Policy Text
San Francisco Police Department 3.08
GENERAL ORDER 07120194
COURT APPEARANCES BY MEMBERS
This order establishes policy for honoring subpoenas and outlines procedures for
processing and serving subpoenas.
I. POLICY
A. RESPONSIBILITY TO HONOR SUBPOENAS. Members receiving subpoenas
from competent authority are required to appear as directed.
1. VACATION~ERSONAL LEAVE. Members on vacation or personal leave
must appear in court as directed, except when explicitly excused by the
ass.istant district attorney handling the case or by the attorney issuing the
subpoena.
2. SICK OR DISABILITY LEAVES. Membets on sick or disability leave must
appear in court unless they are physicaIly unable.
3. SUSPENSIONS. Members who are suspended must appear in court when
ordered.
4. ON OR OFF DUTY. Members on or off duty shall also appear in court when
ordered.
B. DISCIPLINE POLICY. Commanding officers shall route information
pertaining to instances of unexcused nonappearances to the Management
Control Division which will maintain files to identify repeat offenders. (See
SFPD Disciplinary Penalty & Referral Guidelines)
C COMPENSATION. See DGO ll.01, Personnel Compensatioa
1.. MALE IWMBERS. Male members appearing in court or at the Youth
Guidance Center (YGC) to testify shall be neat in appearance and
conservatively dressed in a suit or sport coat and slacks, including shirt
and tie. Jeans shall not be worn.
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2 FEMALE MEMBERS. Appropriate attire for female members shd consist of
suits, including pantsuits, tailored dresses or any coordinated ensemble of
coat, jacket, sweater, blouse, skirt or tailored slacks. Jeans shall not be
worn.
3. UNIFORMED MEMBERS. A uniformed member on duty at the time of the
court hearing shall appear in uniform. An off-duty officer may also be
properly attired in his/her unifom when appearing in court.
11. PROCEDURES
A. SUBPOENA SERVICE
I. Subpoenas delivered to the Department should be routed through the
Court Liaison Unit. The Court Liaison Unit will log the subpoenas in a
master log by court date, forward them to the units for service, and check
to assure they are being returned. Retumed subpoenas will then be sent
back to the issuing authority.
2. Subpoenas received directly at a unit shall be served and honored and a
copy sent immediately to the Court Liaison Unit for entry in the master
log.
3. When serving a subpoena on a member, ensure that the member initial it
above. his/her name on the original.
B. DESIGNAmG A SUBPOENA OFmCER The commanding officer of each
unit charged with serving subpoenas shall designate one member as the
subpoena officer to maintain records and serve subpoerias.
C SERVING SUBPOENAS ON CMLLANS/DUTLES OF THE SUBPOENA
OFFICER
I. UNIT SUBPOENA LOG. Maintain a subpoena log in a loose-leaf, three-ring
binder using SFPD 186, "bit Subpoena Log." Complete the log according
to the instructions on the form and organize it in the binder.
chronologically by court date.
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2 SERVICE. When serving a subpoena by personal service, complete and sign
the bottom portion of the origml and include your title. Forward the
served subpoena in an envelope addressed to the Court Liaison Unit at
least two working days before the court date.
3. EXTENSION. If additional time is required to serve a subpoena (e.g., the
witness will be available at a. later date) it may be held; however, the
District Attorney's Office must be notified. For Municipal Court
subpoenas, notify the District Attorney's Subpoena Unit. For Superior
Court subpoenas, notify the district attorney issuing the subpoena.
4. SUBPOENAS SERVED BY INSPECTORS. When possible, subpoenas that must
be served by inspectors shall be served during on-duty hours. Subpoena
service does not necessarily require the presence of two inspectors.
D. SUBPOENAS SERVED ON MEMBERS
1. CHANGE OF DATE. If a court date is changed by the assigned attorney, the
member shall agree to the substitute date if possible. The attorney must
then provide a new subpoena or amend the original.
2. -CANCELLATIONS. It is important that members be notified as soon as
possible when a court cancellation form is received at the member's work
place. If a court date is canceled, the Court Liaison Unit will notify the
member by sending a copy of the "Officer Court Cancellation" form to the
member's unit.
a When receiving a court cancellation form, the lieutenant shall direct it
to the member and have hidher initial it and include the date and
time of notification.
b. If a court cancellation form is received, but the member is off duty and
will not return to duty prior to the court date, the lieutenant will
attempt to notify the member at home. If the notification is made by
telephone, the lieutenant will indicate on the cancellation form that
the member was notified along with the date and time of notification.
Notified officers will not receive compensation for attending canceled
CQLIrt cases.
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3. ERRORS.