While a step in the right direction, it does not adequately address the potential abuse of using informants in dangerous situation that is widely embraced by most police departments. In Washington, legislators are considering a bill that would require prosecutors to disclose what deal an informant received in exchange for her testimony. In most states, the rules governing the use of informants is either paltry or nonexistent. The legislation, nicknamed “Andrew’s Law”, now goes to North Dakota Governor Doug Burgum for his signature. It also requires a written agreement with informants, which makes it clear that they can speak with an attorney or stop working as an informant at any time. While limited in scope, the legislation requires training for law enforcement before using confidential informants and mandates that the Peace Officers Standards and Training Board write rules that provide “reasonable protective measures” for confidential informants. Sadek’s murder triggered a wellspring of negative media attention and North Dakota lawmakers responded by passing a measure ( House Bill 1221) that regulates police interaction with potential informants. Related: Arrested While Muslim? The NYPD Wants You…To Be the Next Informant His body was found in a river with a bullet through his head. His parents, who did not know he had been recruited to serve as an informant, say that their son was murdered while working undercover for police to receive a reduced sentence on a drug charge. That’s what happened to Andrew Sadek, a student at North Dakota State College of Science who was caught selling $80 worth of marijuana in 2013. In the most tragic cases, children who otherwise might have been advised by their parents to reject advances by police to become an informant have died as a result of their confidential involvement in criminal cases. Many have been given false assurances by the police or have been dissuaded from seeking legal representation and from informing their parents that they’re serving as an informant. Some are juveniles, occasionally as young as fourteen or fifteen. Related: Coalition Blasts 9/11 Commission Recommendation to Use More InformantsĮvery day, offenders are sent out to perform high-risk police operations with few legal protections.
This led to a system with lots of arrests for low-level offenders looking for ways to reduce their harsh sentences. The main reason is the tough mandatory minimum sentences introduced in the 1980s for even relatively minor drug crimes. A 60 Minutes story estimates that 100,000 people are currently working for law enforcement as confidential informants. The number of informants has exploded in the past few decades. Despite their ubiquity, there are surprisingly few rules on how informants are used and in many cases, persons serving as informants are not aware of the rights they surrender or the risks they may encounter when going undercover. By some estimates, up to eighty per cent of all drug cases in the country involve them. Confidential informants are the unseen foot soldiers in the government’s war on drugs.
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