NCJ Number
170404
Date Published
Unknown
Length
35 pages
Annotation
This protocol was developed by the Salt Lake County Law Enforcement Administrators and Directors to serve as the model for the investigation of officer-involved fatal shootings/incidents in Salt Lake County; the goal of the protocol is to ensure that such cases are thoroughly and fairly investigated.
Abstract
The first section of the protocol defines the critical terms used in the protocol, followed by a statement of the conditions under which the protocol is invoked. It states that when an officer-involved fatal incident occurs, the protocol is automatically in force immediately upon the occurrence of the fatal incident. The section on the formats and responsibilities of investigative agencies presents procedures for both a criminal investigation and an administrative investigation. Areas of the criminal investigation addressed include investigative priority and immediacy, investigative goals and the use of the results, laws governing the investigation, the composition of task force teams, venue determination, scene security, responsibility for physical evidence, interviews, and intoxicant testing. Procedures for the administrative investigation take into account a possible simultaneous criminal investigation. A section on news media relations considers the balancing of the public's right to know certain facts of the case and the involved officer's right of due process. The protocol cautions that there are to be no false statements to the media, and it advises that uniformed parties are not to make statements to the media. The concluding section sets the protocol for access to reports and evidence.