Valley County Deputy Fired for Misusing Criminal Justice Network

A Valley County Sheriff’s Deputy was promptly fired in late January after an investigation by the Sheriff’s Office determined he misused a sensitive government database known as the Criminal Justice Information Network (CJIN).

According to Valley County Sheriff Tom Boyer, the deputy was placed on administrative leave as soon as the incident was reported and then fired immediately after the investigation determined wrongdoing had occurred.

The Courier requested a statement from Sheriff Boyer regarding the investigation details and the identity of the deputy. Boyer stated that it is a confidential personnel matter, and the details of the event will remain private.

The Courier was able to determine that Valley County Deputy Casey Mulkey was terminated from his position on Jan. 29, 2021, according to the Valley County Commissioner’s Meeting Minutes from Feb. 3 and a termination notice on file with the county clerk and recorder. Mulkey is the only deputy to be terminated in January or February of 2021.

Boyer was able to provide background on CJIN to inlcude the network’s sensitive nature and the laws and policies that govern its use.

CJIN (pronounced see-gin by law enforcement personnel) is a US government-managed database of all criminal justice information compiled by participating agencies nationwide. The system is often used to query identities of individuals during investigations and to run license plates during traffic stops and other law enforcement encounters. The database also comes with strict guidelines to prevent abuse.

According to Boyer, the policies for CJIN state, “Access and dissemination of CJIN information is restricted to authorized individuals for criminal justice or public safety purposes… Agencies are responsible for the security of their CJIN terminals and data, as well as the actions of their employees. CJIN users may not query themselves, co-workers, family members, friends, ex-friends, or friends of ex-friends, for any personal purposes. Curiosity seeking is not tolerated.”

Underscoring the sensitivity of CJIN, in 2015, the Montana State Legislature made it a misdemeanor offense to misuse criminal justice information. Sheriff Boyer pointed out that Montana Code Annotated 45-7-601 prohibits the misuse of criminal justice information like the data stored on CJIN networks.

The law states: “A person commits the offense of misuse of confidential criminal justice information if the person is entitled to directly access the criminal justice information network and purposely or knowingly: (a) Accesses the criminal justice information network for personal use or financial gain; or (b) Disseminates information access from the criminal justice information network to any person who is not authorized to receive confidential criminal justice information pursuant to MCA: 44-5-303.”

The misdemeanor carries a sentence of up to six months in county jail and a fine of no less than $500.