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Applicable To:  Division and section commanders and OPS and SES sworn employees

Approval Authority:  Chief Richard J. Pennington

Signature:  Signed by RJP

Date Signed:  1/22/09

1.               PURPOSE

To establish a policy for sworn employees assigned to the Special Enforcement Section (SES), the Office of Professional Standards (OPS) and others sanctioned by the Department to properly obtain, use, and surrender undercover Georgia driver’s licenses.

2.               POLICY

It is the policy of the Atlanta Police Department to review, and when appropriate, approve requests to the Georgia Department of Public Safety for APD sworn employees to obtain undercover Georgia driver’s licenses.

3.               RESPONSIBILITIES

3.1              The Criminal Investigations Division commander will coordinate the approval process for non-OPS employees’ requests to obtain undercover Georgia driver’s licenses.

3.2              The Office of Professional Standards commander will be responsible for evaluating and approving requests from employees assigned to OPS to obtain an undercover Georgia driver’s license and will keep confidential records on OPS employees holding undercover driver’s licenses.

3.3              Division, section and unit commanders will coordinate any other requests for undercover Georgia driver’s licenses through the Criminal Investigations Division. 

3.4              The Special Enforcement Section (SES) commander will establish confidential files and a database to record pertinent information on non-OPS sworn employees holding or utilizing undercover driver’s licenses. 

3.5              Unit supervisors will monitor all assigned employees that have undercover driver’s licenses.

3.6              All employees will adhere to this directive when requesting or possessing an undercover Georgia

                  driver’s license.

4.               ACTION

4.1              Determination of Eligibility

4.1.1           Only sworn employees assigned in an undercover capacity may be issued an undercover Georgia driver’s license.

4.1.2           Non-OPS sworn employees seeking undercover driver’s licenses will obtain a Request for Undercover Driver’s License Form (Form APD 320) from the SES commander or their designee.  Upon completion, the employee will forward the request to his or her immediate supervisor.

4.2              Request Procedures

4.2.1           The employee’s immediate supervisor will determine if there is a need for the employee to obtain an undercover driver’s license and note the reason(s) in the comment section on Form APD 320.  The immediate supervisor will approve or deny the request.

4.2.2           The employee’s immediate supervisor will ensure Form APD 320 is complete and forward it to the respective unit commander for approval.

4.2.3           The unit commander will make a recommendation for approval or denial to the requesting employee’s section commander.

4.2.4           Section commanders will make a recommendation and forward all approved request forms (Form APD 320) to the requesting employee’s division commander.

4.2.5           Upon the division commander’s approval, the division commander will forward the original Form APD 320 to the SES commander.

4.3              Issuance Of Undercover Driver’s Licenses

4.3.1           The SES commander or their designee will contact the requesting non-OPS employees to inform them to obtain and complete an Issuance of Undercover Driver’s License Form (Form APD 321).  Before the requesting employee can obtain Form APD 321, the SES commander must have an approved Form APD 320 from the requesting employee’s division commander. 

4.3.2           Requesting employees will take the original copy of Form APD 321 to the Georgia Department of Public Safety where he or she may be issued an “Undercover Georgia Driver’s License.”

4.3.3           The SES commander or their designee will place a copy of Forms APD 320 and APD 321 in a file on employees issued undercover drivers licenses.

4.3.4           Upon receipt of an undercover driver’s license, the employee will immediately provide a photocopy of the license to the SES commander or their designee.  The copy of the license will be placed in the employee’s personnel file.

4.3.5           Employees issued undercover driver’s licenses will utilize the licenses only in an official police capacity or investigation that operationally requires the use of undercover driver’s licenses.

4.4              Maintenance Of Undercover Driver’s Licenses

4.4.1           Requesting employees that fail to submit copies of their undercover and regular driver’s licenses to the SES commander or their designee upon their next scheduled shift will be required to immediately surrender their undercover driver’s license.

4.4.2           The SES commander or their designee will maintain a confidential database with all pertinent information on the requesting employee’s regular and undercover driver’s licenses.  This information should include the employee’s name, APD ID number, license numbers, address, race, gender, date of birth, height and weight, and the license class status.

4.4.3           The OPS commander will set up a separate confidential database and files similar to those required for the SES commander.  OPS employees will follow the same steps within their chain of command as described in this directive for issuance of undercover drivers licenses.

4.5              Separation or Transfer from Department or Unit

4.5.1           Undercover driver’s licenses will be surrendered immediately to the SES commander or their designee upon the employee’s transfer from his or her undercover capacity or separation from the Department.

4.5.2           The SES commander or their designee will cut the transferring or separated employee’s undercover driver’s license in half and then make a photocopy of the two halves and forward the two halves to the Georgia Department of Public Safety. The SES commander or their designee will then update the database to reflect the voiding of the undercover driver’s license.

4.5.3           The SES commander or their designee will continually update as appropriate the confidential database to reflect any change in the employee’s regular or undercover driver’s license.  The employee holding an undercover driver’s license has the responsibility to notify the SES commander or their designee in a timely manner of any such change. 

4.5.4           The Special Investigations Section commander will review the confidential database quarterly, to ensure that employees holding undercover driver’s licenses continue to be justified.

4.5.5           The Office of Professional Standards commander will adhere to all of the procedures described in section 4.5.

5.               DEFINITIONS

5.1              Undercover Georgia Driver’s License: A driver’s license issued in a false name by the Georgia Department of Public Safety to a sworn employee for use in an undercover capacity.

5.2              Requesting employee:  Sworn employees assigned to the Special Investigations Section (SES), to the Office of Professional Standards (OPS), or to any other appropriate APD unit, who are working in an undercover capacity sanctioned by the Department and who are requesting an undercover driver’s license or who hold an approved undercover driver’s license.

6.               CANCELLATIONS

                  APD.SOP.5031 “Undercover Driver’s License”, October 1, 2006

7.               REFERENCES

                  Form APD 320 Request for Undercover Drivers License

                  Form APD 321 Issuance of Undercover Drivers License