Undercover Detectives and Entrapment in Drug Crimes: What to Know

Can an undercover detective actually make a lawful arrest, or do these arrests always involve entrapment? There are many myths and misconceptions about the affirmative defense of entrapment and how it actually works, especially when undercover detectives or other undercover members of law enforcement are involved. In short, an arrest involving an undercover detective or undercover law enforcement officer is not, in itself, entrapment. Instead, there are specific elements of an entrapment defense that you will need to prove in order to use this affirmative defense in your case. Our Indianapolis criminal defense attorneys can explain in more detail.

Specific Elements of an Entrapment Defense 

When can a person raise the affirmative defense of entrapment following an arrest involving an undercover police officer? To be clear, “entrapment” does not merely mean that a police officer who was undercover was involved in the alleged crime. Under IC 35-41-3-9, both of the following must be true in order for an entrapment defense to be a possibility:

• 1) The prohibited conduct of the person was the product of a law enforcement officer, or his agent, using persuasion or other means likely to cause the person to engage in the conduct; and
• 2) The person was not predisposed to commit the offense.

The statutory language further clarifies that “conduct merely affording a person an opportunity to commit the offense does not constitute entrapment.” That language is important because it highlights that, in situations where an undercover detective sells drugs to a defendant who buys them and is arrested for possession, or introduces a defendant to a drug trafficker, for example, and the defendant becomes involved in the operation and is arrested for trafficking, are not circumstances in which entrapment has occurred.

The key elements of entrapment are that the law enforcement officer persuaded the defendant to do the illegal thing, and the defendant likely would not have done the illegal thing without persuasion.

Defenses in Cases Involving Undercover Police

If the defense of entrapment is unlikely to apply to your case, this fact alone does not mean that there are no valid or useful defense strategies. In cases involving undercover police, there are multiple defenses that may be available to you depending on the facts, such as:

• Constitutional violation;
• Police misconduct (which could include planting drugs or other contraband items on you to lay a foundation for your arrest);
• Duress; or
• Alibi.

These are just some examples of possible defenses in criminal cases involving undercover detectives, including in drug and theft cases. Other defense options could be relevant to your case, and you should discuss the facts with a lawyer who can help you.

Contact an Indianapolis Criminal Defense Attorney Today 

If you were arrested after an alleged drug buy, theft, or other offense involving an undercover police officer, it is important to find out more about your options for a defense. Depending on the circumstances of the case, entrapment may be a valid defense. Yet even if the defense of entrapment is not applicable to your case, there are other defense options you can explore with help from an experienced Indianapolis criminal defense lawyer at Rigney Law LLC. Contact us today to discuss the details of your case and to begin working on a defense strategy so that you can beat the charges you are facing.

Sources:

law.justia.com/codes/indiana/title-35/article-41/chapter-3/section-35-41-3-9/

law.cornell.edu/wex/affirmative_defense