TYPE OF ORDER NUMBER/SERIES General Order 360.10 SUBJECT TITLE Intelligence Assessment Database REFERENCE N/A SUBJECT AREA Law Enforcement Operations ISSUE DATE EFFECTIVE DATE 12/22/2017 1/1/2018 PREVIOUSLY ISSUED DATES N/A RE-EVALUATION DATE 12/22/2018 DISTRIBUTION All Sworn Personnel PURPOSE The purpose of this policy is to establish the creation of the Providence Police Department’s Intelligence Assessment Database and to define parameters pertaining to its structure and use. POLICY It is the policy of the Providence Police Department to implement and maintain an intelligence-driven database system that provides: (1) the ability to identify and differentiate between gang members and non-gang members; (2) information that can be used to devise effective interdiction strategies and afford protections to the community from criminal activity, including gang-related crimes and violence; and (3) fair, unbiased, and constitutionally sound methods of gang member designation and designation appeal procedures that adhere to all applicable Providence City Ordinances and state and federal laws. DISCUSSION The mission of the Providence Police Department Violence Crime Task Force (VCTF) is to proactively reduce gun violence, particularly concentrating on individuals affiliated with gangs or violent criminal behavior. The VCTF utilizes traditional policing strategies, incorporating prevention, intervention and enforcement efforts, as well as intelligenceled policing strategies to inform decision-making at every level. Patrol officers and detectives collect information and focus on sources of firearm and gang violence through the identification of individuals, groups, and locations. VCTF works collaboratively with community partners and other stakeholders to garner information on illegal firearms and related violence. Officers aim to prevent ongoing conflicts among street gangs through direct interaction with individuals and groups. Officers not only respond to but anticipate retaliatory violence between groups, and make every effort to deter further violence. Through community-based partnerships, suitable individuals with whom the VCTF makes contact are referred to social service agencies and are offered a variety of opportunities. For the purpose of this General Order, the following definitions shall apply: Criminal Street Gang (i.e.”Gang”): An ongoing organization, association, or group of three (3) or more persons, whether formal or informal, having as one of its primary activities the commission of criminal or delinquent acts; having an identifiable name or common identifiable signs, colors, or symbols; and whose members individually or collectively engage in, or have engaged in, a pattern of criminal gang activity. Gang Member: Any person, whether a juvenile or an adult, who has attained a minimum of ten (10) points based upon the fourteen (14) weighted criteria of the Department’s gang member verification system. Intelligence Assessment Database: A database maintained by the VCTF that includes gang members and other subjects deemed appropriate for entry into the database for intelligence purposes. Intelligence: A collection of information to be used for investigative purposes. Gang Member Verification Report: A printable summary of the criteria used to verify an individual as a gang member. PROCEDURE I. GENERALLY A. No police officer shall identify any individual as a member of a gang in any list or database maintained by the Department, nor in any reports, memoranda or other document, unless the individual meets the criteria for designation as a gang member. No Police Department official authorized to enter information into the Intelligence Assessment Database (“the database”) shall identify any individual as a gang member in written notes unless the individual meets the criteria for designation as a gang member. The list of criteria used to determine gang membership shall be public information, and shall be subject to review by the Providence External Review Authority (PERA). II. GANG MEMBER DESIGNATION A. The Department uses a gang member verification system utilizing fourteen (14) weighted criteria to determine when an individual will be considered a gang member. An individual that does not have a minimum of ten (10) points using the fourteen (14) weighted criteria will not be designated as a gang member within the database. 360.10 – Intelligence Assessment Database Page 2 B. The following list represents the fourteen (14) weighted criteria that shall be used to establish an individual’s designation as a gang member within the database: 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. Prior gang member validation by a law enforcement agency (9 points). Named in gang-related information received from an unaffiliated law enforcement agency (2 points). Self-admission (10 points). Use and/or possession of gang group paraphernalia or identifiers (4 points). Appearance in gang group-related photographs (2 points). Bearing known gang group tattoo or marking (8 points). Named in gang-related information from reliable, confidential informants (6 points). Named in gang-related information from an anonymous informant or tipster (1 point). Possession of gang-related documents (4 points). Named in gang-related documents as a gang member (8 points). Contributor in gang publications (8 points). Named in court and investigative gang-related documents (9 points). Documented as having had three (3) or more contacts with known gang members and/or involvements in any gang activity, to include information generated from Field Intelligence Reports (3 points). Information developed during investigation(s) involving gang activity (5 points). C. Any individual who believes that they are designated as a gang member within the database may make a direct inquiry at the Providence Public Safety Complex with the Office of Professional Responsibility. If such disclosure does not adversely impact imminent law enforcement action, the individual shall be informed of whether or not he/she is designated as a gang member by written notice no later than ten (10) business days after the inquiry is received. Additionally, the written notice shall explain the right to appeal and the process by which to appeal the individual’s designation as a gang member. The fact that an individual inquired about his/her designation shall not constitute evidence that the individual is a gang member, nor shall it be included in the criteria for the individual’s designation as a gang member. D. Prior to designating any individual under eighteen (18) years of age as a gang member, the Providence Police Department shall provide written notice of the designation and the basis for the designation by notarized letter, delivered via certified mail, to the individual and his/her parent(s) or legal guardian(s), unless such disclosure would adversely impact imminent law enforcement action. Additionally, the written notice shall explain the right to appeal and the process to appeal the individual’s designation as a gang member. 360.10 – Intelligence Assessment Database Page 3 III. SUBMISSIONS TO THE INTELLIGENCE ASSESSMENT DATABASE A. Officers are able to submit an individual for consideration for admission into the database. All prospective gang member designation submissions shall include documentation to support the individual’s entry into the database based upon the Department’s gang member verification system. This documentation may include, but is not limited to, incident reports, intelligence reports, and information gathered from social media. Submissions may be made to members of the VCTF, with final approval for database entry made by the Commanding Officer of the VCTF prior to the entry of the individual into the database. IV. ACCESSING THE INTELLIGENCE ASSESSMENT DATABASE A. The Department will provide access to the database for each sworn officer and authorized user. All officers/authorized users must complete a User Agreement before being granted access to the database. Officers/authorized users must have a legitimate law enforcement purpose, for accessing the database, such as an ongoing investigation or in support of prosecutorial efforts. B. Officers not assigned to the VCTF will have the following access permissions: 1. 2. C. READ all database entries within the system. SEARCH all database entries within the system. Additional access permissions may be granted at the discretion of the Commanding Officer of the Investigative Division. V. DISSEMINATION OF INTELLIGENCE ASSESSMENT DATABASE INFORMATION A. All data contained in the database is law enforcement sensitive. All court ordered, defense requested, or public requested production of information contained in the database shall be directed to the City of Providence Law Department. VI. REVIEW OF GANG MEMBER DESIGNATION ENTRIES A. The Commander of the Investigative Division or his/her designee, in collaboration with the Commander of the VCTF or his/her designee, shall be responsible for ensuring that database files are maintained in accordance with the goals and objectives set forth in this directive. B. If an individual has no convictions within a two-year period after he/she has been designated as a gang member, and no new evidence or documentation meeting the criteria for designation as a gang member has been presented, the individual shall no longer be designated as a gang member and all related records destroyed at the individual’s personal request. A letter confirming that the individual is no longer designated as a gang member shall be sent to the individual at his/her last known 360.10 – Intelligence Assessment Database Page 4 address. Notwithstanding the above, the two-year period shall not include any time that the individual spent incarcerated or serving a suspended sentence. VII. VIII. GANG MEMBER DESIGNATION APPEALS A. Any individual who is designated as a gang member may appeal his/her designation by filing a civilian complaint with the Office of Professional Responsibility (OPR). A joint investigation of the complaint by OPR and the Commanding Officer of the VCTF that includes an analysis of the individual’s Gang Member Verification Report shall be shall be conducted in accordance with the procedures pertaining to civilian complaint investigations. B. An individual who is designated as a gang member may also challenge that designation via a formal appeals process to PERA, in accordance with all applicable Providence City Ordinances and state and federal laws. C. In the event that an appeal is not successful, a notation will be made in the individual’s database record, and in any transmission of the information concerning that individual, documenting that the individual disagrees with their designation as a gang member. The appellant in an unsuccessful appeal shall not be permitted to appeal their designation as a gang member again for at least one (1) calendar year. D. No information related to on-going appeals or successfully contested appeals of gang member designations shall be shared with any third party unless required by law. PROVISIONS A. Each year, the Providence Police Department shall produce a report providing the total number of individuals who are designated as gang members, along with demographic detail including age, race, ethnicity, and gender and a total of how many of those individuals have challenged their respective designations as gang members. B. Each year, the Providence Police Department shall engage an independent auditor, selected by PERA, the City Solicitor, and the Commissioner of Public Safety, to audit the Intelligence Assessment Database, identify any errors, and make recommendations for improving the operations and use of the database. A full report of the results of the audit shall be provided to the Commissioner of Public Safety, the Chief of Police, and to PERA for its review. In the auditor’s report, the names of individuals who have been designated as gang members shall not be included, and shall, instead, be replaced with unique identifying numbers. The identity of the auditor shall remain confidential. 360.10 – Intelligence Assessment Database Page 5 APPROVED: APPROVED: STEVEN M. PARÉ COMMISSIONER DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY HUGH T. CLEMENTS, JR. COLONEL CHIEF OF POLICE 360.10 – Intelligence Assessment Database Page 6