Pasco County Sheriff's Office General Order 41.11 Death and Injury Notifications PDF

PASCO COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE GENERAL ORDER TITLE: DEATH AND INJURY NOTIFICATIONS GENERAL ORDER: 41.11 EFFECTIVE: NOVEMBER 2, 2021 SUPERSEDES: JUNE 14, 2016 ACCREDITATION STANDARDS: NONE PAG...

PASCO COUNTY SHERIFF’S OFFICE GENERAL ORDER TITLE: DEATH AND INJURY NOTIFICATIONS GENERAL ORDER: 41.11 EFFECTIVE: NOVEMBER 2, 2021 SUPERSEDES: JUNE 14, 2016 ACCREDITATION STANDARDS: NONE PAGES: 13 CONTENTS: This order consists of the following numbered sections: I. GENERAL NOTIFICATION GUIDELINES II. NON-AGENCY DEATHS AND INJURIES III. DEATH OR SERIOUS INJURY OF AGENCY MEMBER IV. DEATH OF AGENCY MEMBER’S FAMILY MEMBER V. UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS VI. GLOSSARY PURPOSE: To provide guidelines for making notifications to the next of kin of deceased or seri- ously injured persons, and for making notifications within the Sheriff’s Office, when appropriate. To provide direction to properly care for the emotional needs of the critically injured, ill, or deceased employee’s family. If the incident is a line-of-duty death of a deputy sheriff, funeral arrangements are to be decided by the family of the deputy with their wishes taking precedence over those of the agen- cy. Although this General Order is intended to address the line-of-duty death or injury of deputies, many provisions, including death notification and family assistance, may be applicable to any agency em- ployee regardless of whether or not the death is duty related. SCOPE: This order applies to all members. DISCUSSION: The following procedures will serve as a guide for making notifications to the next of kin on the death or serious injury of a loved one or agency member. 1  G.O. 41.11 POLICY: Deputies will use tact, discretion, and compassion when required to make such notifica- tions. PROCEDURE: I. GENERAL NOTIFICATION GUIDELINES: When making any death or injury notification the following will apply: A. Health Check: Before making contact with the next of kin, a neighborhood check may be done to learn the general health and stability of the person(s) receiving notification. Do not reveal the nature of the assignment to neighbors. B. Victim Advocate: The determination to request a victim advocate will be done on a case-by-case basis after evaluating the information at hand. If an advocate is called, the deputy will wait for the advocate before making contact with the family. If an advocate is not called, the services of a victim advocate will be offered after the notification. In all situations, the advocate should be briefed before making contact with any family members. C. Next of Kin Line of Succession: The order of succession must be strictly followed as outlined below to meet the requirements of an appropriate next of kin notification. The next of kin line of succession for a married individual is the surviving spouse. If the spouse is deceased or divorced, the next of kin will proceed to any known adult child of the decedent or the guardian of a minor child. If the decedent was unmarried and no adult child or guardian of a minor child exists, the next of kin succession will proceed to the decedent’s father or mother, if alive, and then to any known brothers or sisters. D. Notification: Gather the adult next of kin in one room and, if possible, secure children in an- other area of the home. The deputy making the notification or victim advocate should offer to con- tact a member of clergy, or anyone the family may need for support. The services of the agency's chaplain can be offered. E. Background Information: The next of kin can be given information regarding the circum- stances of the death or injury if it does not compromise the investigation. Details should be sup- plied only if requested. F. Identification: The deputy will provide the next of kin with a business card listing the names of agency members involved in the notification and the case number for the investigation, if appli- cable. II. NON-AGENCY DEATHS AND INJURIES: A. Death or Injury Within Jurisdiction: When a death or serious injury occurs within the agen- cy’s jurisdiction, the following applies: 2  G.O. 41.11 1. Accompanied by at least one uniformed deputy, the detective assigned to the investigation will make the notification to the next of kin. If the detective is not available, a uniformed ser- geant or lieutenant accompanied by a uniformed deputy will make the notification, if manpower permits. 2. The person making the notification will document the name and telephone number of the next of kin, and the time, date, and location of the notification in a supplement report to the orig- inal death or injury report. B. Notification From Another Jurisdiction: When a death or serious injury occurs in another jurisdiction and the next of kin live in this agency’s jurisdiction, the following applies: 1. Upon receipt of a request for notification from another jurisdiction, Public Safety Commu- nications will determine the residence location of the person to be notified and provide all avail- able information to the appropriate squad sergeant. 2. The sergeant will make the notification, accompanied by a uniformed deputy. If the ser- geant or the shift lieutenant is unavailable, two deputies will be assigned to make the notifica- tion. 3. The next of kin will be provided the name and telephone number of the agency individual in charge of the investigation of the death or injury. III. DEATH OR SERIOUS INJURY OF AGENCY MEMBER: A. Member Death Notification Form: All agency employees shall fill out a Member Death In- formation form (PSO #20147) concerning information on who they want notified in case they are critically injured or killed in the line-of-duty. The Member Death Information form may be updated at any time. The form shall be kept at the members’ district and a copy shall remain in the members’ personnel file so it may be accessed quickly. B. Death or Critical Injury Notification: The following procedures should be followed in the event of a line-of-duty death and/or a critically injured member with a poor prognosis for survival. These procedures should be followed whenever possible with the understanding that the wishes of the immediate survivors take precedence over the desires of the agency. Members providing services and assistance to immediate survivors and other family members shall take all possible measures to accommodate their needs, wishes, and desires, but should not make promises to them. 1. Agency Member Responsibility: Any deputy investigating the death or serious injury of an agency member, which occurs on or off duty, will immediately contact the shift commander and provide relevant details. The shift commander is responsible for notify- ing the Public Communications Center supervisor who in turn will notify the Human Re- sources Director. The Sheriff will be notified through the chain-of-command. The Oper- ational Logistics Bureau Commander will notify the Human Resources Director. 3  G.O. 41.11 2. The name of the deceased/seriously injured member shall not be released to the me- dia or other parties until after immediate survivors are notified. 3. Agency members shall not post on social media any details of the incident until the deceased/seriously injured member’s immediate survivors are notified. 4. If the media obtains the name of the deceased/seriously injured member before notifi- cations are made to the member’s immediate survivors, the PIO or a supervisor should contact the media and request the information be withheld until proper notification of survivors is made. 5. Communication of information concerning the deceased/seriously injured member and the incident shall, whenever possible, be restricted to telephone to avoid interception of radio communications. 6. Notification will always be made by two or more persons. Notification of surviving family members in the immediate area shall be made in person and with another agency member. The Sheriff or his designee, and/or pre-selected persons of the member’s choice will inform the immediate family of the deputy’s serious injury or death. If not immedi- ately available, a senior ranking member, along with an additional agency member, will make the notification. 7. Notification of the immediate survivors should be made as soon as possible. 8. The following should be considered when making notification to the immediate sur- vivors: a. When the immediate survivors see you, they will likely know something is wrong. b. Ask to be admitted to the house. Do not make notification on the doorstep. c. Gather everyone in the home and ask them to sit down. d. Inform them slowly and clearly of the information you have on the incident. e. It is important to use the member’s name during the notification. 9. If the opportunity to transport the immediate survivors to the hospital prior to the member’s death exists, immediate transportation shall be provided for survivors rather than waiting for other members of the agency delegation to arrive. The opportunity to transport the immediate survivors to the hospital prior to the death of the member is more important than who delivers the notification. 10. The immediate survivors should not drive themselves to the hospital. An agency member will provide transportation via agency vehicle for the immediate survivors. An agency member will advise the hospital that immediate survivors are on their way. 4  G.O. 41.11 11. If the member has already passed away, that information should be relayed to the immediate survivors to avoid giving false hope. 12. An appointed agency member shall be responsible for identification of additional immediate survivors or other family members outside the immediate geographical area, and shall make any notifications as desired by the immediate survivors. Such notifica- tions shall be made by contacting the law enforcement agency in that jurisdiction and re- questing a personal notification be made. 13. Whenever the health of an immediate survivor is a concern, emergency medical ser- vices personnel shall be requested to inconspicuously stand by during the notification. 14. The Office of the Sheriff will prepare a memorandum notifying all bureaus of the death and funeral arrangements. The memorandum shall be sent out via agency-wide email and shall be posted on all read-off boards. 15. With the approval of the appropriate commander, supervisors may authorize individ- ual members to attend funeral services during normal working hours as operational staff- ing permits. 16. The Sheriff or a designee will represent the agency at the funeral. C. Appointment of Agency Coordination Personnel 1. The following roles will be assigned by the Sheriff or his designee upon learning of a mem- ber’s death or serious injury: Hospital Liaison, Agency Liaison, Family Liaison, Benefits Co- ordinator, and Victim Advocate. 2. These assignments will be made in writing to agency personnel, and the immediate survivors will be informed of those designated. In addition, the Sheriff or Sheriff’s designee shall: a. Make additional personnel assignments to assist in handling incoming phone calls and inquiries, and to direct the public to appropriate personnel. b. Ensure that the Employee Assistance Program is implemented to assist immediate survivors and emphasize their right to psychological services. D. Hospital Liaison 1. Whenever possible, the Sheriff or his designee shall join the immediate survivors at the hos- pital. A designated agency member at the hospital shall serve as the Hospital Liaison who shall be responsible for coordinating the arrival of immediate survivors, agency personnel, and the media. The Hospital Liaison shall assume the following responsibilities: 5  G.O. 41.11 a. Arrange a waiting location for immediate survivors and a separate waiting area for press staging. The desires of the immediate survivors should be followed regarding their accessibility to other agency members and friends. b. Ensure medical personnel are able to provide pertinent medical information on the member’s condition to the immediate survivors. c. If possible, assist immediate survivors in accordance with their desires in gaining ac- cess to the injured or deceased member. d. Provide hospital personnel with all necessary information on billing for medical ser- vices. The Hospital Liaison should communicate with the agency Benefits Coordina- tor to ensure all medical bills are directed to the appropriate authority and they are not forwarded to the member’s family or other survivors. e. Ensure immediate survivors are provided with appropriate agency assistance at the hospital. f. Arrange transportation for the immediate survivors and other family members upon their departure from the hospital. E. Agency Liaison 1. The agency Liaison officer will serve as a facilitator between the Family Liaison and the agency. 2. This individual will normally be a commanding officer in order to expedite the tasks of em- ploying agency resources and the delegation of assignments. 3. This member will work closely with the Family Liaison to ensure the needs and requests of the immediate survivors are fulfilled. This includes, but is not necessarily limited to the fol- lowing: a. Notifying local branch of COPS (Concerns of Police Survivors), FOP/PBA, and Pas- co LEO Wives, which may provide immediate assistance to the family. b. Notifying the agency liaison of the TBRCIT (Tampa Bay Regional Critical Incident Team) so services from the TBRCIT can be initiated if needed. c. Overseeing provision of travel and lodging arrangements for out-of-town family members. d. Identifying alternative churches, and/or halls that will accommodate a law enforce- ment funeral. These alternatives will be presented to the family with the assistance of the Family Liaison. The immediate survivors will make the final decision and may 6  G.O. 41.11 select one of the alternatives, or another location they prefer. In that case, the agency will continue to provide all services discussed herein. e. Coordinating all official law enforcement notifications and arrangements to include Honor Guard, pallbearers, traffic control, and a liaison with visiting law enforcement agencies, all subject to the immediate survivors’ wishes. f. Determining the immediate survivors’ wishes regarding agency presence at the funer- al and assisting with any travel arrangements for agency representatives if necessary. g. Ensuring security checks of the survivors’ local residence(s) are initiated immediately following the incident and continued for as long as necessary thereafter. F. Family Liaison 1. The Family Liaison acts as a facilitator between the member’s immediate survivors and the Agency Liaison during the wake and funeral, as well as any future activities. 2. The Family Liaison is responsible for: a. Meeting with the family members and explaining his/her responsibilities to them. b. Determining if the family desires a law enforcement service or the Sheriff’s Office assistance. c. Being available to the family prior to and throughout the wake and funeral. d. Ensuring the needs and wishes of the family come before those of the agency. e. Assisting the family in working with the funeral director and Honor Guard Com- mander regarding arrangements. f. Requesting additional personnel assignments through the Agency Liaison to assist in handling inquiries and interest in public donations to the family, and establishing a mechanism for receipt of such contributions, as appropriate. g. Relaying any information to the family concerning the circumstances of the decedent member’s death and appropriate information regarding any investigation. h. Determining the need for travel arrangements for out-of-town family members and any other special needs of the family during the funeral. The Family Liaison will re- port this information to the Agency Liaison, if the funeral is held locally and if the family desires the Agency’s presence at the funeral. 7  G.O. 41.11 i. Briefing the family members on the procedures involved in a law enforcement funer- al, if they desire one. j. Advising the surviving family of the role of law enforcement associations and organ- izations and the nature of any support programs (e.g. COPS, FOP/PBA, Pasco LEO Wives, etc.) for law enforcement survivors. k. Coordinating future participation, if the family desires, at the Pasco County Law En- forcement Memorial, Florida Law Enforcement Memorial, and the National Law En- forcement Memorial. G. Human Resources Director/Benefits Coordinator 1. The Human Resources Director and Benefits Coordinator are responsible for: a. Gathering and presenting information on all benefits/funeral payments available to the immediate survivors. This information will include the nature and amount of benefits to be received by each beneficiary, the schedule of payments, and the name of a contact person or facilitator at each benefit or payment office. The Human Re- sources Director will notify the insurance coordinator to expedite the issuance and delivery of all life insurance paperwork. b. Filing all benefits paperwork, to include Workers’ Compensation, Public Safety Of- ficers Benefits, etc. and maintaining contact with the immediate survivors in order to ensure that benefits are being received. c. Visiting with the immediate survivors within three (3) days following the funeral to discuss the benefits to which they may be entitled. A prepared printout of the bene- fits/funeral payments that names the beneficiaries, contact information for benefits offices, and a timeline of expected receipt of benefits should be provided if possible. d. This explanation procedure should be repeated within a month following the death, to ensure beneficiaries are provided and understand the information. Information pro- vided during the first meeting immediately following the death may be overlooked or misunderstood due to the extreme stress of the situation. e. The Benefits Coordinator should contact the beneficiaries after six months to ensure the beneficiaries have received benefits. f. If there are surviving children from a former marriage/relationship, the guardian of those children should also receive a printout of what benefits the child(ren) will be receiving. g. The Benefits Coordinator should pay attention to the problems with possible revoca- tion of health care benefits to the surviving family. The survivors are often provided 8  G.O. 41.11 a 30-day grace period before being cancelled from the coverage or of being responsi- ble for monthly payments for the coverage. h. The Human Resources Director will offer the services of the agency chaplain. i. The Human Resources Director will contact the member’s family to offer assistance in making funeral arrangements, contact the honor guard when applicable, provide support services, and provide the Office of the Sheriff with funeral arrangement in- formation. H. Victim Advocate 1. The Victim Advocate serves as a long-term liaison and support function for the immediate survivors and other family members. 2. The Victim Advocate is responsible for: a. Coordinating with the Benefits Coordinator to ensure continuity of all available re- sources. b. Providing contact with immediate survivors and other family members in order to keep them abreast of criminal proceedings relating to the death/serious injury of their family member. c. Accompanying immediate survivors and other family members to criminal proceed- ings if they wish to attend, and explaining the nature of the proceedings. d. Introducing the immediate survivors and other family members to prosecutors and other involved parties as required. e. Maintaining routine contact with immediate survivors and other family members to provide companionship and emotional support, and maintaining an ongoing relation- ship between the agency and the immediate survivors and other family members. f. Relaying the concerns and needs of the immediate survivors and other family mem- bers to those individuals or organizations that may provide assistance, and encourag- ing others to visit and help as necessary if the family so wishes. I. Public Information Officer (PIO) 1. The Public Information Officer is responsible for: a. Assisting immediate survivors and other family members, in coordination with the Family Liaison, in dealing with general media inquiries and informing them of any limitations on what information they are permitted by law to release to the media. 9  G.O. 41.11 b. Coordinating with the Agency Liaison and the media to include any official state- ments and/or press conferences. The PIO shall also ensure members of the agency are aware of restrictions regarding release of any information that might undermine future legal proceedings. J. Providing Information to the Immediate Survivors 1. If there are criminal violations related to the death, the immediate survivors should be in- formed of all new developments prior to any press release. 2. If there will not be any court proceedings surrounding the circumstances of the death, at the earliest opportunity, investigators should sit down with the immediate survivors and relay all details of the incident. The investigators should answer all questions about the incident. 3. Every effort should be made to ensure that immediate survivors should never hear of court or other legal proceedings through the media before being informed by their Agency Liaison. K. Continued Follow-Up with the Immediate Survivors and Other Family Members 1. The agency will be sensitive to the needs of immediate survivors and other family members, and will maintain support as long as the immediate survivors and other family members so desire. 2. Additionally, the agency will make a diligent effort to: a. Consider making plaques and/or flags available to the surviving spouse, parents and/or children. b. Invite the immediate survivors and other family members to agency activities, to in- clude any annual memorial services. c. Show support for the fallen deputy during court proceedings by having as many co- workers as possible attend. IV. DEATH OF AGENCY MEMBER’S FAMILY MEMBER A. Family Member: Upon a death in any member’s immediate family, the following applies: 1. The immediate supervisor will notify the respective commander and provide all available de- tails. 2. The commander will notify the Sheriff via the chain-of-command, the Human Resources Di- rector, and, if the death was the result of violence or unusual circumstances, a victim advo- cate. 10  G.O. 41.11 3. The Human Resources Director will contact the member’s family to offer assistance in mak- ing funeral arrangements and provide support services. The Human Resources Director will provide the affected commander with funeral information. 4. The commander will prepare a memorandum notifying all members of the death and funeral information. The memorandum will be posted on all read-off boards. 5. The commander will represent the agency at local funerals. 6. With the approval of the appropriate commander, supervisors may authorize individual members to attend funeral services during normal working hours as operational staffing per- mits. V. UNSUCCESSFUL ATTEMPTS: A. If the next of kin are not at home, the deputy will check with neighbors to identify a time when the person is expected home. If they give a specific time, ask the neighbor not to discuss the situa- tion with anyone, and the deputy will return at the specified time, if possible. If a return time can- not be determined, the neighbor will be notified that there is a "medical emergency" and asked to contact Public Safety Communications when the next of kin returns to the residence. The deputy is responsible for notifying Public Safety Communications to expect the call. B. When the original deputy is unable to make the notification before going off duty, that deputy is responsible for relaying the information to the oncoming district shift supervisor. The supervisor is responsible for ensuring that the notification is made. C. Upon receiving a call from the neighbor, the communications supervisor will contact the origi- nal deputy or the on duty district shift supervisor, if the original deputy is off duty. VI. GLOSSARY: AGENCY LIAISON – A designated agency member who will serve as a facilitator between the Family Liaison and the Agency. BENEFICIARY - Those designated by the deputy as recipients of specific death and/or other bene- fits. BENEFITS – Financial payments made to the family to assist with financial stability following the loss of a loved one. CISM (Critical Incident Stress Management) Team – A group of Sheriff’s Office employees se- lected, and trained in CISM for the purposes of providing a systematic and organized response to critical incidents involving agency members. 11  G.O. 41.11 CLERGY - An ordained priest, rabbi, minister, chaplain, or other individual considered a religious figure in the eyes of the surviving family members. COPS (Concerns of Police Survivors) – A national organization funded by the Office of Justice Programs, which provides peer-support to law enforcement survivors and assist law enforcement agencies with developing workable plans for handling survivors during the trauma affiliated with the sudden, often violent, loss of a loved one in the line of duty. FAMILY LIAISON – A designated agency member who serves as the agency’s representative and official contact person for all matters relating to the immediate survivors. FUNERAL PAYMENTS – Financial payments made on behalf of an agency member killed in the line-of-duty which are specifically earmarked for funeral expenses. IMMEDIATE FAMILY - Includes the spouse, children, or parent. IMMEDIATE SURVIVORS – Family members of the deceased agency member to include spouse, children, parents, grandparents, siblings, fiancé, and/or significant other. LINE-OF-DUTY DEATH – The death of an active-duty deputy by felonious or accidental means during the course of performing police functions while on or off duty. NEXT OF KIN - The next surviving member of the decedent’s family. NEXT OF KIN LINE OF SUCCESSION - The next of kin line of succession for a married individu- al is the surviving spouse. If the spouse is deceased or divorced, the next of kin will proceed to any known adult child or the guardian of a minor child. If the decedent was unmarried and no adult child or guardian of a minor child exists, the next of kin succession will proceed to the decedent’s father or mother, if alive, and then to any known brothers or sisters. NON LINE-OF-DUTY DEATH (SWORN) – The death of an active-duty deputy as a result of cir- cumstances occurring while in an off-duty capacity, or on duty but not considered line-of-duty (i.e. illness, car accident, heart attack). PASCO LEO WIVES – A group consisting of the spouses and the family members of Pasco Sher- iff’s Office deputies, who support each other. TAMPA BAY REGIONAL CRITICAL INCIDENT TEAM (TBRCIT) – A peer-driven group con- sisting of members of local law enforcement and fire/rescue agencies, as well as mental health per- sonnel. The group provides short-term, confidential services to colleagues in emergency services following traumatic events when requested. VICTIM ADVOCATE - A civilian member of the agency who provides assistance and support to victims and their family in crises. 12  G.O. 41.11 INDEXING: DEATH NOTIFICATIONS EMPLOYEE DEATHS INJURY NOTIFICATIONS MEMBER DEATHS NEXT OF KIN NOTIFICATION NOTIFICATIONS, DEATH AND SERIOUS INJURY DRAFTED: LS/LAM / May 19, 2021 / Filed: 41.11 Death & Injury Notification APPROVED: CHRIS NOCCO, SHERIFF PASCO COUNTY, FLORIDA 13