U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government, Department of Justice.

NCJRS Virtual Library

The Virtual Library houses over 235,000 criminal justice resources, including all known OJP works.
Click here to search the NCJRS Virtual Library

Investigation of Officer-Involved Shootings

NCJ Number
181408
Date Published
August 1999
Length
7 pages
Annotation
This paper was designed to accompany the Model Policy on Investigation of Officer-Involved Shootings established by the International Association of Chiefs of Police National Law Enforcement Policy Center.
Abstract
This paper provides essential background material and supporting documentation to facilitate understanding of the developmental philosophy and implementation requirements for the model policy. For officers involved in a hostile shooting situation there are four general areas of concern that should be addressed after the initial confrontation has been quelled: the welfare of officers and others at the scene, apprehension of suspects, preservation of evidence and identification of witnesses. Supervisory responsibilities at the scene include ensuring the safety and security of officers, eliminating potential threats from assailants, detention or arrest of suspects, summoning emergency medical providers and performing interim first aid. The paper describes follow-on responsibilities of supervisors at the scene as well as investigators’ and Force Review Committees’ responsibilities. Notes