Invocation of This Protocol

Upon the occurrence of an Officer-Involved Critical Incident, this Protocol becomes automatically and immediately effective. When an Officer Involved Critical Incident occurs, the law enforcement agency having jurisdiction where the incident occurred shall, as soon as practical, notify the county attorney having jurisdiction where the incident occurred and the chief executive of the law enforcement agency. The county attorney, and the chief executive having jurisdiction shall jointly designate the necessary investigators from the Basin Critical Incident Team, and designate which agency/investigator is the lead. In the event an uninvolved team cannot be assembled, an outside agency from out of the area will be contacted and requested to conduct the investigation. In the absence of the “Chief”, “Sheriff”, or “Administrative Officer” in the case of a state or federal Venue Agency, the designee or person having administrative authority may consult with the County Attorney. This protocol may also become effective for non-officer involved investigations at the discretion of the “Chief”, “Sheriff”, or “Administrative Officer”.

Investigative Agencies, Formats and Responsibilities

To properly recognize and accommodate the various interests and the various rules of law which may be involved in any incident, investigations of these matters must be performed under two separate investigative formats; (A) the Criminal Investigation; and (B) the Administrative Investigation.

A. Criminal Investigation

1. The Criminal Investigation has investigative priority over the Administrative Investigation and it begins immediately after an incident has occurred.
2. The Criminal Investigation shall be performed by designated members of “The Team”, assigned by the “Team Commanders”. The following agencies shall participate in the investigation:

   1. The Venue Agency (different from the Employer Agency).
   2. The County Attorney’s Office (for advisory purposes only);