Informants, Cooperating Witnesses, and Undercover Investigations

The use of informants has been described as the "black hole of law enforcement." Failures in the training of police officers and federal agents in the recruitment and operation of informants has undermined costly long-term investigations, destroyed the careers of prosecutors and law enforcement officers, and caused death and serious injuries to innocent citizens and police. In many cases, the events leading to disaster could have been avoided had the law enforcement agency followed the time-tested procedures examined in this book.

Informants, Cooperating Witnesses, and Undercover Investigations: A Practical Guide to Law, Policy, and Procedure, Second Edition covers every aspect of the informant and cooperating witness dynamic—a technique often shrouded in secrecy and widely misunderstood. Quoted routinely in countless newspaper and magazine articles, the first edition of this book was the go-to guide for practical, effective guidance on this controversial yet powerful investigative tool. Extensively updated, topics in this second edition include:



Sweeping changes in the FBI and ICE informant and undercover programs

New informant recruiting techniques

Reverse sting operations

Entrapment issues

Examination of recent high-profile cases where the misuse of informants resulted in lawsuits and legislation

The changing nature of compensation and cooperation agreements

Forfeiture, informants, and rewards

The management of controlled undercover purchases of evidence

Challenges posed by fabricated information, phantom informants and police corruption

Witness security measures

New whistleblower reward programs



Authoritative, scholarly, and based on boots-on-the-ground experience, this book is written by an author who has been a police supervisor, an informant recruiter and handler, an undercover agent, and an attorney. Supported by statutes, case law, and previously unpublished excerpts from law enforcement agency manuals, it is essential reading for every police officer, police manager, prosecutor, police academy trainer, criminal justice professor, and defense attorney.

This book is part of the Practical Aspects of Criminal and Forensic Investigations series.