Response To Resistance - Officer Involved Use of Force - 1 - 2

• This document outlines the Omaha Police Department's (OPD) policy and procedures for investigating use of force incidents resulting in serious injury or death.
• The OPD Officer-Involved Investigations Team (OIIT) has sole responsibility for criminal investigations and case management of these incidents, regardless of whether the officer is on or off duty.

Definitions

• Involved Officer(s): Officers whose use of force/weapon discharge leads to serious bodily injury or death.
• Officer Involved Investigations Team (OIIT): A team of trained officers (lieutenants, sergeants, detectives) commanded by a Captain, reporting to the CIB Deputy Chief, who investigate officer-involved use of force incidents.
• Witness Officer: An officer present during an officer-involved incident resulting in serious bodily injury or death, who did not use force themselves.

Immediate Responsibilities After a Use of Force Incident

• Involved Officers must control threats, request medical assistance, administer first aid, request a supervisor and additional units, and protect the scene if possible.
• Witness Officers must control threats, request medical assistance, administer first aid, request a supervisor, protect the scene, identify and request cooperation from witnesses, and coordinate the arrival of Responding Officers to establish a perimeter.
• Responding Officers must control threats, relieve Witness Officers in searching for suspects/witnesses, relieve officers administering first aid, identify additional witnesses, establish/maintain a perimeter, establish incident command, and coordinate the arrival of rescue squads, with a UPB officer accompanying the subject to the hospital.
• All On-Scene Officers must preserve evidence unless moving it is necessary for safety, in which case they must mark the original location.
• Vehicles involved are secured as evidence.

Responsibilities of Responding Uniform Patrol Bureau (UPB) Supervisors

• Establish or assume Incident Command, secure crime scene perimeters, and employ privacy screens if needed.
• Use OPD Form 148 to ensure critical tasks are completed.
• Collect Body-Worn Cameras (BWCs) from Involved and Witness Officers for transfer to the BWC Administrator or OIIT designee, stopping BWC and MVR recording only with OIIT Operational Lieutenant approval.
• Involved officers' BWCs should be switched off.
• Involved and Witness Officers must remain at the scene until BWCs are collected.
• Ask Involved Officers questions relevant to public safety and scene security, answering on pain of insubordination.
• Further questioning requires legal representation and advisement of Fifth and Sixth Amendment rights.
• Document any statements made; do not question further if the officer declines to speak.
• Instruct Involved Officers not to manipulate weapons, which will be collected by the OIIT at CPHQ.
• If a weapon needs retrieval prior to arrival at CPHQ (ex. officer is going to hospital), a UPB officer will guard the Involved Officer until the weapon is retrieved.
• Remove Involved Officer(s) from the scene and transport them directly to OPD CPHQ, separating them from other involved individuals.
• Alcohol and drug testing will be conducted upon order of the Chief of Police or designee.
• Assign an officer to maintain a Crime Scene Log (OPD Form 120).
• Notify the precinct and unit chain of command, CIB, Forensic Investigations, Peer Support Team Leader, Internal Affairs Lieutenant, and Public Information Office (PIO).
• Assign officers to conduct a neighborhood canvass for witnesses, documenting information in a Supplementary Report.
• Coordinate transportation for Witness Officers and cooperating witnesses to CPHQ.
• Transporting officers will instruct witnesses not to discuss the incident.
• Witnesses who refuse to cooperate should not be detained, but officers should attempt to obtain their information.
• Ensure necessary reports from the scene are completed and submitted electronically (excluding reports from Involved Officers).

Internal Affairs Unit Responsibilities

• Notify the Chief of Police (if not already notified).
• Coordinate alcohol and drug testing with the Chief of Police.
• Notify the OIIT Captain whether alcohol and drug testing has been authorized.

Involved Officers’ Supervisor(s) Responsibilities

• Complete and submit a Chief’s Report (OPD Form 214) to Internal Affairs documenting the Involved Officer(s)’s actions.
• Ensure all necessary incident, injury, and supplementary reports are completed and submitted.

Completion of Incident Reports

• The Involved Officer’s supervisor consults with the OIIT Lieutenant regarding incident report completion and follows their directions.
• Involved Officers do not complete reports.

Officer Involved Investigation Team (OIIT) Responsibilities

• The assigned OIIT Captain assumes responsibility for OIIT members and takes command of the investigation, assigning an operational Lieutenant.

OIIT Operational Lieutenant Responsibilities

• Secure weapons needed for investigation, enter into SAFE, and book into OPD Forensic Gun Locker for examination by the FIU.
• If trace, DNA, or latent print evidence is a concern, the firearm(s) should be directly collected by the FIU employees.
• An inventory and round count of any collected firearms shall be completed (either by FIU employees or OIIT officers, as assigned by the OIIT Operational Lieutenant) and recorded on audio/video in front of the Involved Officer, if possible. FIU employees will photograph weapon(s) when requested.
• Ensure replacement/loaner weapons are issued after notifying the Training Unit’s Firearms Sergeant via email, if weapons are retained as evidence.
• Include at least two outside agency investigators in the investigation, per NRS §29-1401.
• Ensure Incident Reports are completed and direct the Involved Officer’s supervisor accordingly.
• Coordinate and direct OIIT sergeants and detectives.
• Coordinate next of kin notifications for suspects and decedents after positive identification is made and before media releases.
• Coordinate with the OPD Crime Analysis Unit to ensure FBI data collection forms are completed and submitted.
• Coordinate with the Douglas County Attorney’s office and the OPD Employee Resources Sergeant determining which equipment will be released back to officers.

OIIT Sergeants' Responsibilities

• OIIT On-Scene Sergeant: Takes charge of the incident scene investigation, manages the inner and outer perimeter, ensures Forensic Investigations documents and processes the scene and collects evidence, collects videos from cruisers, determines which vehicles are part of the investigation, and ensures detectives canvass the area for additional video evidence and witnesses.
• OIIT Hospital Sergeant: Ensures a UPB officer stays with the subject at all times, documenting any unsolicited statements, gathers evidence from the hospital, ensures reports are completed, may allow immediate family members a private viewing of the body (parent, spouse, sibling, or child), contacts the Douglas County Coroner upon a subject being pronounced clinically dead, and requests additional security at the hospital.
• OIIT Interview Sergeant: Assigns detectives to conduct interviews of Involved/Witness Officers and witnesses, ensures all interviews are recorded, coordinates and reviews interviews, and directs re-interviews as needed.
• OIIT CPHQ Sergeant: Restricts access to the CPHQ fourth floor during the initial stages of the investigation, assigns a floor monitor to log entries and deny access to unauthorized personnel, ensures officers complete reports, monitors rooms for policy compliance, coordinates with OPOA representatives, attorneys, and Peer Support staff, and secures additional interview space.

Other Responsibilities

• The OIIT Lieutenant determines which officers (excluding Involved and Witness Officers) must submit Supplementary Reports, after consulting with the On-Scene Sergeant.
• The OIIT Lieutenant determines whether Witness Officers require a formal interview, a Supplementary Report, or a verbal statement.

This document details the Omaha Police Department's (OPD) policy for investigating use of force incidents resulting in serious injury or death. The OPD Officer-Involved Investigations Team (OIIT) handles criminal investigations and case management. It clarifies involved officer responsibilities and definitions.