Honest representation of authority

Position

USCLI holds that investigators and other justice professionals:

1. Identify themselves accurately. They describe their role, employer or client relationship, and license status truthfully when asked and whenever the context requires it.
2. Do not imitate public authority. Private practitioners do not use badges, uniforms, vehicle markings, titles, or language that a reasonable person could mistake for those of a law enforcement or government agency, and they follow every limit their state licensing law sets on such items.
3. Represent credentials precisely. Licenses, certifications, degrees, and ranks are stated exactly, with the issuing body named, and lapsed or suspended credentials are never presented as current.
4. Describe association membership honestly. Membership in USCLI, or any professional association, is never presented as a license, a certification, a government credential, or an endorsement of a person’s competence.

Reasoning

Witnesses, victims, and members of the public make decisions about what to share and whom to trust based on how a professional presents. When a private practitioner looks or sounds like a public officer, consent becomes uncertain, evidence may be challenged, and trust in every legitimate investigator erodes.

USCLI applies the same rule to itself. Our name describes our subject matter, not an official status, and our mark deliberately avoids seals and government symbols.

Relationship to the Code of Conduct

This statement expands sections 3.1, 4.1, and 4.3 of the Code of Conduct.

Comment

This statement is open for comment through November 14, 2026, at ethics@uscli.org.