A.R.S. § 12-2312: Silent Witness Program

12-2312. Silent witness or crime stopper program records; disclosure prohibited; exception

A. A record of a communication between a person who submits a report of criminal activity to a silent witness, crime stopper or operation game thief program administered by a police department, a sheriff's department, a county attorney's office or the Arizona game and fish department and the person who accepted the report on behalf of the silent witness program is not a public record.

B. Except as otherwise provided in this section, disclosure of information that might be used to identify an individual submitting a tip under this section is prohibited if the individual submitting the tip did so anonymously. All tips that do not include the full name of the individual submitting the tip shall be deemed submitted anonymously. This section does not prohibit a prosecutor in a criminal case from disclosing any information if the disclosure is required by a constitutional, legal or ethical duty. If a prosecutor in a criminal case possesses information that might be used to identify an individual who anonymously submitted a tip under this section and disclosure of that information is not required by a constitutional, legal or ethical duty, the prosecutor shall make reasonable efforts to ensure the information is not disclosed.

C. No portion of any record maintained by a silent witness, crime stopper or operation game thief program or organization that might be used to identify an individual who submitted a tip anonymously under this section shall be subject to compulsory production except on a motion that is filed in the superior court where a complaint concerning the alleged event has been filed, or if no complaint has been filed, the county where the alleged event occurred and that establishes good cause for disclosure. The party filing the motion has the burden to show good cause for the disclosure. Good cause may include reason to believe that the tip was motivated by bias or animus or that disclosure is reasonably necessary to investigate a defense to the allegation or the potential sentence if convicted. This section does not prohibit a prosecutor in a criminal case from disclosing any information if the disclosure is required by a constitutional, legal or ethical duty.

D. If a motion to disclose the tip information pursuant to subsection C of this section is granted, the court shall authorize the grant of a subpoena by the moving party to obtain the information. This section does not expand the scope of discovery available under any Arizona court rules.

E. A silent witness, crime stopper or operation game thief program or organization shall retain tip materials submitted to them in writing by individuals submitting a report of criminal activity until at least the first anniversary of either of the following, whichever occurs last:

1. The date of expiration for all appeals and postconviction relief matters in a criminal proceeding or the expiration of the defendant's sentence.

2. The date the plaintiff's appeal rights are exhausted in a civil proceeding.