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TAMPA -- Known as Rachel's Law in honor of slain police informant Rachel Hoffman, legislation about the use and control of confidential informants goes into effect Wednesday. In Hillsborough County, supervisors whose detectives and deputies handle confidential informants will attend an eight-hour training seminar about the law Wednesday. "While the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office has had a policy in place for years, the new legislation adds new safeguards designed for the protection of the identity of the informant as well as some considerations that the agency must weigh prior to activating an informant," a sheriff's office news release states. "The policy is being updated accordingly." Tampa police began training with Rachel's Law in mind about three months ago, in anticipation of legislation passing, police spokeswoman Laura McElroy said. With Hoffman's parents looking on, the legislation was signed by Gov. Charlie Crist last month. Hoffman, a 23-year-old graduate of Countryside High School in Clearwater, was slain while helping Tallahassee police. She was recruited by authorities after being caught with marijuana and pills not prescribed for her. She was shot to death in a botched drug sting that began May 7, 2008, and two men are charged in her death. Her parents pushed for the legislation. "Being a confidential informant is, obviously, a very dangerous, challenging thing to do. It takes courage to do it," Crist said during the bill signing at the state Capitol. The bill "makes it more safe for people to be able to cooperate with law enforcement officials across our state," Crist said. At the bill signing event, Hoffman's father, Irv Hoffman, wiped away tears and said later that he was "honored" the bill passed. "We hope that it will save a lot of other people through the years," he said. The new law will require police departments to train officers who recruit confidential informants, tell informants they can't promise a reduced sentences in exchange for their work and allow informants to consult with a lawyer if they ask. Hoffman's parents had wanted even stronger language in the bill, including barring police departments from using people in substance-abuse programs as drug informants and those who are nonviolent in work involving suspects with violent histories. Both provisions would have excluded Hoffman "" a nonviolent offender in treatment "" from the undercover operation she participated in. Police departments opposed those provisions, saying investigators need flexibility to make judgments on a case-by-case basis. Hoffman's parents said they will return to the Legislature to ask for even tougher provisions. Before the drug deal that led to Hoffman's death, she called investigators to tell them the location of the deal had changed. Investigators explicitly told her to stay at a park location set up by narcotics officers, Tallahassee police spokesman David McCranie said in May 2008. Instead, he said, Hoffman hung up. Hoffman violated protocol when she left the location secured by police for the deal, McCranie said. Police never saw her alive again. Her body was found in rural Taylor County, southeast of Tallahassee. After her death, Tallahassee police defended their use of
Hoffman as a confidential informant. Her family and friends said
police put an unprepared young woman into a dangerous situation. |
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