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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-11-2000 ICPD Reports/Memos ICPD TRAINING DATE: April 1, 2000 TO: Chief Winkelh~e From: K.Hurd ~F: March Tr~ning Repo~ Interviews and Interrogations 03/7-8/00 50,51 ILEA 16 Hfs Training in various Interview and Interrogation Techniques. Overview of legal requirements of interviews/interrogations. Internal Affairs Investigations 03/8-10/00 16 Hfs St. Louis 88,99 Training in conducting Internal Affairs Investigations, including legal requirements and responsibilities. National Traffic Safety Conference 03/12-14/00 82,88 24 Hfs Nation wide trends and strategies dealing with traffic safety. State Governor's Highway Traffic Safety Conference 03/29-30/00 Council Bluffs 16 Hrs 90 Training in statewide trends relating to traffic safety. Training in various traffic law enforcement techniques. Rapid Deployment Inst. School 03/15/00 Chicago 8 Hrs Training for an instructor in rapid deployment tactics and techniques. Missing Children Homicide --4 ~ ~ ~o , 03/28/00 Sgt. Lord 8 Hrs Des Moines Training in the investigation and case management of missing children homicides. Including techniques on developing information on missing children when leads are limited. Bomb Disposal Update 03/29/00 Officer Leik 8 Hrs Des Moines Update training for bomb disposal technician, including update on currently available equipment and anticipated date of equipment distribution. Summary of new Hazardous Devices School format. SRT Range Training 03/28 and 29/00 CRPD Range 8 Hrs SRT members Monthly SRT weapons training and qualification. Introduction of new techniques by Heick and Nixon. SRT Scenario Training 03/14/00 SRT members 8 Hrs Training in building search and deployment within schools. FATS Month long 47 Sworn Personnel .25 Hrs FATS training scenarios 4/ 4 involving traffic stops and #6 dealing with a domestic dispute. Watch Training #s 00-08 Dealt with residential burglaries 00-37 Dealt with MDT operation 00-28 Dealt with "emancipated juveniles" 00-36 Dealt with financial exploitation of the elderly. 00-38 Dealt with new US Supreme Ct. ruling on anon. tips and pat-downs Copy: City Manager Captain Widmer PCRB Guidelines for Approaching Victims of Crime Terry Stops and Illinois V Wardlow Adapted from Department of Justice manual First Response of Victims of Crime Adapted from Policy Review IACP In 1968 the United States Supreme Court in Terry v. The way people cope as victims of crime depend largely on their experiences immediately following the Ohio, held that police officers who have reasonable crime. As law enforcement officers, we are usually the suspicion that an individual has committed a crime, is committing a crime, or is about to commit a crime may first officials to approach victims. For this reason, we are in a unique position to help victims cope with the stop that individual for questioning and may, if circumstances warrant, frisk the individual for weapons immediate trauma of the crime and to help restore their sense of security and control over their lives, during the course of the stop. The legal requirement of "reasonable suspicion" has been the focus of Circumstances of the crime and the crime scene challenges under Terry stops. While reasonable detd'mine when and how the first responding officers suspicion is less than probable cause to arrest, there are able to address victims and their needs. Generally, must be objective, articdable facts that cumulatively officers must attend to many tasks, including assessing indicate that the individual may be involved in a crime. medical needs, determining facts and circumstances, This in turn means that the officer making the stop advising other personnel and gathering anddistributing must be able to enumerate exactly what those suspect information. Unless there is a life-safety issue, circumstances were that led the officer to believe that sometimes, as the first responding officer, you must criminal activity is afoot and that the person being delay your attendance to the victims. For example, if detained is involved in that activity. the crime is ongoing, or if the collection of evidence or investigation of the crime is extremely time-sensitive, Terry stops are differentiated from "consensual" the first responding officer may not be able to direct contact, as when an officer is involved in a "consensual" contact, the subject is free to walk away their immediate attention to the victims. However, as from the police. The courts have ruled that the police continued on page 2 have no authority to detain any citizen where there is no "reasonable suspicion" based upon objective, I N S I D E T H I $ I S $ U E articulable facts that the person is involved in a crime. In Illinois v Wardlow, officers were actively patrolling a I Approaching Victims of Crime high crime/narcotics trafficking area. When Wardlow '1 Terry Stops and Illinois v. Wardlow saw the officers he fled on foot. He was subsequently arrested. In the past, the Supreme Coud has held that 4 CALEA update persons were free to flee if the police did not have reasonable suspicion to detain them. In this case it was the Wardlow's action of fleeing from the police, while in a high crime zone which created the reasonable suspicion for the police to stop him. The continued on page 3 training I continued from page 1 soon as the most urgent and pressing tasks have been possible. addressed, officers will focus their attention on the · Ask victims about any speci~i~concer[~ or needs victims and their needs. At this point, how the officers they may have. :~-~-. -¢'~-' :~;~-,.~ respond to victims, explain the competing law ..... .i _~ .,.~-, ~ enforcement duties and work with the victims is very · Pro idea safety net for vl~s bef~.~e le,amng. important. Make telephone calls and pull~;i(~eiher p~ersog~[]'~r professional support for the vic_ti~. ~e vi~s By approaching victims appropriately, you will gain related informational pamphl-~')-~:';"~ludi~,~.~ ,,,, support their trust and cooperation. Victims may then be more services, victim compensatio)~, inforrn'~ion and willing to provide detailed information about the crime hotline numbers. ~ to officers and later to investigators and prosecutors, which, in turn, will lead to the conviction of more · Give victims, in writing, your name and information criminals. Remember that you are there for the victim, on how to contact you. You may wish to include the victim is not there for you. the case or incident number with the information. Encourage them to contact you if they have You can help victims by understanding the three major questions. needs they have after a crime ahs been committed: · The need to feel safe; Victims need to express their emotions · The need to express their emotions; Victims need to air their emotions and tell their story · The need to know "what comes next" after their after the trauma of the crime. They need to have their victimization, feelings accepted and their story "heard" by a non- Victims' need to feel safe judgmental listener. In addition to fear, they may have feelings of self-blame, anger, shame, sadness, or People often feel helpless, vulnerable and frightened denial. Their most common response is:" I don't by the trauma of their victimization. As the first believe this happened to me." Emotional distress may responding officer you can respond to victims' need to surface in seemingly peculiar ways, such as laughter. feel safe by following these guidelines: Sometimes victims feel rage at the sudden, · Introduce yourself to the victims by name and title, unpredictable, and uncontrollable threat to their safety Briefly explain your role and purpose, or Jives. This rage can even be directed at the people who are trying to help them. Yeu can respond to · Reassure the victim of their safety and your victims' need to express their emotions by following concern by paying close attention to your own these guidelines: words, posture, mannerism, and tone of voice. (remember verbal judo, your non-verbals carry · Avoid cutting off victims' expression of their more weight than your verbal cues) emotions. · Notice victims' body language, and other non- , Ask victims to tell you in just a sentence of two verbals {verbal judo training). This can help you what happened. Ask if they have any physical understand and respond to what they are feeling injuries. Take care of their medical needs first, as well as what they are saying. · Offer to contact a family member, friend, or crisis · Assure victims that their emotional reactions to the counselor for victims, crime are not uncommon. Sympathize with the victims. · Ensure privacy during your interview. Conduct it in · Counter any self-blame by the victims. a place where victims feel secure. · Speak with the victims as individuals. Do not "just · Ask simple questions that allow victims to make take a report." Ask the victim how they are feeling. decisions, assert themselves and regain control · Let victims know you want to hear the whole story over their lives, including things they don't think are important. · To the extent possible, assure victims of the · Ask open-ended questions. Avoid questions that confidentiality of their comments whenever can be answered by yes or no. training 2 continued from page 1 court stated that while the presence in a high crime UPCOMING TRAINING area, or the fact that a person is fleeing from the police THIS IS A PARTIAL LISTING OF UPCOMING TRAINING THAT MAY BE does not constitute reasonable suspicion, taken in AVAILABLE. DO NOT CONSIDER THIS A POSTING. ANY LETTERS combination there was reasonable suspicion. SUBMITTED BASED ON THIS .WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED A Wardlow is a 5 - 4 and the court declined to create a REQUESTTOATTEND. "bright line" rule, which states that running from the police, in and of itself creates reasonable suspicion. TRAININO EVENT One thing that Wardlow does not hold is that officers PLACE NATL. GUARD ARMORY have reasonable suspicion to stop everyone who is DATE APRIL10-11 AND12-13 running away from them. It merely allows officers to Terrorism/Weapons of Mass Destruction consider the fact that the subject is running, along with Training Event other factors when determining if there is reasonable suspicion to detain a subject. PLACE TIFFIN GUN CLUB/CRPD RANGE DATE MAY 15-19 Additionally, Wardlow was a situation where the officer RangeWeek. was in uniform. It is unlikely that the decision would have been decided in this manner if the officer(s) were TRAINING EVENT in plain clothes or a non-traditional uniform and/or if PLACE MOLINE PD they initiated the contact from unmarked patrol car. DATE MAYt5-19ANDMAY22-26 I.e. is it reasonable for a person to flee from Police Cyclist training, unidentifiable people whom are attempting to stop TRAINING EVENT them. PLACE EAU CLAIRE, WI The officer must base all investigative stops on DATE MAY22-24 reasonable suspicion, that the person to be stopped MATAI conference/ACTARtesting, has committed is committing or about to commit a criminal act. Reasonable suspicion must be based on specific, articulable facts. What constitutes reasonable sus~picion is seldom provided by just one fact; rather its existence depends on the totality of the circumstances. These may include but are not limited to location, time, and behavior. While the decision in Wardlow is helpful, it is more of a clarification then an expansion of the officer's authoritv. THIS AND THAT Officer Singleman forwarded the following "reminder". Thanks From a recent incident in Wisconsin...the members of the CRT were down in a basement trying to control a subject. Two officers not involved in the incident and removed from the scene were "chatting" about the incident on their data terminals .... #1 "1 guess they're gassing the beck out of him and he still won't come out." #2 "Is he still alive?" #1 "1 hope not." Of course these messages were retrieved and are currently being used by the family in the civil suit, with an atty. for the family saying the "the information would be fodder to show the department's "cowboys and Indians" attitude toward the standoff." Bottom line,..Anything you send from your data terminal is retrievable. If the message you are about to send is not something you would be willing to state verbally in a crowd or court; perhaps you had better reconsider sending. Recently there have been instances where there have been holds put on impounded v~les fo roof-~ current registration. While current registration is required to operate a vehicle on public highway; thi§'jn and~: itself is not grounds for placing a hold on the vehicle. Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going, Unknown ' ..... training 3 ~> '~ Continued from pg. 2 · Show that you are actively listening to the victims arraignment of a suspect. through your comments, facial expressions and · Tell victims about subsequent law enforcement body anguage. (once again VJ) interviews or other kinds of interviews they can · Avoid interrupting victims while they are telling expect. their story. · Discuss the general nature of any medical forensic · Repeat or rephrase what you think you heard the examinations the victim will be asked to undergo and the importance of these examinations for law victims say. I.e. "Let's see if I understood you correctly." enfomement. Victims need to know "What Comes Next" after their · Explain what specific information from the crime victimization reports will be available to news organizations. Discuss the likelihood of the media releasing this Victims often have concerns about their role in the information. investigation of the crime and in the legal proceedings. · Counsel victims that lapses of concentration, They may also be concerned about issues such as media attention or payment for health care or property memory losses, depression and physical ailments damage. You can help relieve some of their anxiety by are normal reactions. Encourage them to telling victims what to expect in the aftermath of the reestablish their normal routines as quickly as crime. This will also help prepare them for upcoming possible. stressful events and changes in their lives. You can · Give victims literature listing resoumes available respond to victims' need to know about what comes for help and information. next after their victimization by following these · Ask victims whether they have any questions. guidelines: Encourage victims to contact you if they have · Briefly explain law enforcement procedures for questions or need additional assistance. * tasks such as the filing of your report, the investigation of the crime, and the arrest and March Training -~ CALEA UPDATE At this time we are in compliance with approx. 310 of Member(s) Training Hfs the 439 CALEA standards. There are an additional 75 standards that are somewhere in the review 50,51 Interview/Interrogation 16 process. This leaves 54 standards that have not yet 88,99 Discipline 24 been addressed. 98 Rapid Deployment Inst. 8 During March, G/O 99-05, Use of Force and G/O 99- 04, Canine Operations have been reviewed. They 82,90 Natl. Traffic Safety Conf. 24 will be reissued in April under the new prioritization format. Use of Force will obviously be a red and 90 Governor's Traffic Safety Conf. 16 Canine will be reissued as a green. 95,97 Missing Children Homicide 8 An order regarding body armor has been circulated 16 SRT Situational Training 8 for comment/review. It requires that officers electing not to wear the armor take it with the~r~ in their 15SRT Firearms Training 8 vehicle. (Note: This is not intepr~ed to ~an that patrol officers may leave their '~t,~ th~trunk of All WT #s 00-08,37,28,36 their assigned vehicle. They will~:~e~_d to t_~,ke i~d~ 23 Bomb Disposal Update 8 with them each day.) It has genera.ted! con'~ersati~ If you have any strong feelings;-.get the[z~ to !j_~Le, 47 Sworn FATS .25 ASAP. 33,17,55 Motor Vehicle Theft 8 DATE: March 6th, 2000 TO: Commanders (Pass on to all officers) FROM: k.hurd SUBJECT: Watch Training This week's watch training deals with residential burglaries and G/O 99-02 Open Door Response. If there are any questions, officers should refer to the order in its entirety. Also officers are to consider their~ options when meeting a potential suspect while responding to the scene. Th~ key consideration is that the initial officer is on scene with a broken window and there are no other units immediately available. Cc: Chief Winkelhake Capt. Hamey Capt. Widrner Watch Training 00-08 '? ~ ~ ~ Residential Burglary c3 ~ Scenario - It is 22:04 and you are dispatched to a single family residence rof~..-a,.su~ct looking in windows about 10 minutes ago. The caller is a neighbor who st~/e~'ihat ;the residents are out of town for the weekend. There is no physical description av~fflable. C/-Ou are responding as the second unit. The first responding unit advises that the window on the patio door had been shattered, it is unknown if there is anyone inside the house. There are no other units available to respond, As you approach the area you observe a subject carrying a backpack walking quickly away from the area. You decide to ... Critical Issues (Supervisors discuss with officers possible options) As the second responding unit should you continue the response to back the initial unit and call for the next available unit to attempt to locate the person leaving the area or, stop the subject leaving the area leaving the initial officer alone at the scene. In the absence of the residents, what criterion determines the decision to search? G/O CPS 08.3 ALARM / OPEN DOOR RESPONSE is as follows: 1. If a property representative is not available and there is a reasonable basis on which to conclude that an emergency threat to persons and/or property exists, a supervisor may authorize a warrantless entry and search by officers. In the absence of such circumstances, any search must be pursuant to a warrant. 2. When a determination to search is made, ~ith or without contacting a property representative, a supervisor should be present at the scene. 3. When a determination is made to search the property, officers should consider requesting an available canine team in assisting in the search. All use of canine teams shall comply with canine polices and procedures. 4. If it is determined that a search will be conducted, officers shall identify themselves as members of the Iowa City Police Department prior to entry. If exigent circumstances exist, this notification may be waived by the supervisor on the scene. Discussion Would there be a difference if the complainant advised that the occupants of the house were home'7 If the subject leaving the area had a fresh cut on their arm? DATE: March 20th, 2000 TO: Commanders (Pass on to all officers) FROM: k.hurd SUBJECT: Watch Training 00-19 This week's watch training deals with "emancipated" juveniles. This training is based on a situation, which arose several months ago when a parent was informed that since the child was" emanci~o~ated" the options available to the parent were limited. As covered in the WT, just because a juvenile is living independently does not necessarily mean the parents have waived their rights or are free from their responsibilities. This training was developed in conjunction with Juvenile Probation and the County Attorney's office. Cc: Chief Winke]hake Capt. Harney Capt. Widmer hT i i g0028 ~ Watc ran n - .-_- ''Emancipated Juventles :~' Scenario- You are called to a disturbance at a residence. Upon your arrival y .~..~'di~Cov~ that the resident is a 17 year old male; There is alcohol present and the ~nt identified as having damaged a neighbors property. While speaking with the j~lle states that he is "emancipated". You decide to file the appropriate criminal char~. Critical Issu~ - What is an "emancipated juvenile"? In Iowa, there is no such thing as an emancipated juvenile, unless he/she is legally ma~ied. Until they reach the age of 18, a parent, governmental agent, or organization is responsible for the juvenile. While the tern emancipated juvenile appears in chapter 232 of the Code of Iowa, it is referring to a m~i~ juvenile of~a juvenile whose original residence is out of state and who have been "emancipated" by that state. ~ you have a juvenile with documentation indicating that they are legally emancipated from another state you should contact the Juvenile Probation or County Atty.'s office for advice on how to proceed. What should officers do when they deal with a juvenile who is living independently? Officers should dete~ine who the responsible adult is. It may be the parent if the move w~ mutually agreeable, i.e. attending UI; it may be a Probation Officer; DHS c~eworker; or Organization. When filing criminal charges they go on the juvenile form and the responsible party needs to be advised and receive a copy of the charge. NOTE: Even if a child is living independently the requirements for custodial inte~ogation of juveniles still apply; i.e. 15 or under n~d parental consent; 16 or older need good faith effo~ to contact a parent or guardian. Discussion - '" Often times the te~ "emancipated juvenile" is used when a juvenile is living on their own. In Iowa they may live independently if it is mutually agreeable with the juvenile and their parent(s). This does not relieve the parent of responsibility or liability. It also does not give the juvenile the option of "signing themselves off" on the juvenile form. If the child is living away, against the wishes of their parent(s) they are a runaway. (This of course does not apply to a legal placement) If the juvenile is living away from home because they are in fear, this may be a C~A . situation. In instances where the juvenile states "my parents kicked me out", officers should check with the parents to find out what the status is. [n most cases this is a situation where the child has elected not to follow the roles set out by the parent. In this situation if the parents decline to take the child back or the child refuses to return under the parents conditions, officers should make arrangements to place the child in a shelter and make the appropriate referrals. In instances where a parent refuses to take a child back they should be advised that they are civilly responsible for the child's acts until the child turns 18 or there has been a legal termination of the parental righls and placement arrangements made for the chil& ,"- Ce IOWA CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT TRAINING BULLETIN 00-20 DATE: March 9th, 2000 TO: Commanders (Pass on to all officers) FROM: k.hurd SUBJECT: Watch Training Attached is a WT for computer Iogoff. Apparently this hasn't been happening prior to shutdown and has caused some confusion. Merely powering down the system will not log an officer off the "MDT" sys. t~em. Also at approx. 15:00~day they will be changing the automatic Iogoff feature from 5 hours to 2 hours. I.e. If an officer signs on at the beginning of his/her watch and then walks the plaza for 3 hours, when they return to their car, they will be logged off the system and will need to sign on again. CC: Chief Winkelhake Capt. Hamey Capt. Widmer Watch Training 00-37 Laptop/MDT Computer Shutdown/Logoff Scenario - It is the end of my watCh, I want to go home but first I need to LOGOFF the "MDT" laptop computer system. Critical Issues - While officers have been good about powering off the in-car computers, there have been some problems with officers not logging off their in-car laptops prior to "powering" down. When this is not done it can cause confusion in communications as it shows an officer currently on duty and potentially available for calls. What do I need to do to properly logoff and power down? Discussion - Here is the proper sequence for logging off the "MDT" system. · Press the "Status" button (Fl) in the upper right corner of the Vision Mobile window. If this window has been minimized, you will need to go to the task bar and maximize the window. · From the Status bar, press the "Logoff" button. This will bring up the Iogin/Iogoff dialogue box. · In the Iogin/Iogoff dialogue box, press the "End of Tour" button. The software should respond by saying "End of tour." · After you have logged off the mobile switch (End of Tour), press the "Exit System" button. This will close the mobile software. · Before shutting down the laptop, you should close any other program you may be in. · From the task bar, press the "Start" button and choose "Shutdown" · When the shutdown dialogue box comes up, oheck to be sure that the top choice "Shutdown Computer" is selected and click OK. Additionally the system currently has an automatic Iogoff programmed in at the 5 hour mark. This is being changed to 2 hours. This means that once you sign on, if you have no activity on your "terminal" for 2 hours, the system will automatically log you off and you will need to log on again to access the system. For questions or concerns contact: Leigh Sloan Programmer/Analyst Business Phone: 319.356.5420 Business Fax: 319.356.5009 IOWA CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT TRAINING BULLETIN 00-22 DATE: March 27th, 2000 TO: Commanders (Pass on to all officers) FROM: k.hurd SUBJECT: WT 00-20 Financial ExPloitation This week's watch training deals with financial exploitation of the elderly. It is from the Iowa Dept. of Elder Affairs Consumer Protection and Advocacy Unit and was forwarded by Officer Shaffer. Thanks for the assist. Cc: Chief Winkelhake Capt. Hamey Capt. Widmer Watch Training 00 36 '~. ~-.~ - ~ Financial Exploitation Scenario - An elderly gentleman, Bob, hved in his own home and was mentally.~giI. did, however, have difficulty moving about. With this physical limitation, B~ relie~ upon friends to assist as they could. One friend became his power of attorney. evening, Bob fell and was taken to the hospital and had to stay in hospital for several weeks. His friend cleaned out Bob's checking and savings account by presenting ,t~,,e, power of attorney documents to bank personnel. Critical Issues - Financial exploitation is the "act or process of taking unfair advantage of.a. depedidant adult or dependent adult's physical or financial resources for one's own personal or pecuniary profit, without the informed consent of the dependent adult, including theft, by the use of undue influence, harassment, duress, deception, false representation or false pretenses." Code of Iowa 235B.2. Studies have shown that in almost cases of financial exploitation of the elderly, the culprit is not the slick salesman or the unscrupulous investment advisor. The shocking truth is that the exploiter is usually a relative, friend or caregiver in whom the elderly person has placed trust and confidence. Discussion - Financial exploitation can range from armed robbery of the elderly by their loved ones to theft of their personal possessions, unfulfilled promises of lifetime care in exchange for deeding over assets, to exotic schemes to defraud them of literally anything of value. Listed below are indicators of financial abuse: · Inaccuracy, confusion or lack of knowledge of finances · Disparity between income/assets and lifestyle or living arrangement · Caretaker expresses unusual interest in the amount of money being expended for the care of the dependent adult · Unpaid bills when resources should be adequate · Signature's on checks do not match the dependent adults signature · Unusual activity in the dependent adult's bank account · Dependent adult tums financial affairs to someone in exchange for lifelong care and then does not have the basic necessities such as food and shelter ,, Caretaker begins to handle the dependent adult's affairs without his/her consent or without legal relationship with the dependent adult (e.g. Power of attorney or conservatorship) The effects of financial exploitation can mean more than a lack of funds to dependent adult. Financial exploitation can directly impact quality of care depriving victims of the means to access medical treatment and medications, proper nutrition and shelter. For additional information contact the Iowa Dept. of Consumer Protection. 515-281-5187. IOWA CITY POLICE DEPARTMENT TRAINING BULLETIN 00-24 DATE: March 30th, 2000 TO: Commanders (Pass on to all officers) FROM: k.hurd SUBJECT: WT 00-23 Anon. Tip/Pat-down Attached is the WT for the week of 04/03. Yes I know it's early. This is a US Supreme Court ruling which came out Tues. and states that the pat-down of a subject based solely on an anonymous tip~ is unconstitutional. I have the complete decision in my office if anyone is int~i'ested. Cc: Chief Winkelhake Capt. Harney Capt. Widmer g 00 Watch Trainin -38 Anon. Tip/Pat-down Scenario - After an anonymous caller reported to the Miami-Dade Police black male standing at a particular bus stop and wearing a plaid shirt was ca~y~hfg officers went to the bus stop and saw three black males, one of whom, respo~6~ was wearing a plaid shirt. Apart from the tip, the officers had no reason to suspect an~c~f the three of illegal conduct. The officers did not see a firearm or observe any unusual movements. Critical Issues - Does the existence of an anonymous tip provide sufficient "Reasonable Suspicion" for an officer to detain a subject based solely on the tip? If the officer detains the subject, would the officer be justified in conducting a pat-down of the subject based solely on the anonymous tip? Discussion - SUPREME COURT OF THE UNITED STATES FLORIDA v. J. L. No. 98m1993. Argued February 29, 2000-Decided March 28, 2000 One of the officers frisked J. L. and seized a gun from his pocket. J. L., who was then almost 16, was charged under state law with carrying a concealed firearm without a license and possessing a firearm while under the age of 18. The trial court granted his motion to suppress the gun as the fruit of an unlawful search. The intermediate appellate court'reversed, but the Supreme Court of Florida. quashed that decision and held the search invalid under the Fourth Amendment. HeM: An anonymous tip that a person is carrying a gun is not, without more, sufficient to justify a police officer's stop and frisk of that person Apart from the tip, the officers had no reason to suspect any of the three of illegal conduct. The officers did not see a firearm or observe any unusual movements. Apart from the tip, the officers had no reason to suspect any of the three of illegal conduct. The officers did not see a firearm or observe any unusual movements. An officer, for the protection of himself and others, may conduct a carefully limited search for weapons in the outer clothing of persons engaged in unusual conduct where, inter alia, the officer reasonably concludes in light of his experience that criminal activity may be afoot and that the persons in question may be armed and presently dangerous. Terry v. Ohio, 392 U.S. 1., 30. Here, the officers' suspicion that J. L. was carrying a weapon arose not from their own observations but solely from a call made from an unknown location by an unknown caller. The tip lacked sufficient indicia of reliability to provide reasonable suspicion to make a Terry stop: It provided no predictive information and therefore left the police without means to test the informant's knowledge or credibility. See Alabama v. White, 496 U.S. 325~, 327. The contentions of Florida and the United States as amicus that the tip was reliable because it accurately described J. L.'s visible attributes misapprehend the reliability needed for a tip to justify a Terry stop. The reasonable suspicion here at issue requires that a tip be reliable in its assertion of illegalityi not just in its tendency to identify a determinate person. This Court also declines to adopt the argument that the standard Terry analysis should be modified tO license a "firearm exception," under which a tip alleging an illegal gun would justify a stop and frisk even if the accusation would fail standard pre-search reliability testing. The facts of this case do not require the Court to speculate about the circumstances under which the danger alleged in an anonymous tip might be so great- e.g., a report of a person carrying a bomb-as to justify a search even without a showing of reliability. 727 So. 2d 204, affirmed. Ginsburg, J., delivered the opinion for a unanimous Coup. Kennedy, J., filed a concurring opinion, in which Rehnquist, C. J., joined. Apart from the tip, the officers had no reason to suspect any of the three of illegal conduct. The officers did not see a firearm or observe any unusual movements. Observation: While the officers may be justified in making contact with the individual, the detaining of the subject based solely on an unsubstantiated, anonymous tip would not be appropriate; making contact with the person where the subject is free to go and requesting identification may be appropriate. During this period the officer may develop information which could lead to reasonable suspicion. (I.e. while getting ID the officer observes a handle of a gun, or the informant or seqond party comes forward and identifies him/herself to the police and provides information) Complete decision available in T/O office. CD