I was doing some doing some research on the web when I came across this quote “Only members who have completed Department approved training may utilize confidential informants or maintain informant files”. It is taken from Vancouver Police Department’s Informant Management Policy For those of you unaware Vancouver is a big city in Canada - think mountains and sea, with approximately 2000 sworn and unsworn members.
New Australian legislation for managing human sources (confidential informants)
After spending over AUD100 million on a Royal Commission and years of adverse publicity, the State of Victoria has new legislation for managing human sources.
It is certainly going to change how things are done.
Unfortunately, this is not the end of the matter which began with police using a defence lawyer as an informant to report on her clients.
Safe to say it went badly wrong.
If you want to read the whole sad story visit: https://www.rcmpi.vic.gov.au/
Human Sources (CHIS) domestic violence and managing risk
Confidential informants and police corruption
Here is a story from New Albany, Indiana about a police officer that went well and truly down the wrong road with a confidential informant, (human source, CHIS). This type of think could have happened in many police departments. The case is far from unique. No doubt everyone is seeking to cast all the blame on the officer. Time would be better spent looking at how this behaviour occurred and how it continued for two years.
Proactive Recruitment of Confidential Informants
No Knock Warrants and questionable confidential informants
No knock warrants are a tactic available to police that has be subject to much scrutiny. Here is a story from St Louis which resulted in the death of a 63 year old man. No knock warrants are intended to be used where there is a greater risk to the officers executing the warrant. This article focuses on the involvement of confidential informants in obtaining the warrant.
Confidential Informant is reliable - Can you prove it?
Confidential informants, human sources, humint, confidential human intelligence sources, CHIS, choose your terminology but the problems in managing people giving information to the police are well known and rarely change. There are ways to manage them these people that protect the person, protect the public, protect the agency, protect the officer, and protect the rule of law. Unfortunately, for some agencies, adopting the necessary measures just seems like something that is too difficult to do .
