Tag Archives: US

USA confidential informant management draws international attention

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A recent article published by the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-21939453  highlighted many of the concerns that have already been raised in the USA about the way in which confidential informants are currently managed in the US. What will be of interest to law enforcement is not the content of the report for similar issues frequently appear in US media, but the fact that the issues  raised have reached a threshold that they are of interest outside the US.

In recent years there has been an increase in the amount of public interest and scrutiny applied to how confidential informants are managed. Increasing public concern will dictate how law enforcement manages confidential informants in the future. If the experience of UK law enforcement  is anything to go by and all the indicators are that circumstances are being replicated then many agencies in the US need to take a good look at the structures they have in place to manage confidential informants.  The UK experience began with one or two ‘bad cases’ coming to the public notice, increasing criticism from judiciary and other public bodies, greater interest from citizens and more adverse reporting in the media particularly with regard to confidential informant related corruption and privacy violations.  In the UK this led to firstly the creation by police chiefs of national standards for confidential informant management and secondly the introduction of legislation pertaining to the management of confidential informants.

One only has to look at media reporting in the USA to see where there has been an increase in adverse comments about how confidential informants are managed to realize that there is significant debate going on. Added to this is the fact that both the Federal Government and a number of states have introduced legislation pertaining to confidential informant management and one can grasp that it is only time before other states follow suit.

There are a number of elements that form the core of public concern about how confidential informants are managed:

  •  The lack of accountability in regard to law enforcement actions with confidential informants.
  • The potential violation of citizens’ privacy rights by law enforcement when using confidential informants.
  • The risks that confidential informants are exposed to in return for limited potential benefit.
  • Concerns about the administration of justice with regard to the uncorroborated testimony of confidential informants and ‘big fish’ walking free because they have passed information relating to ‘little fish’.

A significant number of US agencies have recognized that the expectation that citizens now have in relation to the interaction between law enforcement and confidential informants. Such agencies have introduced specific training for their officers, new and comprehensive policies relating to confidential informants, and software to significantly enhance record keeping pertaining to confidential informants thus providing appreciably higher levels of accountability in all aspects of the business.

Other agencies seem totally unaware of the change in public expectation or are unwilling to invest resources to meet those expectations. Burying one’s head in the sand or crossing one’s fingers may seem like reasonable options but such an approach did not satisfy a court in Florida when it awarded $2.6 million dollars for the mismanagement of Rachael Hoffman, a confidential informant working for Tallahassee Police Department.

John regularly advises ABM in relation to the development of abmpegasus software for managing confidential informants. He has written two books on managing confidential informants and is an internationally recognized expert on confidential informantmanagement. His latest title, Managing Intelligence; A Guide for Law Enforcement Professionals, will be published in June and deals with the structures necessary for an agency to have an effective intelligence system.

abmpegasus is a modular piece of expert-led software that helps law enforcement agencies and police manage confidential informants, intelligence and covert operations in accordance with best practice, policy and legislation.

If you would like more information on the abmpegasus confidential informant management software please contact Dawn Starling on dawn.starling@abmsoftware.com  t: +1 703-326-1366 or complete an ABM Software contact form and a member of our team will get in touch.

If you would like advice or further information on confidential informant  related matters please to contact John at john.buckley@abmsoftware.com or contact +1 703-326-1366

 

State oversight proposed for four St Louis PDs

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In the past year, the former police chief of Alorton and East St Louis (MO) Police Departments was caught stealing computer video games in an FBI sting and the former mayor of Alorton pleaded guilty to using the police department to steal and ditribute cocaine. Now, as reported by stltoday.com, the troubled police departments in East St Louis could be subjected increased oversight following the proposed creation of a “Metro East Police District Commission”. Although the four agencies would continue to operate independently, the Commission would impose regulations and standards and have control of their finances.

Any sign of corruption or malpractice among law enforcement is a serious problem. It reduces trust and cooperation leading to the proliferation of problems like the “Stop Snitching phenomenon”. If the new legislation in East St Louis is passed, the new Commission will have to think very carefully about how it can impose improved standards and practices. It is not enough simply to write new policies. Robust systems must be implemented to enable management oversight. abmpegasus helps to address some of these issues, giving management oversight of traditionally opaque areas of policing without compromising confidentiality and security.

Former Police Chief and 5 Officers in Court for Misusing $100k in Drug Forfeiture Funds

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Romulus’s PD’s former police chief, his wife and five of his officers are in court facing allegations of falsifying  payments to confidential informants, sex acts during undercover work and other acts of fraud between 2006 and 2011. The case, reported by The Detroit News, is, of course, extremely damaging to the reputation of the Michigan police department, casting doubt upon the legitimacy and credibility of the agency.

Whatever the outcome of the court case, the whole debacle highlights the importance of comprehensive record keeping among narcotics units. Narcotics officers have often been subject to minimal management oversight, being left to manage their own informants and intelligence gathering operations. This approach provides too much opportunity for malpractice. It also fails to make the best use of intelligence that is collected by individual officers.

ABM has developed abmpegasus to address these issues. It improves record keeping to reduce the potential for corruption as well as helping to share crucial intelligence within the organisation and make better use of intelligence sources. abmpegasus helps to implement robust policies and procedures, protecting the law enforcement officers, informants, citizens and the reputation and effectiveness of the agency.

Abandoned California sexual abuse case highlights dangers of confidential informant mismanagement

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A former Seaside Police Department officer has just been acquitted of 33 charges relating to his alleged sexual abuse of six women while in uniform. The ex-officer, who was fired last year after an internal investigation, initially lied about meeting one of the women because he ignored police department advice not to meet informants alone. After one of the confidential informants made her complaint against the officer, he was arrested – another five women also made similar complaints.

The case highlights two important aspects of police procedure. Firstly, policies and procedures need to be firmly implemented to ensure that officers do not make unauthorised or unaccountable contact with confidential informants. Secondly, confidential complaints by citizens need to be carefully stored to prevent officers’ free access to information that may include allegations against them.

Managing the Risk of Juvenile Confidential Informants

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The Miami Times recently ran a three part feature on the dangers of law enforcement using teenagers or young people as confidential informants (CIs). The article focuses on the case of Bosco Enriquez who moved from Nicaragua to Miami with his family when he was four years old. Unfortunately at the age of 13 Enriquez got involved with the notorious International Posse gang. In 1996, at the age of 15, his family’s house was raided by police and he was charged with aggravated battery. Enriquez then started working with police as a confidential informant, helping to bust as many as 30 gang members for drugs offences.

In the article, Enriquez explains his experience of conducting a controlled drug buy to incriminate a fellow gang member: “I was terrified. This was a violent guy and I was a 15-year-old kid.” Enriquez says that his involvement as a confidential informant led him to start taking drugs himself. He also claims that, after helping law enforcement, the police abandoned him. He was beaten and raped by other prisoners whilst in police custody and then deported to Nicaragua for a minor drugs charge where he remains to this day.

The article goes on to state that in 1997, Enriquez’s handler revealed his name in a deposition, stating, “His horror story is emblematic of a bigger problem that lawmakers in Florida and across the nation have only recently begun to recognize: Cops employ confidential informants — sometimes very young ones — to bust criminals. But there’s little oversight, and the result of police carelessness can be horrific.”

The Miami New Times cites two examples of young confidential informants who were killed in separate incidents whilst working for law enforcement – 23-year-old Rachel Hoffman and 17-year-old Chad McDonald.

Whatever the rights and wrongs of these cases, it is clear that the use of young confidential informants carries a high degree of risk. And, whilst the use of young informants may not be desirable, sometimes it is a necessary tool in the fight against organised crime. It is important, therefore, that juvenile CIs are managed properly.

Implementing effective strategies for risk assessment, governance, protection of identity and the management of financial transactions are crucial to protecting the human rights of young CIs. Informant management software, like abmpegasus, can help to ensure that all issues surrounding juvenile confidential informants are properly managed. The abmpegasus system, for example, includes a number of features specifically designed for dealing with juvenile CIs:

  • Review dates – ensure that young CIs are subjected to more frequent regular reviews
  • Escalated approval – ensure that the use of young CIs is authorised by a senior officer
  • Warnings – automatically alert handlers to the juvenile status of young informants

In addition to these areas, abmpegasus also provides comprehensive functionality to manage all aspects of any confidential informant, ensuring that operations are properly assessed for risk, appropriately authorised and carefully managed.

City Settles on $2.6m Payout for Death of Confidential Informant

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The city of Tallahassee, Florida, has approved a $2.6m settlement after the parents of Rachel Hoffman sued the city for negligence leading to the death of their 23-year-old daughter in 2008. Hoffman had been arrested for minor drugs offences and agreed to act as a confidential informant for police in order to get leniency in her sentencing. Unfortunately, the drugs sting went disastrously wrong, ending up with Hoffman being shot dead by the drug dealers that the police were trying to incriminate.

Since these unfortunate events, the state of Florida has introduced “Rachel’s Law”, requiring law enforcement agencies to provide specialist training for confidential informant handlers and implement better safeguards.

Some law enforcement agencies have taken the example of Tallahassee very seriously, implementing robust management processes to reduce the risk associated with confidential informants. However, other agencies still need to take a more proactive approach towards ensuring that informants are used more carefully and intelligently. Rachel’s Law is a good step forward in improving US practices regarding informants, but there is still more progress to be made. Let’s hope that other states take some of these lessons on board and that every effort is made to enhance the requirements under Rachel’s Law to ensure that opportunities for risky practices are further removed.

Drugs Sting Goes Badly Wrong in Texas

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A confidential informant is murdered, the truck he was driving is buried in a wall, a Sheriff’s Deputy is shot by another police officer and four people are injured in a collision with a school bus.

This sounds like the plot of a car chase in a blockbuster movie. Unfortunately it was all the result of an undercover narcotics operation that went badly wrong in Texas last week.

As reported by KHOU, undercover officers from Harris County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO), Houston Police Department (HPD) and members of the Drugs Task Force were following a truck being driven by a confidential informant. The truck was loaded with at least 300lb of marijuana and the law enforcement officers were following it in order to arrest the drug dealers who would receive the delivery. However, whilst en route several other vehicles suddenly appeared, showering the truck with bullets and killing the confidential informant. A gun battle that followed, with officers firing back at the hijackers killing one of them, while another one was hit twice by a patrol vehicle. In the confusion a plain clothes HCSO deputy was allegedly shot in the leg by a HPD officer who didn’t recognise him. A patrol vehicle responding to the scene added to the chaos by colliding with a school bus, injuring the two drivers and two other people.

It is not clear whether the hijackers were intending to steal the drugs shipment or just assassinate the confidential informant. What is clear, however, is that the law enforcement operation certainly did not go to plan, despite law enforcement succeeding in arresting four men accused of storming the truck.

The whole case raises issues over confidential informant anonymity and protection, risk management and deconfliction. When dealing with narcotics and unpredictable drug dealers, mistakes can happen. I just hope that law enforcement went through proper procedures to assess the risk associated with this particular operation before they embarked upon it.

Georgia Terror Case Reveals Importance of Informant Reliability

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The importance of ensuring informant reliability is currently being demonstrated in federal court as four men are accused of plotting to attack US government officials.

As reported by 11 Alive, the court heard recordings of the men discussing their targets. However, defense lawyers are arguing that the recording have been taken out of context and that they were recorded by an unreliable confidential informant with “a series of legal troubles, including two recent charges of child pornography and child molestation”.

In such cases, corroboration of evidence is crucial – given the seriousness of the charges and the allegations against the informant, one has to hope that the prosecution has some good corroborative evidence up their sleeves.

Will H.R. 3228 improve confidential informant management?

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Congressman Stephen F. Lynch has introduced a bill (the Confidential Informant Accountability Act of 2011 – H.R. 3228) to improve the way that confidential informants are managed by US federal law enforcement agencies. Lynch introduced the bill in response to the James “Whitey” Bulger case in which Bulger, a notorious gang leader acting as a confidential informant for the FBI, is alleged to have gunned down two men.

The legislation would impose a number of safeguards for confidential informant management as well as making it easier for the victims of rogue confidential informants to sue the government for negligence.

The bill would require law enforcement agencies to report any serious crimes committed by confidential informants to Congress every six months. Certain details would have to be included but informant names and identifying information would be excluded to protect anonymity.

The ultimate aim is to improve oversight of confidential informant programme and ensure that the system is not abused by law enforcement officials.

In order to achieve a truly fair and safe system, law enforcement agencies need to think carefully about how their policies and procedures work to assess and mitigate the risks associated with confidential informants. Failure to properly assess a confidential informant for reliability and trustworthiness can have potentially catastrophic consequences. Whilst regular reporting of confidential informants’ illegal activity to Congress may help to prevent some malpractice, it does not necessarily eliminate the potential for other things to go wrong in the system. Confidential informant management software can be a useful tool in helping to achieve this, but if the management of confidential informants is really to improve it is important that internal cultures are addressed as well.

 

Addressing sexual offenses and misconduct by law enforcement

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Published June 2011, the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) executive guide to “Addressing Sexual Offenses and Misconduct by Law Enforcement” raises some troubling questions for law enforcement agencies across America and beyond. Failure to maintain adequate management oversight of officers’ actions can be an important factor contributing to the risk of sexual misconduct. Law enforcement agencies looking for a solution to the problem should consider abmpegasus – a leading software system for law enforcement that improves management oversight of undercover policing activity.

Reported on this blog just yesterday was the case of Vancouver Police Department (WA), where four officers have been disciplined after it was revealed that a confidential informant handler was having an inappropriate relationship with his informant. Such behaviour seriously damages the reputation of law enforcement agencies and it is essential that agencies take strong action to prevent such transgressions.