NCJ Number
112807
Date Published
1988
Length
7 pages
Annotation
An area of concern to law enforcement officials and criminal justice information system (CJIS) administrators is the liability imposed on them for the overall operation and maintenance of the CJIS.
Abstract
There has been a move away from official immunity, and most States possess some system that permits them to assume liability and allow civil suits against them. In a series of opinions, the U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that Government officials in a wide range of executive and decisionmaking and police functions have a qualified immunity if they had a reasonable good faith belief that their actions were lawful. A review of court cases dealing specifically with CJIS issues and the handling and use of criminal and other records indicates that while there is no specific case law authority requiring law enforcement agencies to use a CJIS, there are circumstances in which liability may be incurred. These include negligent nonuse by a law enforcement officer (when required by policy to use the CJIS) or inadequate training by an administrator of an officer who must use the CJIS. While the risk of personal liability appears not to be great, the potential for liability clearly does exist. Criminal justice officials are advised to understand the theories and boundaries of liability for record mishandling and to monitor relevant court decisions.