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Mobile Data Devices, Think Before You Post

October 1, 2013
Martin Halloran SFPOA President

First of all, I will admit that I have not always embraced new technology that was introduced by the department over the years. Back at the old Mission Station, at 1240 Valencia St, I held on to my manual typewriter and submitted my typed reports until I was ordered to knock it off. If I were needed in court for a preliminary hearing, the ADA would just send me a page with the number 9, 10, 11, or 12 so I knew what courtroom I was needed in. If somebody wanted to communicate with me they would just page me to the land line telephone where they were and I would call to speak with them one-on-one. There was no texting, email, iPhones, Facebook, Twitter, or any other compact mobile devices that we are so accustom to using today.

Do not misunderstand me. Although I am slow on the uptake, at times, in the technological arena, I have seen firsthand during investigations where the use of mobile and video devices have assisted, expedited, and ensured convictions for some violent offenders. The continued advancement in this field will undoubtedly aid law enforcement for decades to come.

Along with these significant advances, we must keep in mind the responsibility we hold while using these devices during the course and scope of our duties. The Department has now entered into the era of not only issuing recruit officers their guns, handcuffs, and stars upon graduating from the Academy, but they are also issuing a department laptop and a smart phone. The convenience, the ease of use, and instant results from these electronic devices can lull us into a false sense of anonymity.

Do not fool yourself into thinking that what you text, email, or post while on duty, using a department issued device, is a private communication. This also applies to any Internet activity, voicemail, and telephone call-log on department devices. We are bound by rules and regulations in DGO 10.07, 10.08, and Operations Bureau Order 13-001 just to name a few. As civil servants working for the City and County of San Francisco, many, if not most, of our communications during the performance of our duties fall under section 67.1 of the Public Information and Public Records for the CCSF, which is also known as the San Francisco Sunshine Ordinance.

What message am I trying to send to you? Quite simply this; think before you post or before you hit that Send button. If what you communicate through ANY department device, while on duty, would not hold up during an IA investigation, then don't say it or send it. If it is something that you would not want to say to your seven-year-old child while you are reading them a bedtime story, or if it is something that you would not want to hear your spiritual leader read aloud from the pulpit on Sunday, then don't say it or send it. Once it is out there in cyberspace, it is almost impossible to recover or rescind. We are now sometimes left with only how can we defend it.

I am not saying that you have surrendered your First Amendment rights of free speech under the United States Constitution. To the contrary. Serving and protecting those in our community does not mean that we have vacated the rights that we, as police officers, are sworn to uphold. What I am saying is that the courts have already ruled on this issue and, in a nutshell, the Constitution does not grant you the right to be employed as a police officer, nor does it grant you the right to violate your agencies policies. Exercise your rights by using your personal computers and smart phones for those humorous antidotes. They will be just as funny.

I bring this to the attention of the membership since these devices are here with us today and are the wave of the future. Law enforcement associations, such as ours, throughout the country are now forced to deal with discipline issues surrounding the inappropriate use of these devices while members are on duty. As our department moves in the same direction of most departments in the country, the "Millennials" are the fastest growing segment of our agency. This group of officers --30 years of age or younger-- are extremely savvy with mobile devices. I know they have a strong grasp on the technology but sometimes the older cops just know when to say nothing or just don't respond to the text or the posting.

Don't let the social media -- which I have deemed the Facebook frenzy -- or the mobile madness of our millennium be a career killer. Think before you post.

Slainte!