Law enforcement agencies should require that all officers become familiar with the concepts and procedures regarding death notification so as to provide surviving family members with sufficient useful information and support in a manner consistent with professionally accepted crisis intervention techniques.

These documents provide guidelines for notifying next of kin of the death of a family member.

This topic has been archived - it is intended for reference purposes only and will not be updated. 

Digital cameras can be useful for investigative and documentary purposes where reasonable and appropriate. The selection of digital or conventional film imaging equipment should be based on a determination of whether the predicted image will be of sufficient quality to meet investigative and documentary purposes. Such a determination should be based upon real world testing under conditions normally encountered and judged against results obtained using current methods.

This document provides proper procedures for documenting evidence through the use of digital cameras.

This topic has been archived – it is intended for reference purposes only and will not be updated.

Law enforcement agencies should adhere to the guidance provided by the U.S. Department of State concerning immunities for foreign nationals based on international treaty obligations. Adherence to these international treaty obligations is required by law and also helps protect American diplomatic officers and consular officials stationed abroad.

These documents contain procedures for processing the arrest or detainment of a foreign national with diplomatic immunity.

This topic has been archived – it is intended for reference purposes only and will not be updated.

Law enforcement agencies must provide secure temporary holding facilities for detainees held for interrogation, arrest processing, transfer to another facility, or pursuant to another legal proceeding, and to maintain these facilities in a sanitary and safe manner.

These documents establish guidelines for the management and administration of an agency’s detainee holding facility to include the security, control and care of detainees housed therein.

Foot pursuits are inherently dangerous. Therefore, officer and public safety should be the overriding considerations in determining whether a foot pursuit is initiated or continued or not. Law enforcement agencies should provide overall direction and guidance to officers when deciding if such pursuits are warranted and how they should be conducted. These documents are intended to assist agencies in establishing a balance between protecting the safety of the public and police officers during foot pursuits and law enforcement’s duty to enforce the law and apprehend suspects.

An effective law enforcement response to domestic violence must include the adoption of a comprehensive policy that is a priority for the agency, is consistently applied, supports victims, and holds perpetrators accountable—whether they are community members or police officers. Any comprehensive policy must be part of a developed, coordinated community infrastructure and response that provides support to maximize victim and officer safety and implements sanctions against perpetrators.

In addition to providing guidance regarding the establishment of priorities, guidelines, and procedures to be followed by law enforcement officers in response to domestic violence calls, these documents now also incorporate guidelines for responding to domestic violence by police officers.

Police officers should use only the force that is objectively reasonable to effectively bring an incident under control, while protecting the safety of the officer, subject, and others. This includes the use of less-lethal options such as the ECW.

These documents provide guidance and direction on the use of electronic control weapons (ECWs).

The availability and use of the personal computer within the work environment have provided many opportunities for enhancement of productivity and effectiveness. These technologies also entail the opportunity for rapid transfer and broad distribution of sensitive information that can also have damaging effects on this agency, its members, and the public if not managed properly. Therefore,agencies should develop policies for employees to follow when using personal computers and the services of both internal and external databases and information exchange networks, and where applicable, voice mail, mobile digital terminals, and related electronic messaging devices.

These documents provide guidance on the proper use of personal computers and related electronic messaging systems utilized in this agency for purposes of disseminating electronic mail, utilizing services of the Internet and related electronic message transmission, recording and storage devices.

This topic has been archived – it is intended for reference purposes only and will not be updated.

Law enforcement agencies should electronically record specific custodial interrogations and confessions in order to provide an evidentiary record of statements made by suspects of major crimes. Such electronic recordings can help protect both the suspect(s) and interviewing officers against potential assertions of police coercion or related interrogation misconduct, and may increase the likelihood of successful prosecution.

These documents establish guidelines and procedures for the electronic recording of custodial interrogations and confessions. 

This topic has been archived - it is intended for reference purposes only and will not be updated. 

All members of a law enforcement agency should adhere to statutory restrictions on the use of emergency warning devices and ensure that such devices are employed only in prescribed conditions and circumstances and in ways that will minimize the risk of accidents or injuries to employees or the public.

These documents establish guidelines for the use of emergency vehicular warning devices.

This topic has been archived – it is intended for reference purposes only and will not be updated.

The safe handling and proper use of firearms should be among the highest priorities of any law enforcement agency. Because of the inherent danger of firearms and their widespread use in law enforcement, officers should observe the highest standards of professionalism when handling firearms. These documents provide guidance for officer use of firearms, including guidelines regarding carry, training, and safety.

Law enforcement agencies should consider establishing a system for tracking and reviewing incidents of risk to the agency and the involved employees. To this end, an Early Identification System (EIS) can be used as a means to identify and assess employee performance indicators that may be associated with potential risk and to intervene where appropriate.

These documents are intended to assist police supervisors and managers in identifying officers and other employees whose performance warrants review and, where appropriate, intervention, in circumstances that may have negative consequences for the employee, fellow employees, the agency, and/or the general public.