The police or agency may be looking for information about a crime that has been committed or a suspect they are already investigating. In some situations, your obligation would be a one-time thing. If a law enforcement officer approaches you about being an informant, it is time to speak with an attorney. What Does it Really Mean to be a Confidential Informant? We will thoroughly review your case, discuss what kind of offer prosecutors may be willing to make, and advise you on the benefits and risks involved with being a confidential informant.Ĭontact us online or at (215) 839-9529 to schedule a time to talk. You need to be well aware of the risks and have any type of agreement thoroughly defined before you say yes or no.Īt Fienman Defense, we know how the Pennsylvania criminal process works and are here to protect you. If you are ever approached about being an informant, which is common in drug cases, or you believe you have information the police may want, always speak with an attorney first. Working with the police may not help like you think it will and can even put you at risk.
However, it is not always the best arrangement. If you become a confidential informant for a local, state, or federal law enforcement agency, you could have your charges dropped, or more likely, have them and the potential punishment reduced.īeing a confidential information can be helpful to your case. 18-6239, 11/18/19.A confidential informant is someone who trades information about illegal activity or helps law enforcement with making arrests for some type of benefit. Donald joined in the opinion.Ĭrawford was represented by Burdon & Merlitti in Akron, Ohio.
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Heard went on to provide more information about Crawford, including what car he drove and when and where he would sell drugs.Ĭrawford was ultimately sentenced to 216 months in prison, plus six years of supervised release.Ĭircuit Judges Alice M.
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Among other steps, the officers had Heard identify Crawford from a driver’s license photo and provide Crawford’s phone number to establish his credibility as an informant. The confidential informant, Jerry Heard, had informed the local police department that Crawford was dealing cocaine. “Adding in the fact that the key information disclosed by the informant proved to be credible, there were many reasons to deem the informant reliable, thereby justifying the warrants.” “Here, the informant’s reliability was confirmed both by law enforcement agencies and through the affiant officer’s own research,” Circuit Judge Chad A. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held. He challenged the search warrants for his home that led to his arrest, arguing that law enforcement failed to properly verify the credibility of the informant who tipped them off.Ĭrawford’s focus on trustworthiness and credibility of informants was right, but “he is wrong in his conclusion,” the U.S.
Richard Crawford was found guilty of distribution and possession charges. Search warrants that turned up evidence used to convict a man of drug trafficking charges were proper despite being based mostly on evidence provided by a confidential informant, the Sixth Circuit said.
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