55E-Diplomat & Consular Notifications - 2019

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Policy & Procedure Page 1 of 7 Lexington Police Department Subject: Diplomat & Consular Notifications (Arrests, Detentions, Deaths & Serious Injuries of Foreign Nationals) Policy Number: 55E Accreditation Standards: Reference: 1.1.4 Effective Date: 11/1/15  New  Revised Revision Dates: 1/24/19 By Order of: Mark J. Corr, Chief of Police GENERAL CONSIDERATIONS AND GUIDLINES The obligations of consular notification and access are not codified in any federal statute. Implementing legislation is not necessary because executive, law enforcement, and judicial authorities can implement these obligations through their existing powers on the basis of the relevant international agreements and written guidance. Implementation may also be facilitated through issuance of internal directives, orders, or similar instructions by appropriate federal, state, and local officials. The Department of State strongly encourages all law enforcement agencies to develop standard operating procedures for complying with consular notification and access requirements. Such procedures help your agency avoid costly litigation and diplomatic complaints. It is the policy of the Lexington Police Department to comply with all United States treaty obligations on consular notification and access. The purpose of this policy is to provide written procedures on the arrest, detention, death or serious injury of foreign nationals. PROCEDURES A. Arrest or detention: Any arrest, detention, or other commitment to custody which results in a foreign national being incarcerated for more than a few hours triggers consular notification requirements. A brief traffic stop resulting in a citation or criminal application and release at the scene does not trigger such requirements. On the other hand, requiring a foreign national to accompany a law enforcement officer to a place of detention may trigger the consular notification requirements, particularly if the detention lasts for a number of hours or overnight. The longer a detention continues, the more likely it is that consular notification requirements are triggered.