Ohio Investigative Unit Policy Number : INV STANDARD ENFORCEMENT GUIDELINES

Transcription

1 Ohio Investigative Unit Policy Number : INV STANDARD ENFORCEMENT GUIDELINES Date of Revision : 12/11/2007 Priority Review : INV Distribution : INV Summary of Revisions Total re-write. Added CALEA standards. Made the list of violations not considered appropriate for a warning an attachment to the policy. Supervisor must provide written documentation of the issuance of a warning in the database. Purpose To establish standard enforcement guidelines Policy Definitions: Preliminary investigation - The activities undertaken by an Agent who responds to the initial complaint of a crime or violation. Follow-Up Investigation - The activities undertaken by an Agent that require additional investigative work beyond the preliminary investigation. There are generally five distinct types of activities or major tasks that can be assigned to Agents. The major tasks that Agents usually perform are identified as follows: Special investigations are generally task force assignments or long term complex investigations that may require extensive investigative work. It will be up to the case agents and/or district supervisors to decide if an investigation will go beyond a preliminary investigation into any follow-up investigations or long term investigations A Routine field investigations are conducted without complaints or requests to assist local police. Refer to INV Policy Routine Field Investigations. Special Project - A special project is defined as a single event, lasting longer than 24 hours, with planned enforcement involving more than five agents such as concerts, festivals, etc. Administrative duties are those generally limited to non-enforcement activities. Standard enforcement is the day to day working of complaints, assisting local police agencies, etc Each of these assignments carries different guidelines and training requirements specific to that assignment. Equipment and preparations may change as well. The most obvious of these differences may be long-term drug investigations. These require more training, preparation, specific equipment and prior planning. The dangers of these investigations force Agents to pass on the typical buy/bust and instead work toward well planned enforcement actions. Regardless, the following guidelines apply to the day to day work of Enforcement Agents. They are to be considered a map to draw direction from. A. Underage violations continue to be the primary concern of the Ohio Investigative Unit. B. Working assigned complaints is the main objective of our enforcement efforts. It is the responsibility of the employees of the Ohio Investigative Unit to take any necessary action to correct a perceived problem A C. Complaints received from law enforcement agencies will take priority C D. Our enforcement efforts are to be concentrated on businesses, whether they are liquor Page 1 of 5

2 or food stamp retailers or illegal sales/manufacturing locations. E. Certain enforcement actions on private property (non-public access) require a search warrant or a lawfully signed consent waiver. There will be no exceptions without a supervisor s approval. If unsure, get a warrant. F. Should a situation arise that requires an Agent to act in order to preserve human life, do so. All police officers carry a moral and ethical obligation to act to save someone from the threat of imminent injury or death. G. An Agent s actions must conform to existing laws, rules, policies and directives. No one is permitted to operate outside of these parameters. When in doubt contact a supervisor. H. Warnings will be issued by the District Agents in Charge Certain violations, which are not as serious or widespread as others, may result in the issuance of a verbal warning. 2. If a verbal warning is issued it is issued to the owner or permit holder of the premises in question. a. A verbal warning will only be issued by an Agent In Charge, with approval of a Deputy Director or the Executive Director. If an AIC is not on scene, the AIC may direct an Agent or AAIC to issue a verbal warning. An Agent will not issue a verbal warning without a supervisor s approval D b. The AIC will inform the owner or permit holder of the violation and that compliance should be immediate. The individual will be advised that the warning is a courtesy, but does not mean an Agent will not make a future visit to ensure compliance. The AIC will then, either create a case or bring up the existing complaint in the OLLE database. The AIC will then close the complaint on the database by marking it as a warning. Listed in the Details of Complaint box will be the following information: Name of employee issuing warning, Date and Time of Warning, Name of Person Receiving Warning, Nature of Warning, along with any other pertinent information. c. If the Agent In Charge does not believe a verbal warning will result in compliance, he/she may assign Agents to the complaint to take enforcement action if the premise is not in compliance. d. When citing a permit premise, the citation shall include all observable violations. If an observable violation includes a violation that typically a supervisor would issue a warning, the agent must contact a supervisor for permission to issue a warning. e. When an Agent is conducting an investigation, and only observes a violation that a premise may be issued a warning for, the Agent may contact the AIC and request the AIC issue a verbal warning. This may be done so as not to prematurely reveal an agent s identity or for other justifiable reasons. f. A premise or owner of a location may only be issued one warning per violation. g. In cases where the AIC is on an extended leave, vacation, or otherwise away from the office, the AAIC may issue a verbal warning. An AAIC must first obtain approval from a Deputy Director or the Executive Director. A list of violations that will not be considered appropriate for issuance of a warning can be found in an attachment to this policy. I. Non-Profit Organizations In the case of Non-Profit Organizations, Churches, Chambers of Commerce and other trade organizations conducting fund raisers or other special functions that require a permit, a verbal warning may be issued. Refer to H Warnings issued by AICs. If a warning is issued, every effort will be made to inform that organization that a permit is required, and how to obtain the permit. If after a warning or if circumstances dictate, an AIC can assign Agents to investigate the violation. J. Beer and Wine Referrals C Page 2 of 5

3 1. The Beer and Wine Section of the Department of Commerce, Division of Liquor Control, enforces the liquor laws as they relate to manufacturers and distributors, and compliance items between distributor and retailer or manufacturer and retailer. 2. Areas that do not require criminal prosecution, undercover investigation, or circumstances where an Agent may not want to be identified may be referred to the Beer and Wine Section by a supervisor as long as it meets the above jurisdictional requirements for handling by them. 3. So as not to duplicate the work of Beer and Wine, the following complaints may be referred to them. If the complaint is referred to them, a follow-up contact will be made by the AIC to determine what action was taken and when. A notation will be made on the complaint in the database. A list of violations involving advertising that may be referred to the Beer and Wine Section are: Price advantage Advertising free gift in conjunction with sale of beer or intoxicating liquor More than two lighted signs Improper advertising - not covered above Brand name outside business K. Special Operations Projects Although the Ohio Investigative Unit has statewide jurisdiction, for events likely to result in mass arrests, the Division will work in conjunction with local law enforcement agencies, whenever possible. 2. Normal processing and reporting procedures shall be used unless the volume of prisoners and/or incident circumstances makes the normal process impractical. When the volume of arrests or anticipated arrests is too great for the use of normal procedures, mass arrest processing should be coordinated with local law enforcement agencies. This includes but is not limited to designating an area near the scene to be utilized as a field processing area. 3. Any arrested person shall be immediately moved away from the confrontation area and searched in accordance with policy. The arrested persons shall be transported / escorted to a pre-designated processing location. Juvenile offenders may be taken into custody; procedural requirements unique to juveniles set forth in policy are to be followed. Any evidence or contraband shall be secured with an evidence custody document completed, if applicable, at the scene or detention facility. Evidence shall be labeled and stored in compliance with policy. Any other personal property, including identification, shall be reviewed at the scene but only seized by detention facility personnel upon arrival at the detention facility. All reports applicable to the arrest shall be completed as time and incident circumstances permit. 4. When mass arrests occur, prisoners shall remain secured in handcuffs or flexcuffs while inside the command center processing area. Prisoners shall be processed one (1) at a time. At least one (1) agent of the Unit or a sworn law enforcement officer shall remain in the processing area at all times. Additional personnel shall be stationed, as security needs dictate. If arrested persons are held at the scene for an extended period of time, food, water, and access to bathroom facilities should be provided as allowed by the circumstances of the situation. 5. Prisoners shall be transported and turned over to personnel of the local detention center as soon as possible. The transportation of prisoners shall conform to the guidelines set forth in policy, unless the number of arrested persons makes this impractical. In such incidents, a local agency or state agency may provide a mass transportation vehicle for use. If necessary, a separate area may be needed to process persons receiving minor misdemeanor citations that are not handcuffed. 6. Any medical treatment required by prisoners shall be arranged in accordance to policy. If an agent, prisoner, or other person becomes sick or injured at the scene or in the affected area and is in need of immediate medical attention, medics shall be Page 3 of 5

4 called to the scene. If the environment is hostile or treatment on the scene is a safety hazard, the sick or injured person should be moved, if possible, to another location prior to receiving treatment The Agent In Charge shall act as liaison with other law enforcement agencies and prosecutorial agencies, including the State Attorney General s Office if necessary, to resolve any conflict arising from the project and to assist in prosecution. Prisoners shall be afforded all Miranda rights, including the right to defense counsel, if custodial interrogation is to take place. When visitations or consultations are allowed, all necessary security measures shall be taken to ensure officer safety and prevent escapes. L. The Department Public Information Officer (PIO) should serve as the liaison with the media, dissident groups, and concerned members of the community, as well as provide information to the command personnel. Information regarding news worthy incidents, including the release of information about on-going investigations, operational issues, victims, witnesses and suspects, will be coordinated between the PIO and the media. For multi-agency operations, all media releases will be coordinated with the public information components of other agencies involved. If a PIO is unavailable, the District AIC will serve as the liaison with the media other agencies. All released information by the AIC will be directed/approved by a Deputy Director of Operations M. At the conclusion of the project, agents should be debriefed, including pros and cons of the Division s actions and recommendations to enhance future operations. A written report of the project shall be forwarded to the Deputy Director of Operations within fortyeight (48) hours. N. When possible, Operational Orders will be prepared and forwarded to the appropriate Deputy Director of Operations prior to working a special project. One person will be designated as the supervisor for each event. The plan will include, if possible or relevant, the following items: Event location Briefing location and time Mission of Project Situation or description of project Execution of Enforcement Information How to get/where Medical Assistance is located Evidence issues Administrative issues such as court date and times, arrest information, etc. Command Center/processing area rules Communication Supervisors Team Assignments (If available before briefing) Standard References Policy References INV ENFORCEMENT DISCRETION INV INV INV HANDLING AND DISPOSITION OF EVIDENCE/PROPERTY ROUTINE FIELD INVESTIGATIONS 61-B INVESTIGATION REQUEST/CLOSEOUT Page 4 of 5

5 INV PRISONER TRANSPORTATION Attachment(s) INV Standard Enforcement Guideline List.doc Page 5 of 5