Metropolitan Police Department Washington D.C.

Subject:

The Washington Area Law Enforcement System (WALES)

Series    Number  Change

302       06

Effective Date

April 30, 1992

Revision Date

*

 

 

 

 

 

 

The purpose of this order is to establish policies, procedures, and responsibilities for members utilizing the WALES information system. This order consists of the follow­ing parts:

 

PART I    Responsibilities and Procedures for Members of the Department

 

A.   Definitions.

B.   Policy.

C.   General.

D.   Accountability.

E.   Security.

F.   Validation.

 

PART II   Responsibilities and Procedures for Special Assignment                  Personnel

 

A.   Station Personnel.

B.   Wales Security Officer.

C.   Desk Lieutenant, Criminal Investigations Division.

 

PART III Responsibilities and Procedures for Supervisory and Command             Personnel

 

A.   Commanders and Directors.

B.   Director, Data Processing Division.

C.   Director, Communications Division.

D.   Director, Identification and Records Division.

E.   Commander Criminal Investigations Division.

F.   Commander, Youth Division.

G.   Director, Property Division.

H.   Director, Intelligence Division

I.   Watch Commanders, Patrol Operations Bureau and Criminal      Investigations Division.

J.   Watch Commander, Communications Division.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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PART I

 

A.   Definitions.

     The following definitions and terms are referenced and applicable to      this General order:

 

1.              WALES Washington Area Law Enforcement System: A regional police information system which, through the use of a computer, serves the Washington, D.C., Metropolitan Area. The system pro­vides data on motor vehicles, wanted persons, and stolen articles.

 

2.              RAIN - The Regional Arrest Information Network: A computer ex­change system in which participating law enforcement agencies enter arrest information into a data base that may be accessed via tele­phone modem. The information entered includes an arrested subject’s name, address, vehicle identification, race, sex, date of birth, height, weight, date of arrest, charges, local case numbers, and the arresting officer’s name and telephone number. Only data concerning arrests for homicide, rape, abduction, felonious assault, robbery, concealed weapons, stolen vehicles, burglary/commercial, burglary/residential and drug sale/manufacture are stored in the data base. After five (5) days, this information is purged.

 

3.              NCIC - National Crime Information Center: A computer network administered by the FBI.

 

4.              NLETS - National Law Enforcement Telecommunications System: A nationwide computer message switching system which allows access from WALES to other state computer networks.

 

5.              APS - Automated Personnel System contains personnel information of employees of the Metropolitan Police Department.

 

6.              Authorized Person - Any law enforcement officer or member of this department having a legitimate need for WALES information.

 

7.              HIT - Identifies a response to any inquiry with information that a person or property is wanted.

 

8.              911 - A self-explanatory set of instructions on what is contained in WALES, and how to retrieve it,

 

9.              ADM - A reference guide for users of the system which provides information about such things as embassies, hotels, and government buildings.

 

10.         PROMIS - Prosecutor’s Management Information System: A computer system designed for use by U.S. Attorneys and Judges.

 

 

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11.         HELP - A set of instructions detailing what data is available through the U.S. Attorney’s Office computerized PROMIS system.

 

12.         CRT - Cathode Ray Tube. Terminology used to describe the WALES terminal.

 

13.         Monitor - a video display appearing in color or monochrome.

 

14.         WALES Terminal or Micro Computers with emulation capabilities -Devices connected to the WALES system that are located in all district headquarters, police headquarters, and at police department headquarters in the jurisdictions surrounding Washington, D.C. The majority of terminals are Video Display/Keyboard units:

 

15.         Demand Deployment System (DDS) - Provides command officials with the current deployment schedule of Patrol Operations Bureau organiza­tional elements and the Criminal Investigations Division.

 

16.         Validation - Validation obliges the originator, (ORl),i.e., agency con­tributing the record, to confirm that the record is complete, accurate, and still outstanding or active. Validations are accomplished by reviewing the original entry, current supporting documents, by recent consultation with the complainant, prosecutor, court, motor vehicle registry files or other appropriate sources of information. In the event the ORI is unsuccessful in its attempt to contact the complainant, the entering authority must make a determination, based on the best information and knowledge available, whether or not to retain the original entry in the file.

 

B.   Policy.

 

1.   The Washington Area Law Enforcement System (WALES) provides timely and accurate information, which enables members using the system to efficiently accomplish their mission.

 

2.   The information provided by WALES shall be for legitimate law enforcement purposes and is restricted to those persons responsible for the administra­tion of justice.

 

3.   WALES is designed to enable the user to have ease of access to operational/managerial information and frequent use of the system by all users is encouraged.

 

4.   Information from RAIN shall be made available upon request to investigative personnel of this department.

 

 

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C.   General

 

1.   All members shall familiarize themselves with WALES and the information files contained in the system.

 

     a.   The various codes and instructions on the use of WALES are      available at each terminal.

 

     b.   The simple entry of 911”, ADM, or HELP will provide the      user with an index of what is in WALES.

 

2.   In order to prevent overloading of WALES with unnecessary inquiries, members shall make only those requests necessary to perform legitimate law enforce­ment functions.

 

3.   Anyone authorized to use WALES is required to use his/her badge number or civilian ID number when making any WALES inquiry.

 

     a.   Under no circumstances shall a member provide a badge      number other than his/her own.

 

     b.   Civilian employees shall identify themselves by using their      Identification Badge Number preceded by an ax- for the      purpose of complying with this section.

 

     c.   Failure to comply with this requirement shall result in      disciplin­ary action.

 

4.   Members requiring large volumes of information such as statistical printouts or bulk information shall make a request, with the approval of an official of their element, to the Director, Data Processing Division. Information pertaining to this procedure may be obtained from the Management and Liaison Branch, Data Processing Division.

 

5.   When a member requests a WALES inquiry by police radio, he/she shall provide all available information and specify the service required.

 

6.   Members shall not, under any circumstances, attempt to disconnect, reconnect, move or repair any piece of data processing equipment. This shall include the turning on or off of the CRT Display, printer, or other pieces of data processing equip­ment.

 

7.   In the event a terminal malfunctions, this situation shall be brought to the attention of the station clerk. Under no circumstances shall any member, except Data Processing Division personnel, attempt repairs or contact the manufacturer’s repair service directly.

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8.   A HIT on a WALES record, indicating an outstanding warrant on file, is probable cause to arrest and detain.

 

     a.   Members shall exercise reasonable diligence to ensure that      they are arresting the person designated in the warrant by      comparing the following:

 

(1)  name,

(2)  address,

(3)  date of birth,

(4)  social security number,

(5)  race,

(6)  height,

(7)  weight,

(8)  place of birth, and

(9)  any other identifying information.

 

b.   Members are further reminded that a misdemeanor warrant may not be executed more than one year after the date of issuance (D.C. Code 23-563).

 

9.   A “HIT” on an out-of-state NCIC record shall be verified with the entering agency prior to arrest, either by contacting the Telecommunications Branch and requesting that they contact the outside agency for verification or by contacting the outside agency directly.

 

10.  When a member receives a ‘HIT” on an out-of-state felony, he/she shall notify the Telecommunications Branch as soon as possible.

 

11.  Under no circumstances shall any member change, modify, alter or delete any record or information in WALES without the proper authority from the official in charge of the element responsible for the routine entry or maintenance of such information.

 

D.   Accountability

 

     1.   Members initiating requests through WALES and RAIN for                  information shall be held strictly accountable for the proper           use and disposition of the information obtained.

 

2.   Information from WALES, NCIC, RAIN, and NLETS shall be used for official legitimate law enforcement purposes only and shall not be given to persons outside the field of law enforcement. For the purpose of this order, the law enforcement field shall consist of any agency having primary responsibility for the administration of criminal justice and which allocates a substantial portion of its budget for this purpose in one or more of the following categories:

 

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a.   Arrest and/or prosecution,

b.   Adjudication,

c.   Administration of probation or parole, and

d.   Detention of subjects in the criminal justice process.

 

3.   Information requested by persons outside of the department, not in the field of law enforcement, may only be released in compliance with General Order 204.5 (Freedom of Information)

 

E.   Security.

 

1.   Members requesting information from WALES by police radio shall take reasonable precautions to prevent unauthorized persons from overhearing the information. (This shall not be construed so as to apply to situations, such as approved ride-alongs or prisoners in transport vehicles, in which it is difficult or impossible to reasonably prevent inadvertent disclosures.)

 

2.   No member shall provide, or cause to provide, to any unauthorized person the various codes used to make WALES inquiries. Any such person requesting this information shall be directed to contact the WALES Security Officer for a determina­tion of clearance.

 

3.   Members making inquiries or receiving information on the WALES or RAIN terminal(s) shall take extraordinary precautions to ensure that this information is not observable to unauthorized persons.

 

4.   Unless otherwise instructed, when a computer printout is no longer needed, the member who requested the printout shall be responsible for destroying it.

 

F.   Validation

 

1.   The MPD contributes records to the following files that are maintained within the National Crime Information Center computer system. These records are accessible from any terminal within the NCIC nationwide system.

 

a.   Wanted persons

b.   Missing persons

c.   Stolen securities: stocks, bonds, and currency

d.   Stolen guns

e.   Stolen vehicles; autos and planes

f.   Stolen license plates

g.   Stolen boats

h.   Stolen articles

 

 

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2.   The MPD has entered into a users’ agreement with the FBI/NCIC regarding the use of the NCIC computerized files and the submission of records into those files. As part of the users’ agreement, the MPD must adhere to certain records standards established by the Advisory Policy Board (APB) of NCIC. One quality control measure required by NCIC is the regular validation of computer records.

 

3.   The NCIC validation procedure is as follows:

 

a.   MPD will receive a computer tape on a monthly basis, listing all “active computer records”. A time limit of 45 days will be allocated to conduct the validation of these records. This will be a Continuing on-going process each month throughout the year.

 

b.   The certification form provided with the computer tape shall be returned to the FBI/NCIC, signed by the Director, Data Process­ing Division, the Control Terminal Officer for the District of Columbia, within 45 days.

 

c.   Direct contact, if possible, must be made with the complain­ant/victim (or insurance company if they are the current own­er/complainant) of the offense in order to ascertain the accura­cy of the entered data, i.e., is the entry correct, is the item/person still out and wanted/missing?

 

     d.   If unable to contact anyone related to the incident, a      determina­tion must be made whether or not to retain the      original entry in the file.

 

     e.   A PD Form 252 shall be prepared to document the action      taken on each report to include the following:

 

(1)  Date and time complaint was contacted;

(2)  Entry verified still outstanding;

(3)  Item/person recovered/located to this case;

(4)  Dates and times efforts were made;

(5)  Recommendation to:

 

(a)  Remove from system because information has not been verified.

(b)  Retain as a valuable criminal investigation lead.

(c)  Retain because of critical missing person.

 

4.   Forward all completed PD Forms 252 along with PD Form 33 (Valida­tion Certificate Form) to the Commanding Officer for his signature.

 

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5.   Return all completed PD Forms 252 relating to validation and PD Form 33, signed by the Commander, to the Director, Data Processing Division, within 10 working days of receipt.

 

PART II

 

A.   Station Personnel.

 

1.   Station clerks shall familiarize themselves with the procedures in the WALES and NCIC handbook relative to the available features and procedures of both systems.

 

2.   Station personnel shall assist members in making the various inquiries required, and shall not permit unauthorized persons to view computer printouts or CRT displays of WALES information.

 

3.   Members assigned to station duty shall be jointly responsible for security of the WALES terminals located within their stations, and shall not permit unauthorized persons access to these devices.

 

4.   Station clerks shall be responsible for ensuring that no information concerning the various WALES inquiry codes is in view or accessible to unauthorized persons, and that dissemination is limited to authorized personnel only.

 

5.   Should any terminal become inactive, the station clerk shall first check the electrical connection to ensure that the device is plugged in; the switch to ensure that the device is turned on; and the screen illumination switch to ensure that the screen is active. If all these checks are made and the device still does not operate, the station clerk shall contact the Computer Operations Branch, Data Processing Division.

 

6.   Station clerks working the day tour shall be responsible for maintain­ing the various supplies to ensure that the printing devices remain operational for all tours of duty.

 

7.   Station clerks shall be responsible for “Serving” warrants closed by arrest prior to the end of their tour of duty. For the purpose of this order, “Serving” means “making entries into WALES.”

 

B.   WALES Security Officer shall be responsible for:

    

     a.   Determining the degree of access to WALES that each of the                  various users of the system shall be granted. Access shall be            determined by a survey of the needs of the user, measured in               conjunction with the security requirements of the system;

 

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     b.   Maintaining the integrity of the system;

 

     c.   Periodically scanning the WALES transaction log and correcting               breaches or other misuses of the system;

 

     d.   Developing and implementing the validation process;

 

     e.   Making a printout listing of all reports in CCN order that are               to be validated upon receipt of a computer validation tape from               NCIC, and forwarding the list to the Director, Identification               and Records Division.

 

     f.   Reviewing all PD Forms 252 submitted for validation and                 notifying the appropriate bureau head of any missing reports.

 

g.              Ensuring that all computer records have been updated; and              

h.              Certifying to NCIC that all records have been validated, upon receiving the certification from the various commanders.

 

C.   Desk Lieutenant. Criminal Investigations Division

     shall be responsible for:

 

     1.   Maintaining a microcomputer which is interfaced with CJIS and           the RAIN host computer.

 

     2.   Assisting members in making various required inquiries and not               permitting unauthorized person(s) to view computer printouts

 

     3.   Providing printouts that will be available for pick-up each Mon­              day and Friday at 0900 hours.

 

4.              Securing the RAIN terminal and not permitting unauthorized person(s) access to the device.

 

5.              Ensuring that distributions are available for investigative units in each district as well as for the Narcotics and Special Investiga­tive Division, the Intelligence Division, the Internal Affairs Divi­sion, and the Criminal Investigations Division.

 

PART III.

 

A.   Commanders and Directors shall be responsible for:

 

     a.   The proper use of the WALES terminal(s) assigned to their                   organizational elements and for ensuring the proper training of

          their personnel in the use of such terminal(s).

 

     b.   The security of the WALES terminal(s) located within their                       element.

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     c.   Notifying the Director, Data Processing Division, whenever a           sworn or civilian member of their command who has been

          issued a WALES password leaves a job position due to:

 

          (1)  Re-assignment/Transfer,

          (2)  Separation from the department, or

          (3)  Administrative leave or Indefinite Suspension.

 

d.   Cause WALES security to be a frequent subject of roll call training within their element.

 

e.   Cause frequent inspection of the area surrounding computer terminals to ensure that security procedures are being complied with.

 

f.   Where applicable update for each tour of duty the deployment schedule. For example, if the tour of duty is 0700 - 1500 hours, the information shall be entered no later than 0700 hours. In the event that WALES is down at the time of the schedule update, the deployment information shall be telephoni­cally relayed to the Communications Division.

 

g.   Ensuring that, when it is determined that any data processing equipment must be relocated within their organizational ele­ment, a request is submitted to the Director, Data Processing Division. Upon approval of the request, the relocation of the equipment shall be accomplished entirely by members of the Data Processing Division or a manufacturer’s representative.

 

h.   Where applicable, District/Division Commanders shall establish procedures within their commands to implement the NCIC validation process.

 

B.   Director, Data Processing Division.

     The Director, Data Processing Division, shall be responsible for      approving or disapproving requests for relocation of data processing      equipment submitted by com­manders/directors.

 

C.   Director. Communications Division shall be responsible for ensuring:

 

     1.   The Operations Branch enters radio run information into WALES.

 

     2.   The Telecommunications Branch enters the following information               into WALES:

 

          a.   Lost, stolen, and recovered vehicles, boats, articles,                  guns, bicycles, and license plates;

          b.   Impounded, repossessed, and moved vehicles;

c.              All data pertaining to missing and located persons;

d.              Lookouts for and “attempts to locate” persons and

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          e.   Persons admitted to hospitals and the Medical Examiner’s               Office.

 

     3.   The person in charge of the Telecommunications Branch acts as           liaison with NLETS and NCIC for the purpose of securing criminal           history information.

 

D.   Director. Identification and Records Division shall be responsible:

 

1.   The Firearms Registration Section enters gun registration information into WALES.

 

2.   The Stolen Property Section:

 

     a.   Has responsibility for making quality control checks of      data being entered into WALES by the Telecommunications      Branch by comparing the computer entry with the contents of      the PD Forms 251, etc., for accuracy and completeness; and

 

     b.   Enters all recovered guns into the proper file.

 

3.   The Data Conversion Section updates criminal record information and enters identification index information into WALES.

 

4.   The Criminal Warrants Section enters:

 

     a.   Warrant information on United States District Court      warrants forwarded to this department for service.

 

     b.   Tracking information for the PD Form 26 (Record of Warrant      on File in Identification and Records Division Requiring      Service).

 

5.   The Modus Operandi Section modifies WALES identification records of individuals to indicate suicidal or dangerous tendencies and enters nicknames, aliases, and photographic data maintained in the WALES identification records.

 

6.   Copies of all reports bearing the CCN’s listed on the validation printouts are made and forwarded to the respective district of occurrence. Exceptions are as follows:

 

     a.   Missing person reports shall be forwarded to the Youth

          Divi­sion;

     b.   Cases investigated by Criminal Investigations Division      shall be forwarded to that element;

c.  Wanted Person File information shall be validated by the   Identi­fication and Records Division, along with the Warrant   Section, D.C. Superior Court; and

 

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     d.   If a report cannot be located, a notation shall be made on      the printout, and a memorandum listing all missing reports      shall be forwarded to the Director, Data Processing      Division.

 

E.   Commander. Criminal Investigations Division.

 

1.   The Major Violators Section updates and modifies information concerning offenders on probation and parole and tracks fugitive warrants in WALES;

 

2.   The Burglary, Arson, and Pawn Section enters and modifies informa­tion concerning pawned articles on a timely basis.

 

F.   Commander, Youth Division.

 

1.   The quality control of WALES/NCIC computer records pertaining to missing person records by:

 

     a.   Comparing all missing person reports with the WALES/NCIC      computer entries,

     b.   Verifying that the entry has been made/deleted; and

     c.   Ensuring that the entry is accurate.

 

2.   Ensuring that the Missing Persons Section maintains quality control of by this department into the NCIC Missing Persons File; and

 

3.   Ensuring that the Bicycle Section enters registration information into ensuring that: all records entered

 

G.   Director. Property Division shah be responsible for Entering:

 

     1.   Lost and stolen police department property into WALES and NCIC;

     2.   Issued service revolvers and badges into WALES/APS.

 

H.   Director. Intelligence Division.

     The Director, Intelligence Division, shall be responsible for      ensuring that the Security Officers Management Branch updates and      enters the WALES informa­tion pertaining to each individual      commissioned as a special police officer in the District of Columbia.

 

I.   Watch Commanders. Patrol Operations Bureau and Criminal      Investigations Division.

 

     1.   Update Demand Deployment System information for his/her element               within 30 minutes of the time a unit or section reports on duty               or off duty during his/her tour of duty; and

 

 

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     2.   Telephone the deployment information update, within the same           time frame as above, to the Supervisor’s Office, Communications               Division, whenever WALES is out-of-service.

 

J.   Watch Commander. Communications Division.

 

The watch commander, Communications Division, shall enter any pending deployment information received from organizational elements into DDS whenever WALES returns to service after having been out-of-service.

 

 

                                   

 

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