January 1999 Volume 68 Number 1

United States Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Investigation Washington, DC 20535-0001

Louis J. Freeh Director Features Contributors' opinions and statements should not be considered an endorsement by the FBI for any policy, program, or service. Computers, the Year 2000, The Year 2000 problem holds many and Law Enforcement challenges for the law enforcement The Attorney General has 1 community. determined that the publication By Clyde B. Eisenberg of this periodical is necessary in the transaction of the public and Teresa F. Slattery business required by law. Use of funds for printing this periodical has been approved by the Director of the Office of Management and Budget. Negotiation Concepts Law enforcement administrators must for Commanders understand the crisis negotiator’s The FBI Law Enforcement 6 abilities and methods to resolve critical Bulletin (ISSN-0014-5688) is By Gary W. Noesner published monthly by the incidents successfully and peacefully. Federal Bureau of Investigation, 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20535-0001. Periodical postage Mass Transit: Few local law enforcement agencies are paid at Washington, D.C., and prepared to combat acts of terrorism, additional mailing offices. Target of Terror 19 Postmaster: Send address and mass transit systems remain changes to Editor, FBI Law By Kurt R. Nelson particularly vulnerable. Enforcement Bulletin, FBI Academy, Madison Building, Room 209, Quantico, VA 22135. Crime Scene Searches Law enforcement agencies should Editor By Kimberly A. Crawford develop policies emphasizing the John E. Ott 26 need for warrants at crime scenes. Managing Editor Kim Waggoner Associate Editors Glen Bartolomei Cynthia L. Lewis Departments Bunny S. Morris Art Director Brian K. Parnell 15 Book Review 25 Bulletin Reports Assistant Art Director The Language of Confession, Survey on Police Education Denise K. Bennett Staff Assistant Interrogation, and Deception Statistics on Fallen Officers Linda W. Szumilo 16 Focus on Personnel Internet Address Alcohol Abuse in Policing [email protected]

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ISSN 0014-5688 USPS 383-310 Computers, the Year 2000, and Law Enforcement By CLYDE B. EISENBERG, M.S., and TERESA F. SLATTERY Photo © Peter Hendrie

magine it is 8 a.m. on January parameters: 12-24-99 to 01-02-00. stacks of paperwork in their in-bas- 3, 2000, in a busy police de- Shortly after the officers press the kets and discover a memo from the I partment containing many of- enter key, an error message appears communication section supervisor ficers returning to work after the on their screens: “INVALID DATE to the head of computer mainte- holidays. They begin the day by RANGE.” Several more attempts nance explaining that no entries can turning on their personal computers produce the same result. After mak- be made into the statewide crime that are connected to the depart- ing mental notes to check with the information database for stolen ment’s local area network. To bring department’s computer mainte- property and missing or wanted themselves up-to-date, some offic- nance people, the officers begin persons. The memo states that the ers decide to run a list of all of the checking other systems. problem began on January 1, 2000. burglaries entered into the depart- However, every time they try to The computer difficulties the ment’s database during their vaca- access a computer program, they officers encountered earlier and the tions. They bring up the search get the same error message. A few communication section’s problem screen and type in the search officers begin to filter through the suddenly become crystal clear. The

January 1999 / 1 including private branch phone sys- tems, or PBXs, used by many law enforcement agencies. The Fix Unfortunately, fixing the Year 2000 problem will not be easy. Large system programs contain millions of lines of programming code. Because each line must be individually examined and possibly altered, computer specialists must Sergeant Eisenberg serves with Deputy Slattery serves with the the Enforcement Operations Enforcement Operations Bureau of spend long periods of time recoding Bureau of the Hillsborough County the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s programs, resulting in costly, labor- Sheriff’s Office in Tampa, Florida. Office in Tampa, Florida. intensive changes. Currently, fixing a single line of computer code costs approximately computer programs interpreted the The Problem $1.30. This amount should rise to ending date (01-02-00) that the of- The problem begins with the about $3.65 by 1999 and to around ficers attempted to enter for the bur- six-digit date format (two digits $4 by the year 2000.3 Cost estimates glary search and other activities as each for the month, the day, and the for fixing the problem in the United the year 1900. The state’s crime year). A computer most likely will States business sector range from computer database also failed to ac- interpret a year entry of 00 (for $120 to $300 billion. For example, cept the entries for the same reason. the year 2000) as the year 1900. one banking corporation alone must For the department’s computer pro- Thus, any programs that involve fix 2,500 computer systems and es- grams, the year 1900 goes far be- date comparisons, arithmetic func- timates that it will cost about $380 yond the automatic expungement tions, scheduling, forecasting, or million.4 A recent government re- date, which deletes all data over 50 statistical analysis stand a good port calculates that Year 2000 re- years old. Some of the officers re- chance of rendering erroneous in- pairs at federal agencies will reach member reading about the Year formation. Moreover, most law en- $4.7 billion.5 2000 problem but thought that it forcement agencies have their com- In addition to the cost of fixing would affect only large businesses puters linked to other computer the problem, experts anticipate an and corporations. How wrong they systems, such as the local court net- influx of Year 2000-related law- were. works, the county jail, and state and suits. At a recent Year 2000 Task While the plight of these offic- federal crime information systems.2 Force meeting sponsored by ers represents a fictional scenario, Consequently, faulty programs Lloyd’s of London, underwriters experts indicate that such problems sending invalid data may corrupt predicted $1 trillion in litigation in may become a reality in the very other systems. the United States alone.6 near future. Already, Year 2000 The Year 2000 problem is not problems have begun to surface. limited merely to midsize or large The Local Approach For example, holders of credit cards mainframe computers. Many agen- The Hillsborough County with expiration dates of 2000 or cies have local area networks and Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) in Tampa, later have encountered difficulties stand-alone computers that prove Florida, has spent the last 4 years because some businesses have just as susceptible to the problem as writing and modifying programs failed to update their verification larger computers. Any device that to make them Year 2000 compli- systems.1 relies on software may be affected, ant. The department’s mainframe

2 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin computer connects approximately Bureau began work on Year 2000-related requests doubled to 1,000 computers and 500 video ter- 2000-oriented goals several years about $400,000 for hardware, soft- minals. It also connects about 1,000 ago. Also, along with assigning ware, and reprogramming concerns. mobile data terminals in HCSO ve- each HCSO programmer different However, in the future, the budget hicles via radio transmissions. Ad- programs to correct before 2000, may need to include funds for con- ditionally, the mainframe computer the bureau dedicated an entire tracting additional help, if needed, contains large databases, including month in 1997 solely to working on to solve some of the more diffi- the Computer Aided Dispatch Sys- Year 2000-related problems. Fur- cult or time-consuming Year 2000 tem (CADS) and the Jail Adminis- ther, in order to seek out potential problems. tration and Management System Year 2000 problems, HCSO began Along with budgetary con- (JAMS). Officers access CADS for using a test system that tricks the cerns, HCSO’s Data Operations most dispatch and law enforcement computer’s clock into thinking that Bureau realizes that time consti- functions, while they use JAMS for the programs are being run in the tutes a major issue. Solving the the operation of the Hillsborough year 2000. When programmers find Year 2000 problem proves ted- County Jail System. If these data- problems, they modify the pro- ious, as every program must be bases remain unchanged, programs grams and record the changes for tested, checked, and rechecked, dealing with such issues as the jail’s future reference. Finally, HCSO has and no “magic bullet” exists to fix security system, prisoner release been actively exchanging problem- everything. dates, juvenile detention center re- solving information with other gov- The Data Operations Bureau re- lease dates, or active warrant dates ernment agencies that have similar mains concerned about meeting or any program that calculates programs. deadlines because approximately someone’s age could be affected in While the department’s Data 3,200 mainframe programs need to the year 2000. Operations Bureau spent approxi- be checked. With fewer deadline In addition to these in-house mately $200,000 for Year 2000 days remaining, programmers may functions, HCSO’s mainframe programming adjustments in 1997, have to work overtime to meet the computer shares databases with the the 1998 fiscal budget for Year demanding schedule. local clerk’s office for traffic tick- ets, the Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles for ve- hicle registration information, and Year 2000 Internet Resources the Florida Crime Information Cen- ter and the National Crime Infor- • The Year 2000 Web Page: http://www.year2000.com mation Center databases for crimi- Offers links to hundreds of articles and resources on the nal information. If these other Year 2000 problem agencies delay in working on the • Federal Government Information: http:// Year 2000 problem, they will affect www.itpolicy.gsa.gov/mks/yr2000/y2khome.htm HCSO’s programs. Part of the rea- Provides an information directory of the federal son for meeting internal deadlines government’s Year 2000 effort involves HCSO’s allotting suffi- • Year 2000 Manager’s Toolbox: http:// cient time to test and retest its pro- www.govexec.com/ tech/year2000 grams with outside databases prior Discusses Year 2000 concerns that managers need to know to implementation. • Year 2000 Resources: http://www.computerworld.com/ HCSO does have an advantage res/year-2000.html over other departments that have Offers a variety of resources concerning the Year 2000 failed to actively address the problem problem. First, the Data Operations

January 1999 / 3 Recommendations pliance report and has developed a professional diagnosis of their sys- For those government agen- comprehensive written contingency tems and ensure that the costs of cies that start too late, HCSO pro- plan for all mission-critical systems fixing any problems receive appro- grammers predict that it will cost and equipment. Further, HCSO pro- priate budgetary priority. Adminis- them dearly in terms of money, grammers have found a wealth of trators can find a great deal of infor- time, and aggravation. However, constantly expanding information mation to help them decide what these agencies may want to try and assistance on the Internet and action to take. some of the strategies HCSO has have contacted their computer and With today’s modern approach employed. Specifically, agencies software providers for up-to-date to law enforcement, it arguably can should: technical support. Also, since 1994, be said that computers often play 1) inventory all of their HCSO has developed more than just as important a role as the officer systems; 1,000 programs and made them on the street. By waiting until Year 2000 compliant. These strate- computer problems surface after 2) prioritize the items that gies have helped HCSO face the the year 2000, law enforcement need to be fixed; challenges of the Year 2000 prob- agencies will be doing a serious dis- 3) develop contingency plans lem and may serve as a blueprint for service to the public they serve. for all critical items in case other law enforcement agencies. Therefore, administrators must at- they are not fixed on time or tack this problem with the same ef- the fix fails; Conclusion fort and determination that law en- 4) establish test environments Law enforcement administra- forcement professionals employ to verify the integrity of the tors throughout the country must when faced with other challenging changes, allowing sufficient not underestimate the potential situations. time for testing; problems that may lie hidden within their computer systems until Janu- Endnotes 5) involve the users in the 1 ary 1, 2000. Time is most certainly D. Poppe, “A $600 Billion Headache; testing process; Reprogramming Countless Computers,” The of the essence, and the further they 6) obtain written certification Miami Herald, July 28, 1997, 22B, 1. delay in addressing the situation, 2 NCIC Technical and Operations Update: of successful test results; and the greater the probability of not Information Interstate Identification Index 7) provide monthly status meeting the rapidly approaching Data Change and National Crime Center Date Field Changes, Criminal Justice Information reports to senior managers. deadline for compliance. Adminis- Services Division, Federal Bureau of Investiga- HCSO regularly reviews and up- trators at agencies without full-time tion, Washington, DC, September 25, 1997, dates its monthly Year 2000 com- computer personnel should seek a explained all of the changes the FBI is making to existing NCIC date field formats, edits, and document conversion. Users should contact the FBI’s Criminal Justice Information Services Division at 304-625-2730 regarding any Year 2000 Federal Points of Contact concerns or inquiries relating to Year 2000 compliance with FBI information systems. • Department of Justice 3 Supra note 1. Kathy Larson, e-mail: [email protected] 4 Rajiv Chandrasekaran, “A $50 Billion • Department of the Treasury ‘Bug,’ Fed Official: Year 2000 Computer Fix Could Slow Economy,” The Washington Post, Eldon Colby, e-mail: [email protected] April 29, 1998, A18. • U.S. Courts 5 Ibid. David Schenken, e-mail: [email protected] 6 Peter Leyden and Peter Schwartz, “The • Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms Long Boom: An Interview with Peter Leyden and Peter Schwartz,” Barron’s, September 1, Judy Walters, e-mail: [email protected] 1997, 17-20.

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January 1999 / 5 Negotiation Concepts for Commanders By GARY W. NOESNER, M.Ed.

rom humble beginnings in the industrialized world, and in- application of their communication the New York City Police creasingly in developing nations, skills and specialized training can F Department (NYPD) in recognize negotiation as one of the positively influence outcomes. The 1972, the field of hostage negotia- most important tools available to FBI, and many other police agen- tion has grown to impact signifi- law enforcement to peacefully re- cies, reflects this expanded applica- cantly upon law enforcement’s abil- solve crisis events. In fact, over the tion of negotiation skills by charac- ity to peacefully resolve critical past 25 years, the application of ne- terizing their trained practitioners incidents. In 1973, building upon gotiation skills has proven consis- as “crisis negotiators.” the NYPD’s foundation, the FBI tently to be one of the most success- While police agencies recog- further developed the practical ap- ful and cost-effective innovations in nize the importance of crisis nego- plication of negotiation principles all of law enforcement. tiators, law enforcement adminis- and embarked upon an unprec- Today, negotiators respond not trators, the on-scene decision edented effort, which continues to- only to hostage incidents but also makers during a crisis, may not day, to instruct police officers to barricades, suicides, domestic understand their negotiators’ abili- worldwide on negotiation skills and disputes, kidnappings, and other ties and methods and may interfere practices. Today, police throughout types of critical events where the or make decisions that impede the

6 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin crisis team’s efforts. For example, during the Waco standoff, on-scene ...on-scene managers received sound advice “ commanders must from the negotiation team but of- understand the type ten did not follow that advice or of critical incident appreciate the recommended 1 they face in order approaches. to identify the To address these concerns, the FBI developed a block of instruc- appropriate law tion for prospective crisis decision enforcement strategy. makers. The training, Negotiation Concepts for Commanders, served as the template for the successful Special Agent Noesner serves as the chief of the Crisis Negotiation Unit resolution of the 81-day Freemen of the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Group at the FBI Academy. siege in Jordan, Montana, in 1996, ” as well as the peaceful resolution by the Texas Rangers of the 7-day Re- public of Texas siege at Fort Davis, Substantive demands include things by using delay tactics and initiating Texas, in 1997. It provides com- that subjects cannot obtain for give-and-take bargaining (making manders with an essential under- themselves, such as money, escape, subjects work for everything they standing of the important principles and political or social change. get). At the same time, the tactical and concepts needed to effectively Hostage takers demonstrate team uses highly visible contain- manage the negotiation process dur- goal-oriented and purposeful ment strategies to demonstrate to ing a crisis event. behavior. Thus, they use hostages the subject that the police are will- as leverage to force law enforce- ing and able to use force if neces- THE ESSENTIAL CONCEPTS ment to fulfill their demands. While sary. Still, the police should never the hostages remain at risk, the pri- directly threaten to use force be- Types of Incidents mary goal of hostage takers is not to cause doing so may cause subjects The FBI characterizes all crit- harm the hostages. In fact, hostage to resist further. ical events—regardless of the takers realize that only through Hostage takers may initially motive, mental health, or criminal keeping the hostages alive can they feel in control and empowered, but history of the subject—as either hope to achieve their goals. They as time passes, the negotiation team hostage or nonhostage situations.2 understand that if they harm the builds trust and rapport and con- Understanding the difference be- hostages, they will change the inci- vinces them that they will not ac- tween the two remains paramount dent dynamics and increase the complish their objectives and that to peacefully resolving such inci- likelihood that the authorities will they should surrender peacefully. dents and thus represents the bulk of use force to resolve the incident. Ultimately, hostage takers must de- the FBI’s training for commanders. Therefore, it remains in the best in- cide whether to come out peacefully terests of hostage takers to keep the and live or to get injured or killed Hostage Situations hostages alive and avoid actions when the police inevitably take During hostage situations, sub- that might trigger a violent response action against them. Fortunately, al- jects hold another person or persons from police. most all hostage incidents are re- for the purpose of forcing the fulfill- Law enforcement negotiators solved peacefully as hostage takers’ ment of substantive demands upon have learned to handle hostage desire to live outweighs their need a third party, usually law enforce- events by stalling for time, lowering to have their demands met. ment. Typically, subjects make di- subjects’ expectations, and revers- This process may take time, and rect or implied threats to harm hos- ing their sense of empowerment the negotiation team must employ tages if their demands are not met. and control. Negotiators buy time patience and understanding and use

January 1999 / 7 active listening skills3 in an effort to During nonhostage situations, in nonhostage incidents, they first thoughtfully communicate with the individuals barricade themselves or and foremost must demonstrate pa- hostage taker, defuse the conflict, hold others against their will, not to tience and understanding. Negotia- and work toward establishing a gain leverage over police to achieve tors buy time while being non- level of rapport that allows them to a specific goal but to express their threatening and nonjudgmental and explore problem-solving options anger over events or at the indi- avoiding all actions that may esca- and progress to a nonviolent resolu- vidual they hold. In such cases, the late the confrontation. Subjects fre- tion. This approach enables police person being held technically is not quently distrust police motives and practitioners to de-escalate and de- a hostage, used to secure fulfillment manifest high levels of paranoia. fuse in a peaceful manner most of a demand, but a victim whom the They often exhibit hypervigilance volatile conflicts they encounter. subject contemplates harming. Sub- and hypersensitivity to police This process enjoys an extremely jects holding victims, with whom movements and may overreact with high success rate in achieving sur- they typically have a prior relation- violence to the slightest provoca- renders without bloodshed. ship, usually have no substantive tion. Thus, in contrast to hostage events, the police should handle Nonhostage Situations nonhostage incidents using a low- In contrast to hostage situa- profile containment scheme that is tions, in nonhostage incidents, indi- less confrontative and demonstrates viduals act in an emotional, sense- Risk-effective peaceful intentions. This serves to less, and often-self-destructive way. tactical avoid provoking undesirable re- Unable to control their emotions in intervention sponses from the subject. response to life’s many stressors, “options require By applying active listening they are motivated by anger, rage, detailed planning skills, the negotiation team properly frustration, hurt, confusion, or de- pursues a strategy that attempts to pression. They have no clear goals and flawless lower subjects’ emotions, defuse and often exhibit purposeless, self- execution. anger, and return the subjects to defeating behavior. Such individu- more rational thinking. The nego- als have either no substantive or es- tiator works toward building trust cape demands or totally unrealistic and rapport by demonstrating un- demands for which they would have demands because they neither need derstanding of and concern for sub- no reasonable expectation of fulfill- nor want anything from the police. jects. Negotiators should specifi- ment. Disgruntled employees, jilted What they want is what they already cally demonstrate through word and lovers, rejected spouses, aggrieved have, the victim. In these cases, the expression that they understand the individuals, idealistic fanatics, indi- subject typically will tell ”police, issues that are important to or viduals with mental illness, and oth- “Go away,” “We don’t need you or bother subjects (their stories) and ers with unfulfilled aspirations who want you here,” or “This is none of how subjects respond to those feel that they have been wronged by your business.” The potential for issues (their feelings).4 After estab- others or events fall into this broad homicide followed by suicide in lishing a trusting relationship, nego- category. Their displeasure at their many of these cases is very high. tiators then can attempt to introduce circumstances places them in acute Indeed, when loss of life occurs dur- nonviolent problem-solving alter- stress and disrupts their ability to ing a crisis incident, it most often natives that steer subjects toward a function normally. Angry, con- happens during a nonhostage event. peaceful outcome. This approach fused, and frustrated, they may Subjects are clearly in crisis, and has enabled the police to defuse express their anger and vent their the police must respond to them in a even the most volatile incidents. frustrations by undertaking actions careful and thoughtful manner. Frequently, subjects do not that bring them into conflict with Crisis negotiation teams have want to talk to police and resist re- law enforcement. learned that to effectively intervene peated efforts to communicate. As

8 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Types of Crisis Incidents

Hostage Nonhostage Subjects: Subjects: • Demonstrate goal-oriented and purposeful • Act in emotional, senseless, and often behavior self-destructive ways • Hold hostages to fulfill substantive demands • Hold victims with intent to harm (money, escape, change) • Have no substantive demands or totally Law Enforcement Strategies: unrealistic ones • Employ highly visible containment Law Enforcement Strategies: • Use delay tactics • Employ low-profile containment scheme • Make subjects work for everything • Demonstrate patience and understanding • Lower subjects’ expectations • Give a little without getting in return • Contrast benefits of surrender with risk of • Apply active listening skills to lower emotion, resistance defuse anger, and establish rapport • Offer safe surrender with dignity • Provide nonviolent resolution options

Law Enforcement Strategies for All Incidents • Apply active listening skills to build • Use force only when necessary and risk- rapport effective • Exercise patience and restraint • Coordinate all actions in a team approach

frustrating as this can be, negotia- the tactical team in place. While ment’s intentions. While such ef- tion teams should continue to reach understandable, this procedure forts may prove acceptable with a out to subjects and converse with may overlook the value of “verbal lone barricaded individual, they them as though an actual dialogue containment.” Subjects are less never should be employed when the were occurring. During this one- likely to commit violence against subject holds a hostage or victim. way contact, negotiators should their victims while they are con- Law enforcement cannot predict reassure subjects and begin to con- versing with negotiators. Therefore, with certainty whether the subject vey positive themes, as though even if the tactical team has not set will respond violently to such ac- responding to their stated concerns. up completely, negotiation dialogue tions or not. Law enforcement deci- For example, acknowledging the can begin to lower tension during sion makers should beware of the subject’s fear and providing re- the initial, generally most danger- “action imperative,” the pressure assurance that the police want to ous, period of any event. that compels police departments to help can convince the subject to Police should exercise restraint take any action to get things going. begin talking. and avoid manipulation of anxiety Frequently doing nothing different Moreover, early efforts to con- techniques throughout the incident. or staying the course is proper and tact the subject remain vital and Breaking windows, tossing rocks appropriate; restraint does not should not be unduly delayed. on the roof, or playing loud music equate to weakness. Many departments choose to avoid only serves to reinforce the sub- In a nonhostage situation, initiating contact until they have jects’ suspicions about law enforce- thoughtful demonstrations of

January 1999 / 9 peaceful intentions by the authori- tactical team must understand and alternatives first. Loss of life is ties actually may help build rapport appreciate whether they face a hos- most likely to occur during police and enhance dialogue. In other tage incident, in which subjects use tactical intervention. Therefore, be- words, giving a man threatening his hostages as leverage to achieve fore initiating any tactical action, girlfriend a cigarette, without ex- their demands, or a nonhostage inci- decision makers must consider pecting anything in return, can dem- dent, in which subjects direct their carefully the current threat to the onstrate good intentions and may be aggression against themselves or a hostages/victims, as well as the appropriate. Because nonhostage victim. After determining which of risks faced by their tactical officers. events are crisis interventions, not these two basic types of situations If the threat to the victims is bargaining interactions, limited acts they face, on-scene decision makers believed low, then high-risk tactical of unilateral giving by authorities must carefully consider all contem- actions are inadvisable and difficult will not empower subjects. These plated actions. to defend. If the threat to the victims subjects do not want their demands is higher, then risk-effective tactical met; rather they want to vent their Decision-making action is easier to defend and should anger and are considering harming Considerations at least be considered. Finally, if the their victims. Therefore, anything Today, all police actions in any threat to the victims is very high, law enforcement can do to calm crisis come under strict scrutiny. then high-risk tactical action may subjects down and establish trust Decision makers understand that be necessary; commanders may may benefit efforts to build rapport the choices they make during any have no choice. and thereby influence behavior. incident become subject to a court Any loss of life, even to the This contrasts with hostage takers, subject, will result in the close ex- who should not be given anything amination of the actions of the po- without the police getting some- lice agency. Critics will want proof thing in return. that the threat to hostages increased Everyone wants respect, Synchronizing and that the police exhausted less even the most troubled or negotiations and risky alternatives prior to taking ac- seemingly undeserving individual. tactics in a parallel tion. At the same time, members of Law enforcement should properly “fashion can achieve the public will accept the conse- view negotiations as a process quences of high-risk action only if through which they can influence maximum effect. they believe with certainty that subjects, steering them away from taking no action at all surely violence and toward a peaceful sur- would have resulted in harm to the render. The most common mistake hostages/victims. negotiators make is trying to hurry of law and to the court of public the process by rushing into problem opinion and must be considered Unified Strategy solving before establishing a mea- carefully. The FBI recommends us- Anecdotal information pro- sure of trust. This is typified by ne- ing the three-part Action Criteria:” vided by crisis personnel nation- gotiators who ceaselessly press sub- 1) is the contemplated action neces- wide reflects that crisis managers jects to surrender before they are sary? 2) is the contemplated action frequently fail to sufficiently coor- ready. Negotiators should not drone risk-effective? and 3) is the contem- dinate the efforts of their negotia- the mantra, “When are you coming plated action acceptable?5 tors and tactical personnel. Indeed, out?” Only after they have estab- Decision makers also should the on-scene decision maker must lished rapport and earned the right prepare to answer why they took bring all of the key component lead- to do so can negotiators begin to action when they did, what condi- ers together to ensure that all par- influence the subject by suggesting tions changed from earlier that ties understand the type of situation resolution options. caused them to take action, and and its accompanying dynamics In short, the negotiation team, whether they fully explored and and understand and support the the on-scene commander, and the attempted to implement less risky proposed resolution strategy. All

10 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Active Listening Skills police elements must convey a con- sistent theme. Minimal Encouragements: Use verbal responses or replies, Moreover, negotiations repre- e.g., “O.K.”; “I see.” Paraphrasing: Repeat the subject’s message back in the sent not only what occurs over negotiator’s own words to convey listening and understanding. the telephone but also every action Emotion Labeling: Label the subject’s feeling to gain insight the police take and the subject into the subject’s attitude and behavior as the subject agrees or interprets.6 Thus, the negotiator’s disagrees. words and tactical actions must Mirroring: Repeat the last words or main idea of the subject’s message to build rapport. convey the same message. Demon- Open-ended Questions: Ask questions that require more than a strations of force by the tactical yes-or-no or one-word response to get the subject to talk; avoid team can undermine nonthreaten- “why” questions, which may imply interrogation. ing, purposeful negotiations. If ne- I Messages: Express feelings when the subject behaves in a gotiators are attempting to de-esca- certain way or says certain things, e.g., “I feel frustrated that we haven’t come to an agreement,” to humanize the negotiator. late tensions while the tactical Effective Pauses: Use silence to encourage the subject to talk perimeter team’s actions appear and calm overly emotional subjects. threatening, then efforts to gain rap- Source: Gary W. Noesner, M.Ed., and Mike Webster, Ed.D., “Crisis Intervention: port and build trust with the subject Using Active Listening Skills in Negotiations,” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, August will be thwarted. 1997, 16-18. Component coordination also should involve public information officers. Crisis managers always should assume that the subject has having others dictate their actions. the negotiation process without access to radio or television and can Police officers learn to identify a actually using it. Still, an appropri- view what the police say to the me- problem, solve it, and move on to ate limited display of tactical dia, as well as what the media re- the next one. As a result, they be- power is not the same as an overtly port. Thus, police press officers come frustrated when the actions of threatening use of that power. The must clear all prepared statements a criminal or disturbed individual goal remains to bring subjects to the not only with the on-scene com- become the controlling force in de- table, not to their knees. mander but with the negotiation termining the outcome of an inci- team, as well. Doing so will help dent. While the police have learned Negotiation Team Structure prevent harmful or regrettable to use negotiations to buy time, A single individual cannot con- statements that may agitate the sub- muster resources, gain intelligence, duct the negotiation process. ject or in some way inhibit the trust and prepare for action, they do not Rather, a team structure represents and rapport the negotiation team is always understand that tactics do the best approach to proper negotia- attempting to establish. not simply follow failed negotia- tions. An effective negotiation team tions. Rather, commanders must ap- requires a minimum of three indi- Negotiations and Tactics: preciate that the proper use of tac- viduals: a primary negotiator, a A Balanced Approach tics encourages negotiation. coach, and a team leader. Many in- Experience has shown that too Synchronizing negotiations and cidents require additional team many police departments continue tactics in a parallel fashion can members to maintain situation to employ a linear approach to crisis achieve maximum effect. The nego- boards,8 collect and disseminate in- resolution. First they try to talk sub- tiator should contrast for the subject telligence information, interview jects out (ask them), then they use the benefits of reaching agreement released victims or friends/family force to take them out (make them). through negotiation with the risks of the subject, serve as mental This approach remains typical of disagreement leading to tactical health consultants, and act as tacti- among action-oriented police or intervention,7 preferably by an in- cal liaisons. Major incidents can de- military establishments not used to cremental display of power during mand an even larger negotiation

January 1999 / 11 team performing other functions the subject expects a box of food to • the subject has reduced threats and working in shifts. The negotia- be placed in a certain area, and for and is using less violent tion team needs to operate in a quiet whatever reason, the tactical team language, area—which the FBI refers to as the puts it in another area, it can result • the subject’s emotions have Negotiation Operations Center, or in the subject’s feeling misled or set lowered, NOC—that remains free from in- up. Such a simple misunderstanding • the subject has exhibited trusion and interference, sits sepa- can result in an erosion of trust and increased rationality in speech rate yet adjacent to the command disrupt efforts to establish and and action, post, and contains sufficient space maintain rapport. to accommodate the personnel • deadlines have passed, required. Indicators of • the subject has become Along with the tactical team Negotiation Progress increasingly willing to leader, the negotiation coordinator Commanders most frequently bargain, should serve as one of the on-scene ask negotiation coordinators two • the subject has lowered commander’s principal advisors questions: 1) how long will the inci- demands, and have almost continual interac- dent last? and 2) is the team making tion with the on-scene commander. progress? The answers to these • the subject has released a These three key individuals must questions are neither simple nor hostage, interact in a positive and effective • the negotiator has built a manner to ensure a uniform under- rapport with the subject, standing of the subject’s behavior • the subject has made posi- and motives and to promote a uni- tive statements about the fied strategy aimed at risk-effec- Negotiators welfare of the hostage/victim, tively resolving the incident. and/or Many negotiation teams nation- should not drone wide have learned the value of hav- the mantra, • the subject has asked about the ing a tactical team representative “‘When are you consequences of surrendering. stationed within the NOC. Negotia- coming out?’ Conversely, the negotiation coordi- tors represent the ears of the opera- nator may cite an increased risk to tions; the tactical team, the eyes. the victims due to the absence of Together, they work to exchange some of the indicators of progress intelligence; compare subjects’ or continued clear threats or actual words with their actions; coordinate straightforward. First, the situation injury to the victim(s); no substan- deliveries, releases, and surrenders; will last as long as it lasts and not a tive demands; no escape demands; and prepare for and implement moment less. It is nearly impossible or verbal clues of suicidal inten- tactical intervention. Making deliv- to predict with certainty the” dura- tions. These and other risk factors eries, receiving released victims, tion of an incident. The answer to indicate that the potential for fur- and handling surrenders require the second question lies in a number ther loss of life remains high.9 particularly close coordination be- of indicators of either progress or When all signs point to the inability tween the negotiation team and the high risk. of negotiation to prevent the subject tactical team. These critical activi- The following indicators sig- from harming hostages/victims, the ties, more than any other actions, nify progress and generally mean team can consider tactical interven- tend to become problematic due to a that current negotiation initiatives tion options aimed at rescuing hos- lack of coordination and uniform should continue. Specifically, since tages/victims before the subject can understanding of the specifics of the negotiations have begun, take action to harm them. agreement and the timing required • no additional deaths or injuries This is easier said than done. to carry them out. For example, if have resulted, Risk-effective tactical intervention

12 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin options require detailed planning On-scene com- and flawless execution. Experience manders frequently has demonstrated repeatedly that overlook the negotia- when the police feel compelled to tor’s role during tacti- initiate tactical action, the prognosis cal interventions. They for loss of life greatly increases. often fear that nego- During high-risk scenarios, tactical tiators, armed with the action might best be described as knowledge of impend- “high risk, high gain,” meaning that ing tactical action, will the risk to all parties (subject, vic- somehow betray this tim, and police) is usually very information to the sub- high, albeit necessary, but the po- ject over the phone. tential gain in the safe release of Yet, the FBI’s review victims is compelling. To take no of thousands of cases action probably seals the fate of the has not identified a victims. On-scene commanders single incident in must weigh carefully the risks ver- which this has hap- sus the gains, ensuring that they au- pened. By contrast, thorized the action, with negotia- many examples exist of tion team concurrence, out of negotiators, who, after necessity, not because the police being made aware of had the ability to do it, grew fa- tactical plans, have masked or instead of purposefully keeping the tigued, or became impatient. covered tactical movement that subject occupied on the phone. might have otherwise compro- Tactical Role mised the operation. The Team View of Success of the Negotiator In a recent case, the tactical Negotiation team members are Once the on-scene commander team, believing the subject was law enforcement officers, trained to authorizes tactical intervention, the asleep, made an early morning entry work toward resolving crisis situa- negotiation team can and should as- into a hostage stronghold without tions in the most risk-effective way sume a proactive tactical support telling the negotiation team. What possible. Tactical intervention may, role, softening up subjects and mak- might have happened if negotiation indeed, represent the best solution; ing them more vulnerable to tac- team members had decided to call it does not equate to negotiation tical action. The negotiation team into the crisis site to talk to the sub- failure. Statistically, negotiations accomplishes this by setting up ject? Had they done so, they unwit- successfully resolve most incidents. deliveries in a predictable pattern tingly would have awakened the Moreover, even if the subject does for subsequent tactical exploita- subject, who then might have be- not surrender peacefully, negotia- tion, making concessions that cause come aware of the ongoing police tions nonetheless succeed by stabi- subjects to lower their guard, occu- entry and decided to resist violent- lizing the incident through verbal pying subjects on the phone during ly. Alternately, the subject might containment; buying time to gather the assault (thus specifically locat- have awakened, heard the tactical intelligence, staff, equipment, and ing them), identifying the leader or team approaching, and phoned the other resources; and allowing the most violent subject for tactical fo- negotiation team seeking an expla- tactical team to identify the sub- cus, getting subjects to vacate the nation. Without any knowledge of ject’s vulnerabilities and practice stronghold and thereby become the plan, the negotiation team its planned entry. more accessible to tactical action, would have been unprepared to of- and explaining away any tactical fer a believable cover story explain- CONCLUSION movements seen or heard by the ing the noise or might have hung The art of hostage negotiation subject. up to find out what was going on has come a long way, and crisis

January 1999 / 13 negotiators have developed the not reasonable and did not make the restraint, that they carefully as- skills and knowledge they need to proper decision to surrender. If tac- sessed and understood the subject’s peacefully resolve even the most tical intervention proves necessary, behavior and motivation, and that volatile incidents. The successful both the tactical and negotiation they felt compelled to use force resolution of such incidents usually components need to work hand in only to save lives and not simply rests in understanding the dynamics glove to plan and then implement because they had the ability. Such of different situations, and on-scene the agreed-upon strategy. a policy will result in continued commanders must understand the Along with the tactical team support from an increasingly type of critical incident they face in leader, the negotiation coordinator demanding citizenry that will con- order to identify the appropriate law should stay in almost continual con- tinue to scrutinize any controversial enforcement strategy. Whether a tact with the on-scene commander police action. hostage situation in which the sub- to ensure that all actions are coordi- Commanders always should re- ject aims to force authorities to ful- nated and further the agreed-upon member that to maintain the support fill certain demands or a nonhostage strategy. The negotiation coordina- from the public they serve, they situation in which the subject has no tor should advise the commander of must demonstrate professionalism clear goals or substantive demands the indicators of progress as well as in handling high-profile hostage, and expresses anger, rage, or frus- barricade, and suicide incidents. tration in a senseless or self-de- Understanding the dynamics under- structive way, negotiation remains a lying such incidents will assist com- vital tool to successfully resolve the manders in making the critical deci- crisis. The goal remains sions needed to resolve them. Whether a hostage or nonhos- to bring subjects tage event, commanders should un- to the table, not Endnotes derstand that negotiation represents “to their knees. 1 Edward S.G. Dennis, Jr., “Evaluation of a process designed to demonstrate the Handling of the Branch Davidian Standoff in Waco, Texas, by the United States Depart- empathy, establish rapport, and, fi- ment of Justice and the Federal Bureau of nally, influence the subject to avoid Investigation,” report to the deputy attorney further violence and surrender the indicators of high risk. This in- general, October 8, 1993. peacefully. Negotiations buy the put enables the commander to con- 2 Based on records from the FBI’s Hostage Barricade System (HOBAS) database, 86 time necessary to gather important sider carefully the full range of percent of all incidents can be classified as intelligence; assemble personnel, resolution options available. nonhostage, while only 14 percent are hostage resources, and equipment at the Before making critical” deci- incidents; HOBAS Statistical Report of scene; and allow the tactical team to sions, commanders should use the Incidents, March 23, 1998. 3 See Gary W. Noesner, M.Ed., and Mike prepare for risk-effective interven- Action Criteria to determine if the Webster, Ed.D, “Crisis Intervention: Using Ac- tion, if necessary. action is necessary, risk-effective, tive Listening Skills in Negotiations, FBI Law Negotiations cannot work with- and acceptable. In addition, com- Enforcement Bulletin, August 1997, 13-19. out proper tactical containment, and manders must be prepared to an- 4 Mike Webster, M. Ed., Centurion Consulting Services, British Columbia, Canada, tactical intervention rarely succeeds swer why they decided to take ac- lecture at the FBI Academy, 1996. without the help of the negotiation tion, what conditions changed from 5 G. Dwayne Fuselier, Clinton R.Van Zandt, team to buy time or set up the sub- earlier, and whether they first ex- and Frederick J. Lanceley, “Hostage/Barricade ject, lowering the potential risk to hausted less risky alternatives. Incidents: High-risk Factors and the Action Criteria,” FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, tactical officers. The incremental, Above all, commanders should January 1991, 7-12. coordinated use of tactics and nego- adopt a philosophy that views tacti- 6 Frederick J. Lanceley, FBI (retired), lecture tiation effectively brings subjects to cal intervention as the least desir- at the FBI Academy, 1993. the bargaining table. Still, the need able alternative, one to be taken 7 Supra note 4. 8 See James E. Duffy, “Situation Boards,” for tactical intervention does not only when no other choice exists. FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, June 1997, mean that the negotiation team The police will have to show that 17-19. failed. It means that the subject was they demonstrated patience and 9 Supra note 5.

14 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Book Review

The Language of Confession, Interroga- prosecution, law enforcement readers should not tion, and Deception by Roger W. Shuy, pub- be lulled into a false sense of security about the lished by SAGE Publications, Thousand Oaks, impact of the author’s message. The author California, 1998. makes valid points that if law enforcement A common denominator for all law enforce- officers do not continue to analyze, review, and ment officers remains the ability to communi- learn from their shortcomings, the credibility cate with people, whether on the street, during a currently enjoyed in this profession may be in protracted investigation, in front of a grand jury, jeopardy. He makes these points, not from the or in the courtroom itself, as well as within their perspective of a law enforcement officer, but own organizations. Law enforcement officers from that of an academician, who has spent need to understand and be understood through innumerable hours reviewing and analyzing, line communication. This communication generally by line and word by word, the language used by takes written form but also occurs in such media officers and subjects in investigations. In the as audio or video. The written form—a report— case studies presented, confession—another area is compiled with similar reports and used by of law enforcement once thought to be untouch- prosecutors to assess the viability of formally able—also receives scrutiny. charging a suspect. At some point, officers Although the research, references, and interview the suspect. The interview may turn academic viewpoints presented early in the book into an interrogation and, if successful, will may seem overwhelming, the foundation laid by culminate in a confession. the author is necessary to apply these concepts In the first two chapters of the book, the to real situations. By citing nearly all of the author, a distinguished Research Professor of icons in the areas of interviewing and interroga- Linguistics at Georgetown University in Wash- tion (i.e., Sapir, Rabon, Inbau, and Reid), the ington, DC, focuses on the language law en- author comforts the reader with his knowledge forcement officers use when obtaining confes- of this field of study. He further supports his sions and conducting interrogations. The author opinions with various case studies and draws makes a distinction between the language constructive conclusions from his experiences. actually used during these situations and the Readers should not take offense at the language intended. For example, some confes- apparent harshness of the author’s comments sions contain language that mirrors the elements directed at law enforcement but rather should of a statute as opposed to the language actually view the author’s suggestions to audio- and used by the suspect during the confession, videotape interviews, interrogations, and confes- thereby raising the issue that the investigator sions as opportunities to expand their horizons modified the confession in some way to make it into the inevitable future of the profession. “fit” the elements contained in the statute. Indeed, The Language of Confession, Interroga- The book branches out to a discussion of tion, and Deception can help novice and experi- constitutional rights, truthfulness and deception, enced law enforcement investigators alike and written and unwritten confessions. In one enhance their success in the interrogation room. chapter, the author uses case studies—court cases where he had direct or indirect involve- Reviewed by ment as a potential witness for the defense—to Special Agent Craig Meyer illustrate situations where the interrogator Law Enforcement Communication Unit becomes, in essence, a therapist. Although most FBI Academy of these cases resulted in convictions for the Quantico, Virginia

January 1999 / 15 Focus on Personnel

Alcohol Abuse in Policing a citizen’s complaint. To deal with such situations, many police agencies adopt a strategy of getting help Prevention Strategies for abusers only after they discover a problem. Help By John M. Violanti, Ph.D. Photo © K. L. Morrrison may include a referral to an employee assistance program or alcohol rehabilitation clinic. Agencies often use a late-stage treatment strategy because police managers sometimes lack faith in early de- tection approaches and view them as ineffective. Yet, if agencies intervene before officers get into trouble, they can help officers onto the road to recovery, avoiding damage to both their personal and professional lives.

THE CASE FOR EARLY INTERVENTION Prevention approaches view the causes of alcohol abuse to be based on the behavior of the officer, as well as being influenced by the officer’s social network. The police social network has similar risk factors for alcohol abuse as other high-stress occupa- tions. Police officers may endure stress, experience peer pressure, and be subjected to isolation—all within a culture that approves alcohol use.2 Often- times, police officers gather at a local bar after their shifts to relax over a few drinks with their peers and reinforce their own values. Furthermore, because of the close-knit police culture, officers may feel reluc- lcohol abuse represents an important issue in tant to report colleagues for alcohol-related difficul- police work. Estimates show that alcohol A ties. Many officers may go to great lengths to protect abuse among police officers in the United States is fellow officers in trouble. approximately double that of the general population If a police department hopes to effectively reduce where 1 in 10 adults abuses alcohol.1 While the social alcohol abuse, it should intervene early into the very use of alcohol may be accepted in most professions, network that reinforces such behavior in the first excessive use can impair an individual’s ability to place—the police culture.3 Agencies should get function properly at work and at home. This can involved as early as the police academy stage and prove particularly dangerous for police officers. follow up with periodic in-service interventions. Researchers find the occupational and personal Departments can use numerous strategies for losses associated with alcohol abuse among police early intervention. For example, they can officers difficult to determine, and deficits in job performance due to alcohol abuse cannot always be • help to improve the fitness and well-being of easily detected. Because alcohol use often is consid- officers; ered part of the police lifestyle, officers who have a • provide education on lifestyle rather than on problem seldom get approached by their peers. alcohol itself; Ultimately, officers who abuse alcohol get noticed by their organizations and sometimes by the • initiate stress management programs; and public. Their drinking problems may lead to an • shift the responsibility of detection to individuals automobile accident, a domestic violence situation, or other than the affected officer.4

16 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin PREVENTION STRATEGIES people who experience high stress remain more at risk for alcohol abuse. Stress can exist on both the organi- Improve Physical and Mental Fitness zational and individual levels in police work. Within Improving physical and mental fitness represents the organization, managers should identify and min- an important first step in alcohol abuse prevention. imize sources of stress as much as possible, particu- Experts believe that individuals who live unhealthy larly stress that serves no legitimate organizational lives increase their risk of becoming excessive goal. On the individual level, officers should be drinkers. Fitness protects against developing destruc- taught how to deal with the effects of stress from tive habits, which, over time, can lead to health inside and outside the workplace. For such occupa- problems. For example, a physically fit individual tions as policing, where inordinate stress exists, generally does not smoke and drinks only at a low risk something should be done before alcohol abuse level. Thus, poor physical health may prove compat- becomes a problem.7 ible with excessive drinking because officers may not Officers’ sense of control over the environment perceive drinking as worse than other aspects of an represents another factor in the amount of stress they unhealthy lifestyle. In this sense, the appropriate experience and, in turn, whether they abuse alcohol. target for alcohol prevention Officers who feel more in control becomes the unhealthy lifestyle of of their lives generally feel less the officer rather than the drinking stress. A feeling of participation in behavior itself.5 important decisions that affect their work can increase their sense Provide Lifestyle Education “Minimizing stress of control, instill confidence, Education serves as another in the workplace decrease stress, and make them part of an alcohol abuse prevention also can help less likely to abuse alcohol. strategy. Individuals unaware of to prevent Moreover, allowing officers to the effects of alcohol risk the alcohol abuse. participate in important workplace development of alcohol-related decisions can help them maintain problems. Although the use of the self-regulating mechanisms such knowledge likely can be necessary to control alcohol use affected by values and beliefs, ” under stressful conditions. experts argue that the presence of Increasing an individual’s such knowledge reduces the likelihood of alcohol control of work situations remains a long-standing abuse. Contrary to common belief, lectures on alco- problem in military structures similar to policing. A holism remain one of the least effective methods of good starting point can be small, self-reinforcing educational prevention. Providing information about changes that make officers feel more in control and how to identify and explore lifestyle factors that better about themselves. First-line supervisors are support alcohol abuse proves more beneficial. For important in instilling these feelings.8 They can example, smoking cessation clinics identify cues that accomplish this by emphasizing the officers’ trigger cravings for smokers and teach them new positive achievements and recognizing superior responses to avoid those cues. The point of an alcohol work performance. education program should be that change in alcohol abuse behavior is unlikely to occur unless factors in Encourage Early Detection the officer’s lifestyle are identified and changed.6 Some common signals of alcohol abuse may be increased absenteeism, a change in personality, or Reduce Stress possibly memory lapses such as forgetting work Minimizing stress in the workplace also can help assignments. Detecting these early signs of alcohol to prevent alcohol abuse. Research has shown that abuse can limit its devastating effects and illustrates

January 1999 / 17 another factor in prevention. A significant difficulty Based on the prevention strategies of wellness, for those individuals abusing alcohol remains their lifestyle education, and stress reduction, police ad- reluctance to admit the problem; therefore, it becomes ministrators should set two goals for dealing with necessary for others to intervene. alcohol abuse. First, they should seek to lower alcohol In this regard, first-line supervisors become consumption levels among all personnel but espe- invaluable. Supervisors should monitor the perfor- cially in those who already manifest high intake mance and activities of their workers and should levels. They should encourage officers to decrease recognize when problems arise. Complaints from alcohol consumption while making other changes in other workers may focus the supervisor’s attention on their lives that would sustain that practice. Second, a particular employee. The supervisor can provide administrators should encourage the minimization of constructive advice on alcohol abuse, which can help factors, such as stress, that may lead to alcohol abuse. guide the officer toward treatment and possibly even Stress management programs, similar to alcohol- prevent an officer from becoming an alcohol abuser. related programs, remain essential in a comprehensive Supervisors should become more approach to mental well-being at familiar with their officers by work. getting to know them both profes- When police managers imple- sionally and personally. Becoming ment such strategies early on, they acquainted with the officers in this can reduce the likelihood of alco- way may help supervisors to “If agencies intervene hol abuse within their departments. discover issues that may later before officers get When officers get the help they develop into problems. Thus, into trouble, they can need from the onset, both the offi- supervisors, through education and help officers onto the cers and their agencies benefit. policy, can become aware of the road to recovery.... signs of alcohol abuse and respon- Endnotes sible for detecting them in the 1 E. Kirschman, I Love A Cop (New York: 9 workplace. Guilford Press, 1997), 158 Finally, an officer’s family 2 Ibid., 163. ” 3 M. Braverman, Beyond Profiling: An remains an additional source of Integrated Multidisciplinary Approach to detection. The officer’s family may suffer as a result Preventing Workplace Violence, symposium conducted at Work, Health, of alcohol abuse, which provides motivation for and Stress 95 Conference, Washington, DC, 1995. members of the family to seek help for the troubled 4 C. McNeece and M. DiNitto, Chemical Dependency: A Systems officer. However, police families, much like fellow Approach (Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1994), 25-56; and B.L. Schecter, “It’s More Than Testing, It’s Wellness,” resource paper, officers, may be reluctant to report alcohol-related Prevention Associates, Oakland, CA, 1991. problems. Departments should inform families of 5 Ideas for Action on Substance Abuse Prevention: Healthy Lifestyles, known problems police officers often have with Mandatory Health Programs and Services (Toronto, Ontario, Canada: alcohol abuse and emphasize the importance of the 1991), 25-35. 6 M.A. DiBernardo, Drug Abuse in the Workplace: Employer’s Guide rehabilitation process for the officers and their to Prevention, U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Washington, DC, 1988), families. Departments also should provide informa- 12-19. tion to the family regarding the help available for 7 J.M. Violanti, J. Marshall, and B. Howe, “Police, Alcohol, and officers and their families.10 Coping: The Police Connection,” Journal of Police Science and Administration 13 (1984): 106-110. CONCLUSION 8 U.S. Department of Labor, An Employer’s Guide to Dealing with Substance Abuse (Rockville, MD, 1990), 12. A preventive approach has the long range 9 Ibid. potential to reduce alcohol abuse. Police depart- 10 Supra note 1, 12. ments should note that proactive prevention strat- egies designed to prevent alcohol abuse are more Dr. Violanti serves as an associate professor of criminal economical and practical than curing those who abuse justice at the Rochester Institute of Technology in alcohol. Rochester, New York.

18 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Mass Transit Target of Terror By KURT R. NELSON, M.P.A.

Photo © Paul Myatt

errorism has become a real- Terrorists seek the shock and number of innocent victims. Faced ity of modern life. Domesti- publicity that accompany attacks, with these incidents and the pros- Tcally, such extreme acts as and in the past, many have chosen pect for future destruction on mass the World Trade Center and the airliners as targets. Yet, as in- transit systems, law enforcement Oklahoma City bombings have creased security measures have agencies must prepare for a broad brought home the reality of both made such attacks more difficult, range of possible assaults aimed at foreign and domestic sources of ter- terrorists have searched for alter- these types of targets. ror. Added to the terrorist’s arsenal nate venues to deliver their mes- of conventional explosives is the sages. The likelihood of numerous PREPARING use of chemical and biological casualties coupled with an inherent FOR TERRORISM weapons. In fact, many experts be- lack of security makes mass transit Terrorist attacks not only hold lieve that the question is not systems a suitable mark for terror- the potential for massive destruc- whether a major bioterrorist attack ism. Such domestic incidents as the tion but also require a response will occur but when such an attack October 1995 attack on an Amtrak from a multitude of organizations, will take place.1 And, in recent line in Arizona have highlighted the from law enforcement and emer- years, both domestic and foreign threat, while overseas, such inci- gency services to structural engi- terrorists increasingly have focused dents as the March 1995 poison gas neers and heavy equipment opera- on mass transit to maximize mass attack in the Tokyo subway under- tors. Such disparate agencies may terror. score the ability to target a large have never worked together and

January 1999 / 19 may have no experience with the has occurred whenever a warning hostages and usually do so to ac- transit system. Preincident planning has been received, credit has been complish certain political objec- and extensive interagency training claimed by a terrorist group after tives. Moreover, their dedication to can help overcome these weak- the incident, or the magnitude or their cause and practiced approach nesses. Periodic full dress rehears- location of the incident would merit usually makes them a greater threat als help to ensure that every unit a cautious presumption of an attack. to the hostages and to the law en- will be able to meet its assigned For example, even a small incident forcement officers trying to protect tasks when the time comes. Because directed at a prime government tar- the public. of their experience in responding to get (e.g., the Metro transit station at Terrorist acts fall into two gen- critical incidents, law enforcement the Pentagon, in Arlington, Vir- eral categories of police incidents, agencies must take the lead in pre- ginia) should trigger at least the normal and atypical. While some paring for terrorist attacks. start of a counterterrorist re- elements remain common to all sponse until investigation has de- types of police response, each po- DEFINING THE termined that such a response is tential threat requires a different TERRORIST THREAT unwarranted. law enforcement action. In order to coordinate the ap- While the local police depart- propriate response, law enforce- ment initially will treat many terror- Normal Threats ment first must determine whether ist acts like large-scale criminal Normal threats include bomb an incident can be defined as a ter- acts, important differences exist. threats and actual bombs, hostage- rorist act. While obvious acts of ter- Criminal and terrorists acts usually taking scenarios, and shootings or rorism can be identified as such, differ in their magnitude and de- snipers. The police frequently en- more subtle acts, particularly ones sign. For example, in criminal acts, counter such incidents and have that come without warning or with- offenders usually do not plan to take standard practices and strategies in out anyone claiming credit, can de- hostages. When they do so, it often place for dealing with them. Al- lay the appropriate response. occurs when their actions are dis- though the terrorist variants of these To successfully combat a ter- covered by law enforcement earlier criminal acts—hostage takings, po- rorist incident, law enforcement than they had anticipated.2 By litically motivated weapon assaults, first must assume that a terrorist act contrast, terrorists intend to take or bombs—represent the easiest at- tacks for the police to understand, terrorist acts often differ in motiva- tion, size, and location. Unfortu- nately, few local law enforcement agencies can amass the response re- quired to combat them.3 ...in recent years, Specifically, while most local “both domestic and law enforcement agencies can foreign terrorists handle a barricaded felon, when ter- increasingly have rorists take hostages, their demands most likely will reach beyond the focused on mass local authority’s ability to meet transit to maximize them. Accordingly, local agencies mass terror. should seek assistance from the military and from federal law en- forcement agencies, including the FBI’s Critical Incident Response Officer Nelson serves with the Group and the U.S. Marshals Portland, Oregon, Police Bureau. ”

20 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Special Operations Group, by con- Portland Police Bureau’s Special Tokyo subway system, killing 12 tacting the local FBI field office. Emergency Reaction Team has an people. Another attack attributed to Until such help arrives, the local interagency training and response the same group occurred less than 2 authority should treat the incident agreement with such agencies as the months later at another subway sta- like any other hostage situation but Washington County, Oregon, tion. Police discovered a simple bi- with one major caveat. The possi- Sheriff’s Office Tactical Negotia- nary weapon system that prior to bility that a terrorist will take the tion Team, the Oregon State mixing, contained the needed pre- lives of hostages to deliver a mes- Police’s SWAT team, and the local cursors for hydrogen cyanide gas. sage remains very real, and the on- FBI office’s SWAT team. The These two attacks, just two of the scene commander should consider teams regularly train together in an- six attributed to the group,4 repre- this threat prior to initiating any pre- ticipation of terrorist threats. Al- sent types of atypical threats. Fall- cipitous action such as an assault. though the expertise of these groups ing outside the typical police expe- A series of bombings in At- lies in the tactical arena, a complete rience, such incidents include the lanta, Georgia, has revealed the lat- use or threatened use of chemical, est variant in terrorist activities biological, or radioactive materials. within a conventional police inci- Attacks do not have to be elabo- dent. These incidents represent rate or sophisticated to be deadly. A typical cases except for one act: the biological weapon, such as anthrax, use of a secondary explosive device Terrorist attacks can be used in a rudimentary man- designed to attack responders. that occur on ner and still inflict thousands of ca- Thus, the law enforcement author- transit systems sualties. For example, wind from ity must take control at the bomb- “can tax even the passing trains could circulate an- ing scene not only to preserve evi- thrax spores deposited in the under- dence but also to protect emergency most seasoned ground tunnel of a subway system response teams from secondary law enforcement and claim thousands of lives.5 weapons. veteran. Nuclear attacks represent the Unfortunately, secondary ex- third type of atypical incident. In plosive devices are difficult to de- this case, however, nuclear refers, tect. Explosive detection dogs not to atomic bombs, but to the use prove less effective in areas already of radiological material scattered by contaminated by explosive residue. response would require the coordi- conventional explosives. Such ma- If detection is not possible, then law nation of agencies well-versed in terials prove more subtle and diffi- enforcement must create a safety every area of crisis management. cult to detect and eradicate, making zone by removing other threats For this reason, the Portland” Police them last longer and able to infect a (e.g., towing parked cars) or creat- Bureau stages mock incidents on greater number of people. ing a shielded area in which the the transit system and coordinates Whether biological, chemical, responders can work safely. the response between the diverse or nuclear, atypical attacks extend To plan for normal terrorist agencies likely to become involved. beyond the ability of any law en- threats, police departments should forcement agency to counter unas- determine the maximum response Atypical Threats sisted. But help is available. The they can provide, then locate out- In March 1995, the Aum U.S. Marine Corps originally cre- side resources to provide the rest. If Shinrikyo religious sect, using five ated its Chemical/Biological Inci- necessary, the department should canisters of diluted Sarin, an ex- dent Response Force for use at the sign interagency agreements to tremely toxic chemical, disguised Olympic games in Atlanta, and the ensure a complete response when as lunch boxes and soft drinks, ex- U.S. Army also maintains units able the need arises. For example, the posed 5,000 to 6,000 persons in the to combat these threats. The 310th

January 1999 / 21 Chemical Company represents the enforcement authorities rely on city bus requires a different re- first military unit able to detect and bomb squads and hazardous mate- sponse than an incident on a subway identify biological threat agents. rial teams to respond to these in- car. At the same time, an attack on a Other Army units, such as the 25th cidents. While possibly being able subway car or a bus calls for differ- Chemical Company, are trained to to detect chemical or radioactive ent measures than one that targets a deal not only with chemical threats substances, these teams may fail to subway or bus station. To prepare but with environmental hazards, as detect slower-acting biological for such attacks, officials must con- well.6 The FBI coordinates the fed- agents. Moreover, they even may sider a number of factors. For ex- eral response, and local law en- overlook the possibility that a bio- ample, at system entrances and ex- forcement in need of assistance logical threat exists. its, scores of people congregate, should contact the nearest FBI field multiplying the potential for injury. office. TRANSIT SYSTEM Certain fuel types, such as the com- Calling on such groups remains CONSIDERATIONS pressed natural gas used in an in- essential because law enforcement Terrorist attacks that occur on creasing number of buses, could be agencies themselves cannot detect transit systems can tax even the sabotaged to explode. Response these threats early enough to miti- most seasoned law enforcement teams could use the external cutoff gate their effects. Most local law veteran. A hostage situation on a switches built into some vehicles

Sources of Additional Information The following Web sites contain information on terrorism in general, as well as details on mass transit attacks: The Infrastructure Protection Task Force The Emergency Federal Law Enforcement http://www.fbi.gov/programs/iptf/iptf.htm Assistance Program http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/BJA/html/ The Federal Transit Administration specprog.htm (FTA), Office of Safety and Security, or http://www.ncjrs.org/txtfiles/eflea.txt Transit Security Newsletter http://www.fta.dot.gov/library/program/tsn/ The National Law Enforcement and tsn.htm Corrections Technology Centers http://www.nlectc.org The FTA’s Safety and Security Program, includes extensive bibliography U.S. Department of State http://www.fta.dot.gov/fta/library/planning/ http://www.state.gov/www/global/terrorism/ TSSP/tssp.html index.html

The FBI U.S. Department of Transportation http://www.fbi.gov http://www.dot.gov

Source: Adapted from Eric Barnes, with Marj P. Leaming, Ph.D., and Linda Cavazos, “Protecting Public Transportation from Terrorists,” National Institute of Justice Journal, March 1998, 21.

22 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin in a tactical maneuver to thwart to diminish the crowds that would officials to detect tampering, can terrorists. otherwise accumulate at the scene. provide a basis for increased patrol Light-rail vehicles require spe- In short, agencies preparing for during times of heightened concern. cial consideration. Overhead power mass transit terrorism cannot Further, training all employees, ten- lines could fall to the tracks, and merely apply their typical critical ants, and patrons of the transit sys- electricity from the third rail could incident response plan. Instead, tem to become aware of suspicious jeopardize rescue efforts. In addi- they must consider the unique needs packages, smells, and passenger tion, approaches to such vehicles of transit systems and tailor their behavior can further deter terrorist change in relationship to where the responses accordingly. Yet, even a attacks. vehicles are on the tracks. Specifi- meticulously planned and flaw- cally, different strategies and re- lessly executed response cannot Environmental Design sponses must be planned for sta- substitute for preventing an attack Unfortunately, the design tradi- tions, where doors open onto from occurring in the first place. tionally used for mass transit sys- platforms, and assaults between sta- tems represents the antithesis of ap- tions, where doors are at a consider- propriate security. Mass transit able height above the rail bed. systems are designed to be open and Evacuation from the system inviting, which creates ample op- may represent a formidable ob- Preparation portunity for a variety of attacks. stacle in the event of a terrorist Still, transit officials can make the threat. Only preincident planning remains the key to system inviting, while decreasing and practice can effectively evacu- combating mass the possibility of a terrorist attack. ate passengers, staff, and tenants “transit terrorism. For example, New York City’s who may surround the transit sta- Metropolitan Transit Authority tion. Transit officials for London’s completed a security review of its Underground plan for evacuation system after the gas attack in To- by training shopkeepers and prac- kyo. Improvements included re- ticing regularly. By doing so, major PREVENTION STRATEGIES moving open spaces behind ticket stations can clear out 3,000 to 4,000 Prevention represents a key ele- booths, a natural hiding place for individuals in 3 to 4 minutes. In ment in preparing for terrorism. bombs, and placing antitampering 1991, transit personnel evacuated Part of the prevention plan must in- devices in the subway’s ventilation ” 8 60,000 people from the entire tran- clude an aggressive effort to use system. sit system in 10 minutes.7 security and detection, as well as Retrofitting an existing facility Evacuation plans should in- environmental design, to stave off may prove difficult; it remains clude the selection of staging areas, terrorist attacks before they can be much easier to design new facilities where passengers can await trans- implemented. with crime prevention and terrorism port to safe locations, as well as reduction in mind. For example, in alternate locations, in the event that Security and Detection London, garbage cans were re- the first site is downwind from a When assessing sites and ve- moved from the street because of hazardous gas release. Extra buses hicles to develop a planned re- the potential for members of the can serve as shelter for victims, wit- sponse, law enforcement should Irish Republican Army to use them nesses, and workers and, equally evaluate and safeguard vulnerable to hide bombs. A similar threat important, can accommodate the parts of the system, such as en- could take place in the nation’s tran- transit needs of passengers who ar- trances, exits, and potential hiding sit systems and underscores the rive at the scene expecting to enter places. Regular monitoring of these need for officials to consider such the system. If possible, alternatives vulnerable parts of the system, details when designing new facili- to the affected transit line or sys- coupled with the use of an ties. In a new facility, trash chutes tem must be established in order antitampering design, which allows could move litter from areas where

January 1999 / 23 people congregate to a lower level a capabilities. State and local safe distance away. Just as every authorities should not hesitate to Wanted: new construction project must un- contact the FBI for assistance; Photographs dergo an environmental impact re- any delay could have serious view, law enforcement personnel consequences. could conduct a security review as Finally, law enforcement ad- another part of the design process. ministrators should work with tran- sit and government officials to CONCLUSION tighten security on mass transit and In the past, local law enforce- to design new systems to thwart acts ment believed, with some justifica- of terrorism. When officials limit tion, that terrorists would target the ability of terrorists to function only such major cities as New York freely,9 they keep the citizens they he Bulletin staff is or Washington, DC. They assumed serve safe. that other, smaller cities remained T always on the lookout safe from such attacks. Now, law for dynamic, law enforce- Endnotes enforcement officers in every juris- ment-related photos for 1 Robert Taylor, “All Fall Down,” New diction, large and small, urban and possible publication in the Scientist, May 11, 1996, 32. magazine. We are interested rural, must at least recognize the 2 Sgt. Martin Rowley, team leader, Portland potential for attack and plan accord- Police Bureau’s Special Emergency Reaction in photos that visually depict ingly. And, because of their poten- Team, interview by author, 1996. the many aspects of the law 3 Law enforcement units preparing to tial for massive casualties and de- enforcement profession and combat terrorist acts include the Washington, illustrate the various tasks struction, combined with an DC, Metropolitan Police Department’s inherent lack of security, mass tran- Emergency Response Team; the New York law enforcement personnel sit systems can become easy prey Police Department’s Emergency Service Unit; perform. the Los Angeles Police Department’s Special for terrorists. We can use either black- Weapons and Tactics Team; the Chicago Police and-white glossy or color Preparation remains the key to Department’s Hostage, Barricaded/Terrorist combating mass transit terrorism. Team; the Portland Police Bureau’s Special prints or slides, although we First, law enforcement agencies Emergency Reaction Team; the Metro-Dade, prefer prints (5x7 or 8x10). Florida, Police Department’s Special Response must recognize terrorist acts, then Appropriate credit will be Team; and Kansas City, MO, Police given to contributing photog- respond accordingly. The appropri- Department’s Tactical Response Team. See ate response depends on a number Samuel M. Katz, The Illustrated Guide to the raphers when their work of factors, including the type of World’s Top Counterterrorist Forces (Hong appears in the magazine. We Kong: Concord, 1995), 4. suggest that you send dupli- threat encountered and the area of 4 Henry I. DeGeneste and John P. Sullivan, cate, not original, prints as mass transit affected. Local law en- “Transit Terrorism: Beyond Pelham 1-2-3,” The forcement must work with a myriad Police Chief, February 1996, 46. we do not accept responsibil- 5 of diverse agencies to neutralize the Supra note 1, 34-35. ity for prints that may be 6 Shirley L. DeGroot, “Comment and threat and deal with its aftermath. damaged or lost. Send your Discussion: ‘Who Will Answer the Chem/Bio photographs to: Such a massive undertaking cannot Call?’” Proceedings, March 1997, 120. 7 be left to chance; responding agen- Joseph Scanlon, “Passenger Safety and Brian Parnell, Art cies must prepare for every contin- Efficient Service: Managing Risk on London’s Underground,” Transit Policing, Fall 1996, 12. Director, FBI Law gency and drill to maintain a state 8 Lenny Levine, “Terrorism,” Metro, July/ Enforcement Bulletin, of readiness. As important, local August 1996, 26. 9 FBI Academy, Madison agencies must recognize when an Supra note 3, 11. Building 209, Quantico, incident reaches beyond their VA 22135.

24 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Bulletin Reports

Survey on Police Education The Police Executive Research Forum (PERF) recently conducted a survey on education levels for new recruits. Of the 215 agencies responding, 94.8 percent indicated their agencies have an educational requirement for new recruits. Of those with such requirements, more than 50 percent require high school degrees, 27 percent mandate 2-year associate degrees, nearly 5 percent require 4-year college degrees, and fewer than 1 percent plan to phase in 4-year college degrees over time. Some other key findings include the following: • Forty-two percent of respondents support all police agencies going to a policy of a 4-year accredited college degree for new recruits. • Nearly 80 percent of respondents agree that a 4-year degree would increase professionalism. • Fifty-two percent of respondents believe that a 4-year college degree requirement would negatively impact diversity among recruits. For further information on this survey, contained in newsletter 1084-7316, contact the PERF at 1120 Connecticut Avenue, NW, Suite 930, Washington, DC 20036 or visit their Web site at Statistics on Fallen Law http://www.police-forum.org. Enforcement Officers Released The FBI’s recently released Law Enforcement Officers Killed and Assaulted reported a 20-year low in the number of federal, state, and local Bulletin Reports, a collection of criminal officers killed in the line of duty during 1996. justice studies, reports, and project findings, The Uniform Crime Reporting Program, which is compiled by Glen Bartolomei. Send your compiles the statistics, reported that 55 law material for consideration to: FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, Room 209, Madison enforcement officers were slain in 1996, including Building, FBI Academy, Quantico, VA 3 federal agents: 1 each from the FBI, U.S. Border 22135. (NOTE: The material in this section Patrol, and the Navajo Department of Law is intended to be strictly an information Enforcement. The complete report is available on source and should not be considered an the FBI’s Internet site at http://www.fbi.gov. endorsement by the FBI for any product or service.)

January 1999 / 25 Legal Digest

Crime Scene Searches The Need for Fourth Amendment Compliance By KIMBERLY A. CRAWFORD, J.D.

n a warm spring day, a de- When sheriff’s deputies re- drawers, a torn note found in a bath- spondent woman decided sponded to the call, the daughter room wastepaper basket, and a sui- O to resolve her overwhelm- admitted them to the scene of the cide note tucked inside a Christmas ing problems by ending her life and attempted suicide and homicide. card on top of a chest of drawers. the life of her husband of many The unconscious woman immedi- The woman eventually sur- years. The woman shot her hus- ately was transported to the hospi- vived her suicide attempt and was band, wrote a suicide note, took an tal, and after completing a search prosecuted for the second-degree overdose of sleeping pills, and lay for other victims or suspects, the murder of her husband. Prior to down on a bed to await death. After deputies secured the house. Thirty- trial, the woman moved to suppress some reflection, however, the five minutes later, homicide investi- the three items of evidence found by woman apparently decided that life gators arrived on the scene and be- the homicide investigators during was worth living after all. Although gan a “general exploratory search the “exploratory search” of her it was too late to save her husband, for evidence of a crime”1 that lasted home. After considerable disagree- she attempted to save herself by approximately 2 hours. During the ment in the state courts, the case calling her daughter and requesting search, the investigators examined was ultimately referred to the Su- help. The daughter quickly notified every room of the house and recov- preme Court of the United States. the sheriff’s office and rushed to her ered three important items of evi- In a short, succinct opinion, the parents’ home. dence: a pistol found in a chest of Supreme Court declared in

26 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Thompson v. Louisiana that the “exploratory search” was a viola- tion of the Fourth Amendment and To lawfully conduct ordered that the critical evidence 2 “ a crime scene be suppressed. Although the Supreme Court search...investigators decided Thompson in 1984, the les- must be extremely sons learned by that decision are as careful to follow valuable to law enforcement offic- the dictates of the ers today as they were then. With Fourth Amendment. recent advances in evidence detec- tion technology and forensic analy- sis, crime scene searches have be- come possibly the most important Special Agent Crawford is a legal component in many criminal inves- ” instructor at the FBI Academy. tigations. Properly conducted, a crime scene search can reveal evi- dence that allows investigators to the warrant requirement existed. On conducted without warrants are un- reconstruct the crime and identify this issue, the Supreme Court was reasonable. Because the Court has the perpetrator. Lawfully con- not breaking new ground. refused to create a separate set of ducted, a crime scene search can aid The Court has long held that rules for crime scenes, officers in the successful prosecution of any time agents of the government can avoid this presumption only those responsible. To lawfully con- intrude into an area where there is a by obtaining a valid warrant prior duct a crime scene search, however, reasonable expectation of privacy, a to conducting any search of an investigators must be extremely Fourth Amendment search has oc- area protected under the Fourth careful to follow the dictates of the curred that must be justified by ei- Amendment. Fourth Amendment. ther a warrant or one of the excep- To obtain a valid search war- This article reviews the require- tions to the warrant requirement.3 rant, officers must meet two critical ments of the Fourth Amendment as Moreover, in the 1978 case of requirements of the Fourth Amend- they apply to crime scene searches Mincey v. Arizona,4 the Court re- ment: 1) establish probable cause to and examines the application of fused to recognize a “crime scene believe that the location contains these requirements by various search” as one of the “well-delin- evidence of a crime and 2) particu- courts. Additionally, this article eated exceptions.” As a result, larly describe that evidence. Crime suggests policy considerations for crime scenes are given no special scenes are unique in that their very law enforcement agencies routinely consideration under the Fourth existence establishes the probable involved in crime scene searches. Amendment. If a crime occurs in an cause necessary to obtain a search area where there is a reasonable ex- warrant. The very fact that a crime APPLICABILITY OF SEARCH pectation of privacy, law enforce- has been committed gives officers WARRANT REQUIREMENT ment officers are compelled to com- the reason to believe that evidence TO CRIME SCENES ply with the dictates of the Fourth of the crime will be located on the Amendment when searching the scene. In Thompson, the Supreme scene.5 Similarly, the particularity re- Court based its decision to suppress quirement of the Fourth Amend- the evidence on the facts that the CRIME SCENE ment can be met readily by compil- homicide investigators did not ob- SEARCH WARRANTS ing a list of evidentiary items that tain a search warrant prior to con- In Katz v. United States,6 normally are associated with the ducting the “exploratory search” of the Supreme Court created the type of criminal activity under in- the crime scene and no exception to presumption that all searches vestigation. For example, there are

January 1999 / 27 certain types of evidence that are warrantless search of the house on obtained, it can serve as an alterna- likely to be found at the scene of the theory that the daughter had tive justification in the event that every arson. The arson evidence given her consent.8 Although she the original means fails. More im- would vary greatly from the type of had made the emergency call to the portant, in many cases, the indi- evidence that normally would be police and let them into the resi- viduals who summoned assistance found at the scene of a sexual as- dence, the officers knew the daugh- and have been asked to provide con- sault. To aid officers in making ter did not live in her parents’ home. sent also are the persons who com- timely application for crime scene Therefore, they had no reason to mitted the crime. The request for search warrants, these generic lists believe that she had the authority to consent puts these individuals in an can be compiled in advance by fo- consent to the search. uncomfortable position: if they pro- rensic teams. vide consent, they give the officers the opportunity to find the forensic EXCEPTIONS APPLICABLE evidence necessary to convict TO CRIME SCENES them; if they refuse consent, they Because of the nature of many ...officers should not risk drawing suspicion upon crimes, particularly violent crimes, assume that the themselves. law enforcement officers often do “ person who requests not have sufficient time to obtain Emergency search warrants before making ini- their assistance Virtually every crime will con- tial entries into crime scenes. Con- or meets them at stitute an emergency that justifies sequently, officers are forced to rely the door has the law enforcement’s warrantless on exceptions to the warrant re- authority to consent entry to the scene. Traditionally, quirement to justify these searches. to the search. courts have recognized three differ- The most often relied upon justifi- ent types of emergencies: threats to cations are the consent and emer- life or safety, destruction or re- gency exceptions. moval of evidence, and escape. It is difficult to imagine a crime scene Consent Officers contemplating using that would not automatically The consent exception is often consent to justify the search of a present officers with the requisite ” 9 a viable option for officers respond- crime scene should ask precise, belief that at least one of these exi- ing to a crime scene. In order for the carefully crafted questions de- gent circumstances exists to justify, crime scene search to be constitu- signed to determine whether the at the very least, a warrantless entry tional, consent must be given volun- person being asked to give their to assess the situation. Problems tarily by a person reasonably be- consent has lawful access and con- arise, however, when officers ex- lieved by law enforcement officers trol over the area to be searched. ceed the scope of the particular to have lawful access and control Once sufficient information is gath- emergency that justified the initial over the premises.7 In many in- ered to allow officers to conclude entry. stances, the individual who has that the individual has authority summoned the police to the scene is over the area, a specific request for The Search Must Not Exceed someone who can consent to a consent should be made. If possible, the Scope of the Emergency search of the area. However, offic- the consent should be written. What officers may do, where ers should not assume that the per- Even if officers have other they may look, and how long they son who requests their assistance or means to justify the search of a may stay on premises is dictated by meets them at the door has the au- crime scene, it may be advanta- the particular exigent circum- thority to consent to the search. geous to the investigation and ulti- stances that permit the warrantless In Thompson, for example, the mate prosecution to request a con- entry. Officers are authorized to do government could not justify the sent to search. If a lawful consent is whatever is reasonably necessary to

28 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin resolve the emergency. Once the motion argued that the evidence victim and were assured that neither emergency is resolved, however, was found during an illegal search the defendant nor anyone else who the officers’ justification for being of the defendant’s apartment. The needed their assistance was in the there is negated, and they must have trial court denied the motion and apartment. Thus, entering the closet a warrant or one of the other excep- concluded that the search was justi- to retrieve the defendant’s weapons tions to the warrant requirement to fied under the emergency exception exceeded the scope of the emer- either remain on the premises or and by Skinner’s consent. gency search, and the evidence was continue to search. After entering a conditional suppressed. In United States v. Johnson,10 guilty plea, the defendant appealed The decision in Johnson is sup- police officers in Detroit responded the trial court’s failure to suppress ported by the Supreme Court’s lan- to a report that Angela Skinner, a the evidence. On review, the United guage in Mincey. There the Court 14-year old kidnap victim, was be- States Court of Appeals for the stated: ing held in the defendant’s apart- Sixth Circuit found that Skinner, A warrantless search must be ment. The officers’ knock on the who did not reside in the apartment, ‘strictly circumscribed by the door was answered by Skinner who could not leave the apartment, and exigencies which justify its confirmed the report and advised had no ability to allow anyone into initiation’...the mere fact that the officers that she could not open the apartment, did not have suffi- law enforcement may be made the door because the defendant, cient access and control over the more efficient can never by who was not in the apartment at the area to validate her consent. itself justify disregard of the time, had locked her behind an ar- However, the court found that the Fourth Amendment....The mored gate. After receiving a entry of the premises was justified investigation of crime would supervisor’s approval, the officers under the exigent circumstances always be simplified if war- made a forced entry into the apart- presented by the kidnap victim’s be- rants were unnecessary.11 ment and freed Skinner. ing held against her will in the (Citations omitted) Once freed, Skinner told offic- apartment. ers that the defendant had raped her Although the entry of the pre- Accordingly, officers relying at gunpoint several times and mises was lawful, the court con- on the emergency exception to jus- threatened to kill her and her entire cluded that the emergency ended tify their warrantless search of a family if she attempted to escape. once the officers had released the crime scene must be cognizant of Skinner showed the officers the closet where the defendant kept his Photo © Mark Ide weapons. The officers searched the closet and found three guns and a quantity of ammunition, all of which was seized. The remainder of the apartment was not searched at that time. The defendant, who had a prior felony conviction, was subse- quently indicted and prosecuted in federal court on charges of being a convicted felon in possession of weapons and ammunition. A pre- trial motion to suppress the evi- dence found in the closet was filed on behalf of the defendant. The

January 1999 / 29 the limitations imposed by the contact any doctors, the court stated have probable cause to believe a particular exigent circumstances that “[the officer’s] words whisper crime scene contains evidence that and meticulously stay within those one thing while his actions shout will be destroyed if not quickly re- limitations. another. We hear the shout loud and covered, that evidence may be re- When justifying a warrantless clear.”14 Consequently, even though trieved as part of the emergency.18 crime scene search on the emer- the defendant’s culpability was “be- Officials arriving on the scene gency exception, law enforcement yond question,”15 the court was of a fire obviously can enter the officers should be careful not to compelled to suppress the evidence. premises without a warrant to fight strain credibility by alleging un- the fire. The emergency is not re- realistic exigencies. Similarly, of- Investigative Steps solved, however, once the fire has ficers cannot allow their actions to Within the Scope of been extinguished. In order to en- belie the existence of a genuine the Emergency Exception sure that the fire does not rekindle, emergency. Although officers cannot con- officials may remain on the pre- In Zimmerman v. State,12 for duct a full-scale search of a crime mises for a reasonable period of example, the defendant called scene under the emergency excep- time to determine the source of the county police to report that he had tion, there are certain investigative fire. Once the cause has been estab- been stabbed in his own home. The steps that may lead to the discovery lished, a warrant must be obtained responding officer legitimately en- of evidence and fall well within the prior to continuing the search for tered the premises under the emer- evidence of arson or any other gency exception and conducted a criminal activity.19 visual sweep of the premises to de- Preserving a crime scene also is termine whether there was anyone considered reasonable under the else on the premises. During the ...documenting the emergency exception. Thus, offic- sweep, the officer noticed a sexu- crime scene through ers may take logical steps, such ally provocative poster of a nude photographs, as securing doors and control- male, as well as several diaries. The “videotapes, and ling people on the premises, to officer looked through and subse- guarantee that the scene is not quently seized the diaries because diagrams does not contaminated. the entries revealed unlawful sexual exceed the scope While officers are performing behavior. of the emergency the tasks that are considered reason- After being charged with sexual exception. able under the emergency excep- offenses, the defendant moved to tion, any items that they have prob- suppress the evidence on the able cause to believe constitute grounds that the search of his dia- evidence of a crime may be seized ries was unconstitutional. The of- under the plain view doctrine.20 ficer, however, attempted to justify scope of the exception. For in- Moreover, courts have held that his actions by arguing that the stance, officers arriving on the documenting the crime scene poster gave him reason to think that scene of a violent crime unquestion- through photographs, videotapes, the defendant was a homosexual ably can sweep the premises” in an and diagrams does not exceed the and that reading his diaries was nec- effort to locate other victims or the scope of the emergency exception.21 essary to determine whether he suf- perpetrator if they reasonably sus- fered from AIDS. pect that either is present.16 If a ESTABLISHING POLICY The court found the officers ar- body is found at the scene, tak- Despite the fact that the Su- gument to be “imaginative but in- ing the medical examiner in to preme Court has declined to carve credible.”13 After noting that the of- view and collect the body is deemed out a special exception to the Fourth ficer was not concerned enough a reasonable step to resolve the Amendment warrant require- about the possibility of AIDS to emergency.17 Similarly, if officers ment for crime scenes, many law

30 / FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin enforcement agencies do not, as a • A search warrant when Endnotes matter of policy, train officers to consent is denied or there is 1 105 S. Ct. 409, 410 (1984). obtain warrants or consent prior to no one who can provide a 2 Thompson v. Louisiana, 105 S. Ct. 409 (1984). conducting in-depth searches of clearly lawful consent. 3 Katz v. United States, 88 S. Ct. 507 these areas. This deficiency may be (1967). attributable to the fact that the per- CONCLUSION 4 98 S. Ct. 2408 (1978). sons subsequently charged with the 5 If a crime occurs in a place accessible by Because officers under the in- the general public or in an area where the crimes are individuals who have no tense stress and pressure of a crime Supreme Court has determined there is no right of privacy in the crime scene, scene may overlook the proscrip- reasonable expectation of privacy, such as an and thus, have no standing to chal- tions of the Fourth Amendment, law open field, the Fourth Amendment is inappli- lenge the lawfulness of the search.22 cable, and thus, investigators need not be enforcement agencies should rein- concerned with the warrant requirement. Because officers arriving on the force the need for warrants through 6 88 S. Ct. 507 (1967). scene of a crime have no way of policy. The very fact that a crime 7 Illinois v. Rodriguez, 110 S.Ct. 2793 knowing whether the ultimate de- was committed on the scene gener- (1990). fendant is going to be someone with 8 Although the Court in Thompson stated ally provides the requisite probable that consent is a factual issue that they would enough authority to object to the Photo © Mark Ide not decide, it was careful to note that the search of the scene, the dictates of officers on the scene testified that they were not the Fourth Amendment must be given consent. scrupulously honored to ensure the 9 Emergencies involving threats to life or safety require a showing of reasonable admissibility of evidence. Law en- suspicion. Maryland v. Buie, 110 S. Ct. 1093 forcement agencies can assist in this (1990). Emergencies involving escape or the regard by having a well-crafted destruction or removal of evidence, however, policy designed to provide guid- require a showing of probable cause. Warden v. Hayden, 387 U.S. 294 (1967). ance to officers responding to crime 10 22 F.2d. 674 (6th Cir. 1994). scenes. Policies should include the 11 437 U.S. at 393 (1978) as quoted in following: Zimmerman v. State, 552 A.2d 47, 49 (Md.App. 1989). • Instructions regarding the 12 552 A.2d 47 (Md. App. 1989). officers’ ability to make a 13 Id. at 49. warrantless entry of the crime 14 Id. 15 Id. at 48. scene to make an initial 16 See, e.g., Mincey v. Arizona, 98 S. Ct. assessment of the danger to 2408 (1978); Buie v. Maryland, 110 S. Ct. life or safety and the 1093 (1990). destructibility of evidence; 17 Forbes v. State, 1995 WL241722 (Tex. App. 1995) (unreported opinion). cause for obtaining a search war- 18 • Guidance with respect to See, e.g., Schmerber v. California, 384 rant. Moreover, forensic techni- U.S. 757 (1966); Ker v. California 374 U.S. 23 the steps that can be taken cians and crime scene analysts can (1963) (plurality opinion). to resolve the particular 19 assist in meeting the particularity See, e.g., Michigan v. Clifford, 464 U.S. emergency, such as protective 287 (1984)(plurality opinion); Michigan v. requirement of the Fourth Amend- sweeps, searches for de- Tyler, 436 U.S. 499 (1978). ment by supplying a list of likely 20 See, e.g., Mincey v. Arizona, 98 S. Ct. structible evidence, diagram- items of evidence to include on the 2408 (1978); Horton v. California, 496 U.S. ing, photographing, and warrant application. By develop- 128 (1990). videotaping; 21 See, e.g., Forbes v. State, 1995 WL ing policies that emphasize the 241722 (Tex. App. 1995) (unreported opinion); • Written consent to conduct a need for warrants, law enforce- Urey v. State, 527 So. 2d 7 thorough search from a person ment agencies can substantially 41 (Ala. App. 1988). who has clear authority over increase the likelihood of successful 22 Rakas v. Illinois, 439 U.S. 128 (1978). the area; and prosecutions.

January 1999 / 31 FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin Author Guidelines

GENERAL INFORMATION The New York Public Library Writer’s Guide The FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin is an to Style and Usage. Potential authors should official publication of the Federal Bureau of study several issues of the magazine to ensure Investigation and the U.S. Department of that their writing style meets the Bulletin’s Justice. requirements. Frequency of Publication: Monthly PUBLICATION Purpose: To provide a forum for the Basis for Judging Manuscripts: Material exchange of information on law enforcement- that has been published previously or that is related topics. under consideration by other magazines will be Audience: Criminal justice professionals, returned to the author. Submissions will be primarily law enforcement managers. judged on the following points: Relevance to MANUSCRIPT SPECIFICATIONS audience, factual accuracy, analysis of infor- Length: Feature article submissions mation, structure and logical flow, style and should be 2,000 to 3,500 words (8 to 14 pages, ease of reading, and length. Generally, articles double-spaced). Submissions for specialized on similar topics are not published within a 12- departments, such as Police Practice, Case month period. Because the Bulletin is a govern- Study, and Perspective, should be 1,200 to ment publication, favorable consideration 2,000 words (5 to 8 pages, double-spaced). cannot be given to articles that advertise a Format: All submissions should be product or service. double-spaced and typed on 8 1/2- by 11-inch Query Letters: Authors may submit a white paper. All pages should be numbered, query letter along with a detailed 1- to 2-page and three copies should be submitted for outline before writing an article. Editorial staff review purposes. When possible, an electronic members will review the query to determine version of the article saved on computer disk suitability of topic. This is intended to help should accompany the typed manuscript. authors but does not guarantee acceptance of References should be used when quoting a any article. source exactly, when citing or paraphrasing Author Notification: Receipt of manu- another person’s work or ideas, or when script will be confirmed. Notification of referring to information that generally is not acceptance or rejection will follow review. well known. Authors should refer to A Manual Articles accepted for publication cannot be for Writers of Term Papers, Theses, and guaranteed a publication date. Dissertations, 6th ed., by Kate L. Turabian, Editing: The Bulletin reserves the right to for proper footnote citation format. edit all manuscripts for length, clarity, format, Research papers, reports, and studies and style. should be revised to reflect the editorial needs SUBMISSION of the Bulletin. Subheadings and lists should Authors should mail their submissions be used to break up the text and provide to: Editor, FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin, direction to readers. FBI Academy, Madison Building, Room 209, Writing Style and Grammar: Articles Quantico, Virginia 22135. Telephone: generally should be written in the third person. 703-640-8666. FAX: 703-640-1474. (Point of View and Perspective submissions On 1/22/99, these numbers will change to are exceptions.) The Bulletin follows the (T) 703-632-1952 and (F) 703-632-1968.

32/ FBI Law Enforcement Bulletin The Bulletin Notes

Law enforcement officers are challenged daily in the performance of their duties; they face each challenge freely and unselfishly while answering the call to duty. In certain instances, their actions warrant special attention from their respective departments. The Bulletin also wants to recognize their exemplary service to the law enforcement profession.

Officer Turner Officer Jurewicz Officer Lehman Officer Lizanecz Officers Barry Turner, William Jurewicz, and Gerard On a cold winter night, Lehman of the Wayne, New Jersey, Police Department re- Officer John Lizanecz of the sponded to an automobile accident in which the driver had York, Maine, Police Department struck a tree. Arriving at the scene, the officers found the driver responded to a call about a man unconscious in the burning vehicle. After unsuccessfully trying who had fallen from a steep to open the vehicle’s door, the officers broke the rear window ledge into the icy, turbulent and pulled the driver from the vehicle. Without the quick water at Cape Neddick. Upon actions of the three officers, the driver would have perished. arrival, Officer Lizanecz ob- served several people trying to throw a life preserver to the victim without success. Officer During the early morning, Officer Lizanecz climbed down the Shannon Sharpe of the Lexington, North steep rocky ledge, entered the Carolina, Police Department responded water, and got the preserver to to information from a passing motorist the man. With the help of others concerning smoke coming from a nearby at the scene, the officer got the residential area. Upon arriving at the victim safely to shore. Officer scene, Officer Sharpe observed thick Lizanecz’s brave and unselfish smoke coming from the carport of a actions saved the man’s life. house. Immediately, Officer Sharpe called the fire department and Officer Sharpe entered the residence. Officer Sharpe woke the elderly man who Nominations for the Bulletin Notes should be based lived there and led him safely from the burning on either the rescue of one or more citizens or arrest(s) made at unusual risk to an officer’s safety. house. Officer Sharpe’s prompt actions prevented the Submissions should include a short write-up residence from being completely destroyed and saved (maximum of 250 words), a separate photograph of each nominee, and a letter from the department’s the owner’s life. ranking officer endorsing the nomination. Submis- sions should be sent to the Editor, FBI Law Enforce- ment Bulletin, FBI Academy, Madison Building, Room 209, Quantico, VA 22135. U.S. Department of Justice Periodical Federal Bureau of Investigation Postage and Fees Paid Federal Bureau of Investigation 935 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W. ISSN 0014-5688 Washington, DC 20535-0001

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Patch Call

The patch of the Massachusetts Retired Police The Monticello, Indiana, Police Department patch Officers honors all retired officers in the state. The features the two lakes, Lake Shafer and Lake Free- harpoon and boat symbolize New Bedford, known as man, that border the City of Monticello. The sailboat the Whaling City. The lighthouse depicts Province- and fish signify the recreation possibilities enjoyed by town and the Cape Cod area, while the whale repre- tourists and local citizens. sents the state’s fishing industry.