Policy Text
Confidential operators/informants
Purpose of the
order The purpose of this order is to establish the guidelines for ma naging
operators/informants and mainta ining the proper relationship an d
documentation necessary for successful prosecutions.
General policy The following list describes the N.I.D.’s policy regarding conf idential
operators/informants.
A. All officers of the Narcotics I nvestigation Division are encour aged to
develop worthwhile, pro ductive informants.
1. The proper handling of informants is critical to the division's
integrity and the successful pr osecution of criminal offenders.
2. Officers shall adhere closely t o legal and proced ural guideline s
when dealing with operators/infor mants to avoid being placed in an
unethical, criminal, or otherwise compromising position.
B. Use of Informants with extensive criminal background will be vi ewed
on a Case to case basis and will require the approval of the op erations
commander or Division Commander.
Policy on
relationships between officers and informants The following list describes th e policy regarding relationships between
officers and informants.
It is the policy of this Department that the relationships betw een
officers and informants are of a completely ethical and profess ional
nature.
Social contact will be strictly avoided unless necessary in the
furtherance of an official inves tigation, and then only with pr ior
consent of the officer's su pervisor.
Acceptance of
gratuities The acceptance of gratuities or gifts from an informant can onl y be
condoned if such an act is in the furtherance of the official i nvestigation and
is approved in advance b y the officer's su pervisor.
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Specific
procedure for dealing with informants The following list describes the procedures officers shall foll ow when
dealing with informants.
A. It is the duty of each officer to keep his supervisors advised of his/her
activities with informants: the ir names, addresses, background, and
involvement in any investigations.
B. All information from informants shall be carefully screened as to its
factuality and value.
C. When contacting informants, the officer shall, if possible, arr ange the
presence of another officer.
D. It shall be the investigating o fficer's responsibility to notif y the
appropriate unit within the District Attorney's office of any u nusual
circumstances that have not been c larified in the original repo rt.
1. This is especially important in t he area of informant reliabili ty
and/or confidentiality.
E. Officers are responsible for the actions taken by operators/inf ormants
under the officer's control or direction.
F. Officers will not permit any illegal act by an operator/informa nt.
G. Condoning such acts make the officer an accomplice and places h imself
in a defensive position in futu re dealings with the operator/in formant,
and could result in disci plinary and le gal action a gainst the officer.
Policy for
purchasing narcotics/ Contraband The following list describes the N.I.D.’s policy regarding purc hasing
narcotics or contraband.
A. The actions taken by officers and operators engaged in the purc hase of
narcotics or contraband shall b e corroborated in as much detail a s
possible.
B. Whenever possible, officers havi ng telephone conversations with
suspects shall tape-reco rd such conversations.
C. When conversations have been recorded and deemed to be pertinen t,
they will be transcribed and inc orporated into the case report.
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What officers tell
operator/ Informants The following list describes the information an officer shall t ell all
operator/informants.
A. ALL OPERATOR/INFORMA NTS SHALL BE TOLD they are
acting in an independent capacity and not as officers, employee s, or
agents of the Sacramento County Sheriff's Department.
B. They shall not represent themse lves in any official capacity wh atsoever.
C. They are also prohibited from carrying firearms or other offens ive
weapons and are not to violate any laws unless they are under t he
specific direction and su pervision of an officer.
NOTE: No officer or agents of the Sacramento County Sheriff’s
Department shall "CHIP BACK" any narcotics to an
informant for his services.
11367 H&S does not provide immunity for officers
involved in this activit y.
Citizen operator/
Informant
defined A citizen operator or informant in this instance is defined as a subject
having no criminal record who desire s to assist with law enforc ement.
His/her reasons may vary from public spiritedness or monetary
compensation.
Officers are encouraged to uti lize this type of operator/inform ant
exercisin g good judgement in selectin g appropriate individuals.
Criminal
operator/ Informant A criminal operator or informant is a subject having a criminal record who
is usually motivated to assist law enforcement for some conside ration on a
pendin g arrest or criminal case.
Paid operator/
Informant
All of the defined operators/info rmants in this section could b e considered
"paid" informants by virtue of r eceiving monetary or other comp ensation
for information or services.
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