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10 Fordham Urb. L.J. 497 (1981-1982)
Probable Cause Based on Inaccurate Computer Information: Taking Judicial Notice of NCIC Operating Policies and Procedures

handle is hein.journals/frdurb10 and id is 515 raw text is: PROBABLE CAUSE BASED ON INACCURATE COMPUTER INFORMATION: TAKING JUDICIAL NOTICE OF NCIC OPERATING POLICIES AND PROCEDURES I. Introduction Computer data banks increasingly have been used to supplement manual files as a means of storing criminal justice information. The most comprehensive computerized system is the National Crime Infor- mation Center (NCIC),' established in 1967.2 It is managed by the Federal Bureau of Investigation,3 but functions as a centralized com- puter bank for use by criminal justice agencies at the federal, state and local level.4 Among other functions, the NCIC is used by police agencies as an investigative tool, assisting in the determination as to whether an arrest should be executed.5 1. In 1974, the NCIC was accessible to 5,000 criminal justice agencies, housed approximately 2.5 million records, and handled approximately 60,000 inquiries daily. De Weese, Reforming Our Record Prisons: A Proposal for the Federal Regulation of Crime Data Banks, 6 RUT.-CAM. L.J. 26, 30 n.20 (1974). Today, the NCIC is accessible to approximately 60,000 criminal justice agencies. Telephone conversation with Jeremiah J. Smith, Assistant Section Chief, National Crime Infor- mation Center (Jan. 7, 1982). By 1981 the NCIC housed approximately 9.2 million records, NATIONAL CRIME INFORMATION CENTER, U.S. DEP'T OF JUSTICE, NCIC NEWS- LETTER 2 (Oct. 1981), and was handling approximately 300,000 transactions daily. Departments of Commerce, Justice, and State, the Judiciary and Related Agencies Appropriations for 1982: Hearings Before a Subcomm. of the House Comm. on Appropriations, 97th Cong., 1st Sess. 968 (1981) (statement of William Webster). 2. For a discussion of the origin and development of the NCIC, see De Weese, Reforming Our Record Prisons: A Proposal for the Federal Regulation of Crime Data Banks, 6 RUT.-CAM. L.J. 26 (1974). 3. The FBI manages the NCIC pursuant to authority given to the Attorney General's Office to acquire, collect, classify, and preserve criminal records for the official use of the federal government, the states, cities and other institutions, under 28 U.S.C. § 534(a) (1976), and delegated by the Attorney General under 28 C.F.R. § 0.85 (1980). 4. NCIC Operating Manual § 1.1, at Intro-1 (May 1, 1981). Examples of the state agencies comprising the NCIC are New York State Identification and Intelli- gence System (NYSIIS), California Justice Information System (CJIS), Law Enforce- ment Information Network (LEIN) (Michigan), Arizona Criminal Information Cen- ter (ACIC), and Florida Criminal Information Center (FCIC). The NCIC also includes control terminals at the city and metropolitan area level. See generally PRojEcT SEARCH, INTERNATIONAL SYMPOSIUM ON CRIMINAL JUSTICE INFORMATION AND STATISTICS SYSTEMS (1974), which discusses state and regional criminal justice information systems. 5. The NCIC also is used to store criminal histories and to assist in the location of missing persons. NCIC Operating Manual § 1.1, at Intro-2. (Nov. 1, 1979). 497

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