191 lines
8.7 KiB
Plaintext
191 lines
8.7 KiB
Plaintext
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June 1991
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MILITARY SUPPORT TO
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CIVILIAN LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES
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By
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R. Barry Cronin
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Major
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U.S. Marine Corps Headquarters
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Washington, D.C.
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If a cross-section of police chiefs were polled concerning
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their understanding of the Posse Comitatus Act, most would
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likely answer that the act prohibits U.S. military personnel
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from performing civilian law enforcement functions. (1)
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However, to assume that Posse Comitatus prevents law enforcement
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agencies from obtaining any military support would be a mistake.
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In fact, several exceptions to the general prohibition exist,
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and civilian police organizations should not be reluctant to
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seek the military's help in certain circumstances.
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This article provides an overview of the type of military
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support available to civilian law enforcement agencies. It then
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describes briefly the procedures for requesting military
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assistance, depending on the type and amount of support desired.
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PERMISSIBLE DIRECT ASSISTANCE
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As a general rule, the Posse Comitatus Act restricts direct
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use of military personnel in civilian law enforcement
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operations. Direct assistance is defined as: 1) A search or
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seizure; 2) an arrest, apprehension, stop and frisk, or similar
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activity; or 3) the use of military personnel for surveillance
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or pursuit of individuals, or as undercover agents, informants,
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investigators, or interrogators. (2)
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Despite these restrictions, it is military policy to try to
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cooperate with civilian law enforcement officials to the maximum
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extent possible, depending upon national security and military
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preparedness, the tradition of limiting direct military
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involvement in civilian law enforcement activities, and the
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requirements of applicable law. (3) Even so, direct assistance
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is permissible when it is with the "...primary purpose of
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furthering a military or foreign affairs function of the United
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States, regardless of incidental benefits to civilian
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authorities." (4) The key is that direct assistance must
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support military interests. Police chiefs, especially those
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with jurisdictions near major military installations, should be
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aware of this important exception and of the various forms of
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military assistance available locally.
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TYPES OF AVAILABLE ASSISTANCE
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Military Working Dog Teams
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The most widely requested form of military assistance is
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the military working dog (MWD) teams, which are located at
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almost every major Department of Defense (DoD) installation in
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the United States. (5) Normally, military bases have both
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explosive and drug detector dog teams available for use by
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civilian law enforcement with the understanding that military
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commitments will usually take precedence over civilian requests.
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(6)
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Training
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Every year, scores of civilian police agencies take
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advantage of firing ranges, combat towns, and other military
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training facilities. Depending on the size of the military
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installation, these facilities can vary from a standard, small
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arms requalification range to a full-scale combat town where
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police tactical units can practice in a realistic, urban
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setting. There are also demolitions ranges, as well as training
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areas where teams can conduct a variety of outside exercises.
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Additionally, office spaces and buildings may be used for
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traditional classroom training. And, if available, military
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instructors may also be used to train civilian law enforcement
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personnel. (7)
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Expert Advice/Technical Assistance
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The military is authorized to provide expert advice to
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civilian law enforcement agencies. (8) There is no restriction
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on this kind of support so long as military personnel do not
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participate directly in civilian law enforcement activities.
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Equipment and Personnel
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Military equipment can be loaned to civilian law
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enforcement agencies on a temporary basis to support on-going
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operations and training. Approval for these requests is handled
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on a case-by-case basis. (9) In addition, personnel may also be
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requested in situations where it would be impractical from a
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cost or time perspective to train civilian personnel to operate
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and/or to maintain equipment. (10) For example, recently, a
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local police department requested assistance from a nearby
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Marine Corps base concerning a homicide case. Eleven Marines,
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using mine sweepers, were assigned to help the local police
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department conduct an area search for the homicide weapon. In
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this case, it would have been highly impractical to train local
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police department members on how to use mine sweepers properly.
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In such cases, however, service members operating or
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maintaining equipment should not be placed in positions where
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violations of the Posse Comitatus Act might occur.
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Emergency Situations
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In an emergency, civilian law enforcement authorities
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cannot waste time tracking down helicopters, dive teams, or
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explosive ordnance disposal (EOD) technicians. Fortunately, the
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military possesses a variety of capabilities to which a civilian
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law enforcement department may not have access. In fact,
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military search and rescue helicopters and military divers
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frequently aid civilian law enforcement in searches for boats
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and missing persons on oceans, lakes, or rivers. In addition,
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military EOD technicians regularly assist civilian law
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enforcement officials in ordnance recovery and disposal
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operations.
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HOW TO REQUEST ASSISTANCE
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There are various regulations regarding military support to
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civilian law enforcement agencies, and the level at which DoD
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approval is granted varies according to the amount and duration
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of the support desired. For example, in many cases, the base
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commanders can approve requests, while other requests must have
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higher approval. In addition, the military may require
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reimbursement for certain services. (11)
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However, civilian law enforcement officials need not be
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completely familiar with all of these regulations. The senior
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military law enforcement official stationed at each installation
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is the point of contact for these services and can provide all
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the necessary information regarding any rules or regulations.
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Law enforcement agencies near Army or Marine Corps installations
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should contact the Provost Marshal. Those agencies near Air
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Force bases should contact the Chief of Security Police, while
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requests for assistance from area naval bases should be directed
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to the Security Officer.
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CONCLUSION
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This article has briefly described a few of the exceptions
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to the Posse Comitatus Act with regard to civilian law
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enforcement requesting military assistance. Every year,
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hundreds of requests for assistance from civilian law
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enforcement are successfully supported by the U.S. military. As
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stated previously, routine requests can be approved locally, and
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civilian law enforcement administrators should contact their
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military counterparts about available support. The U.S.
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military stands ready to provide civilian law enforcement with
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whatever assistance it can, in accordance with the complex
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stipulations of Posse Comitatus. In many cases, all an agency
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has to do is ask.
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FOOTNOTES
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(1) The Posse Comitatus Act provides: "...whoever, except
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in cases and under circumstances expressly authorized by the
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Constitution or Act of Congress willfully uses any part of the
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Army or Air Force as a posse comitatus or otherwise to execute
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the laws shall be fined not more than $10,000 or imprisoned not
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more than two years or both." 18 USCA sec. 1385 (1984).
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(2) SECNAVINST 5820.7B (paragraph 9.a.(3)) March 28, 1988.
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(3) Ibid., paragraph 6.a.
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(4) Ibid., paragraph 9.a. (2).
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(5) 10 USCA sec. 374(b)(2) (1989).
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(6) Capt. James L. Setzer, "Bomb Dog Teams," FBI Law
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Enforcement Bulletin, July 1990, pp. 12-13.
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(7) 10 USCA sec. 373 (1989).
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(8) 10 USCA sec. 371-380 (1989).
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(9) Supra note 5.
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(10) 10 USCA sec. 372 (1989).
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(11) 10 USCA sec. 377 (1989).
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