that may adversely impact the overall
Department, its employees, and its mission . As such, this policy provides information of a
preventive nature, as well as prohibitions on the use of social media by Department
personnel .
IV. ACCOUNTABILITY STATEMENT
All employees are expected to fully c omply with the guidelines and timelines outlined in
this general order. Failure to comply will result in appropriate corrective action.
Responsibility rests with the Division Commander to ensure that any violations of policy
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SOCIAL MEDIA are investigated and proper tra ining, counseling, and/or disciplinary action is initiated .
This directive is for internal use only and does not enlarge an employee’s civil liability in
any way . It should not be construed as creating a higher safety standard or case in an
evidentiary se nse concerning third -party claims . Violation of this directive, if proven, can
only form the basis of a complaint by this Department and then only in a non -judicial
administrative setting .
V. DEFINITIONS
A. BLOG – A self -published diary or commentary on a part icular topic that may allow
visitors to post responses, reactions, or comments.
B. PAGE – The specific portion of a social media web site where content is displayed
and managed by an individual or individuals with administrative rights.
C. PROFILE – Information that a user provides about himself or herself on a social
networking site.
D. POST – Content an individual share on a social media site or the act of publishing
content on a site.
E. SOCIAL MEDIA – A category of internet -based resources that integrate user -
gener ated content and user participation. This includes, but is not limited to, social
networking sites (Facebook, MySpace), microblogging sites (Twitter, Nixle), photo -
video sharing sites (Flickr, YouTube), Wikis blogs, and news sites (Digg, Reddit) .
F. SPEECH – Expression or communication of thoughts or opinions in spoken words, in
writing, by expressive conduct, symbolism, photographs, video , or related forms of
communication.
G. WEB 2.0 – The second generation of the World Wide Web focused on shareable,
user-generated content rather than static web pages. Term is inter -changeable with
social media .
VI. PROCEDURE
A. Department Sanctioned Presence:
1. Where possible, each social media page shall include an introductory
statement specifying the agency’s purpose and scope on the website . Efforts
should be made to link the pages to the Department’s official website . Where
possible, social media pages should state that the opinions expressed by
visitors do not reflect the views of the Department .
2. The Department’s social networ king pages are available for any comment on
topics relevant to the business of the Department or in response to a posting .
The comments may be positive or negative, praise or criticism . There are
several advantages to social media networking, including com munity
outreach and communication and establishing a forum for interested people to
share comments and criticisms with the Department so that members may
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SOCIAL MEDIA learn about real or perceived shortcomings and respond appropriately either
by disseminating correct i nformation, offering an explanation, or changing its
actions and reporting the change . [CALEA 26.2.4 , 45.1.2 ]
3. The Public Affairs Unit shall maintain and monitor the Department’s social
networking accounts.
a) The Public Affairs Unit will manage all Web 2.0 application s in