Publisher's Synopsis
Many lawyers who are experienced in the customary rules and procedures in civil case discovery struggle needlessly, and in a manner that is time-consuming and unduly costly to all parties, regarding discovery related to peace officer personnel file information: this appears to be the result of the fact that many practitioners do not understand the unique protections that are afforded to law enforcement officers when it comes to information that is typically stored by a public entity in the officers' personnel files. This article conducts an overview of the fundamental principles and issues that typically arise where civil discovery intersects with the peace officer personnel information privileges of California law. In addition to the primer on the scope and discovery mechanisms at issue in civil cases involving peace officers, this article also addresses some emerging trends in discovery related to peace officer personnel record information - including developing trends where the peace officer is in an adversarial position to the public entity that is the custodian of the officers' personnel file information - as well as the impact and overlap of the California-law peace officer record privileges upon federal privileges and discovery in federal cases.
