Traditional Sources of Information

1. Traditional Sources of Information Chapter 7

2. Overview • Human Sources of Information • Voluntary Informants • Documentary Sources of Information • Physical Sources of Information • Privacy Considerations • Review Questions • Opportunity for Student Questions

3. Learning Objectives • Understand the importance of informational sources to the investigative process • List and define human information sources • Understand legal consideration regarding the informant • List and define documented information sources • Understand privacy considerations that influence information gathering • Understand federal legislation that has recently influenced information gathering and record keeping • Understand the issues pertaining to electronic information gathering • List and discuss the recently developed scientific aids that have expanded criminal justice information gathering

4. Human Sources of Information • People are the most frequent source of information but they are not always the most reliable source because: • Motivation varies • Accuracy is suspect • Willingness to reveal their knowledge to police varies • Most people cooperate with the police through a sense of civic duty

5. Three Different Types of Human Sources of Information • Voluntary informants • Informants with ulterior motives • Paid informants

6. Voluntary Informants • Anyone who provides information to the police without ulterior motive or payment • Motivation of the voluntary informant varies • Civic responsibility • Fear • General suspicion • The information given to police is invaluable • Information is obtained in three general ways • Personal cultivation • Departmental reference • Unsolicited contact (includes anonymous tips)

7. Informants with Ulterior Motives • Information is provided to the police for self-serving reasons • Revenge • Arrested suspects in exchange for sentencing or other considerations • Eliminating criminal competitors • Money–called mercenaries who assist the police solely for monetary gain • The information gathered must be evaluated for credibility

8. Paid Informants • Defined: Any individual who receives monetary compensation for information • In most cases the informant is: • Actively involved in crime or • Has close contacts with those who are • Commonly used in drug investigations • The bigger the seizure, the more money the informant will make • Small cases (gram level) might be worth only $100 ̶ $250 • Large cases (multi -ounce through kilo level) can be worth thousands of dollars

9. Paid Informants (continued) • Police are sensitive to the public sentiment regarding paid informants • It is a common practice in federal and state law enforcement agencies • It is an effective weapon in narcotics, tax evasion, organized crime, consensual crimes, and many other criminal enterprises where police have few other ways to intervene • The typical paid informant is a criminal type • Former FBI director William Webster said, “the informant is the single most important tool in law enforcement.”

10. Managing the Paid Informant–Federal Guidelines • When dealing with paid informants, a documented record of payment will be kept • Supervisors will conduct frequent reviews of informant activities • Police will report all informant crimes to proper authorities • A background investigation will be completed on all informants

11. Managing the Paid Informant–Federal Guidelines(continued) • Officers will be prohibited from making deals with informants who are seeking leniency in exchange for information • Prosecution officials will review investigations using paid informants for legal adherence • Officers will obtain the approval of a supervisor before using a paid informant: • Who is under 18 • Who is on parole or probation • Who is undergoing treatment for drugs or who is addicted to drugs • Who has been convicted of two or more felony offenses

12. Informant Legal Issues • Informer privilege • Entrapment • May exist when police have induced an individual to commit a crime • Prosecution must prove defendant was predisposed to commit the crime • Cellmate informants

13. To Avoid Entrapment ̶Three Essential Points • Investigators should be prepared to articulate a legitimate law enforcement purpose for beginning the undercover operation • Police should avoid using persistent or coercive techniques and instead should either: • Merely create an opportunity or • Provide facilities for the suspect to commit the crime • Investigators must document the factors demonstrating why a defendant was pre-disposed to commit the criminal act prior to police contact • Prior arrests • The suspect’s familiarity with drug terminology • Eagerness to engage in criminal activity

14. Documentary information is any type of information of a printed nature or data otherwise recorded and stored for retrieval From within the police agency (internal) From other criminal justice agencies From sources not connected with law enforcement Documentary Sources of Information

15. Name and addresses of: Arrested or questioned persons Those who have reported an offense Witnesses Complainants Victims Any other contacts with the police References to crime reports by the name of the reporting party, victim, suspect, or by the assigned officer Reports of all traffic accidents and other traffic contacts A list of names of all suspects having warrants for their arrest Internal Police Database: What the Master FileIncludes

16. Internal Police Database: What the MO FileIncludes • Modus operandi (MO) file • Usually housed in the investigation bureau • Contains linking information to show relationships between two or more different crimes such as: • Crime type (burglary, robbery, sexual assault, etc.) • Name of criminal • Method of criminal operation • Time of day • Target type (age of victim, type of building, etc.) • Number involved in the crime

17. County sheriff’s: Jail records (mug shots, booking information) Investigation records Department of Corrections Probation and parole records have a wealth of information on millions of people Over 4 million people are currently on probation Over 700,000 are on parole Millions of people are former P and P clients Prison records Criminal Justice Agencies: Sources of Information

18. Criminal Justice Agencies: Sources of Information • Coroner’s office or Medical Examiner • State bureaus of identification/state criminal identification repositories • State motor vehicle departments • Federal agencies such as the FBI

19. The FBI • The FBI serves as the largest collector of law enforcement records and databases • National Crime Information Center (NCIC) • The Criminalistics Laboratory Information System (CLIS) • The FBI Laboratory • The FBI Identification Division • The Combined DNA Index System (CODIS)

20. NCIC • Links every state, local, and federal law enforcement agency • 60,000 authorized users • Approximately 1 million daily transactions • Database of: • Wanted persons (300,000 entries) • Stolen property (for anything that has a serial number such as guns and electronics) • Stolen vehicles • Missing persons • Fingerprints/photographs

21. External Sources of Information • Sources not connected with law enforcement may be extremely helpful • Some sources are not public and will require a subpoena or warrant or consent from the subject of the information prior to private companies releasing information • Financial listings • Credit bureaus • Banks • Employee records • Phone company • Medical records • Student records • Phone books • Reverse directories • Tax records • Utility companies • Internet service providers • Post office (mail covers)

22. Physical Evidence: The Crime Scene • Obtained from the scene of the crime • All evidence is secured and reviewed for potential information • Additional examinations (by the crime lab) may be required, for example: • DNA • Fingerprint • Handwriting comparison • Drug analysis • Tool, tire, and foot impressions

23. Philosophical Objections to Information Gathering • Many Americans feel threatened by the information-gathering capacity of both: • Private industry • The government (AKA: Big Brother) • The historical and philosophical development of our country has been rooted in the right to individuality and privacy

24. Information Sharing? • Private companies have vast amounts of information on millions of people in the U.S. and share it: • With other companies and others who are willing to pay for it • Without the knowledge of their customers • Little regulation exists on this practice • State, local, and federal criminal justice agencies have extensive record systems and databases • In 1966, Congress passed the Freedom of Information Act • In 1974, it was amended by the Privacy Act

25. The Privacy Act • Allows access to records to the individuals to whom they pertain • Prescribes procedures to improve the accuracy of data • Contains specific exemptions to the release of information to the public • Classified information due to national security • Internal personnel rules and practices of an agency • Privileged trade-secret information • Information concerning personnel, medical files, or sensitive investigation records

26. The use of this type of surveillance by the government is highly controversial The Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act (1968) legalized electronic surveillance by law enforcement officers Overall, the use of electronic surveillance has been greatly exaggerated in media accounts and other popular outlets Electronic Surveillance

27. Electronic Surveillance ̶Is it Successful? • Only about 8,000 criminal wiretaps have been authorized by courts in the past ten years • With the onset of new technology, nearly nine of every ten wiretaps targeted portable devices, such as cellphones and pagers • Electronic surveillance is highly effective–in 2004 alone, wiretaps resulted in 4,506 arrests which concluded in 634 convictions

28. Review Questions • Explain why people may not be the most reliable of sources of information. • List the three different types of human sources of information. • What are some of the ulterior motives an informant might have for providing information to the police? • Explain the necessity for the police to use paid informants. • What is entrapment? How can the police reduce the occurrence of entrapment during investigations? • List the different sources of documentary information. • What information is contained in a local police database, known also as the master file? • What are some of the external sources of information used by the police during the course of an investigation?

29. Student Questions