{"data":{"id":"us-ky/kre-508","jurisdiction":"us-ky","citation":"KRE 508","heading":"Identity of informer","body":"(a) General rule of privilege.  The Commonwealth of Kentucky and its sister states and\nthe United States have a privilege to refuse to disclose the identity of a person who\nhas furnished information relating to or assisting in an investigation of a possible\nviolation of a law to a law enforcement officer or member of a legislative\ncommittee or its staff conducting an investigation.\n(b) Who may claim.  The privilege may be claimed by an appropriate representative of\nthe public entity to which the information was furnished.\n(c) Exceptions:\n(1) Voluntary disclosure; informer as a witness.  No privilege exists under this\nrule if the identity of the informer or his interest in the subject matter of his\ncommunication has been disclosed by the holder of the privilege o r by the\ninformer's own action, or if the informer appears as a witness for the state.\nDisclosure within a law enforcement agency or legislative committee for a\nproper purpose does not waive the privilege.\n(2) Testimony on relevant issue.  If it appears that an informer may be able to give\nrelevant testimony and the public entity invokes the privilege, the court shall\ngive the public entity an opportunity to make an in camera showing in support\nof the claim of privilege. The showing will ordinarily be in th e form of\naffidavits, but the court may direct that testimony be taken if it finds that the\nmatter cannot be resolved satisfactorily upon affidavits. If the court finds that\nthere is a reasonable probability that the informer can give relevant testimony,\nand the public entity elects not to disclose this identity, in criminal cases the\ncourt on motion of the defendant or on its own motion shall grant appropriate\nrelief, which may include one (1) or more of the following:\n(A) Requiring the prosecuting attorney to comply;\n(B) Granting the defendant additional time or a continuance;\n(C) Relieving the defendant from making disclosures otherwise required of\nhim;\n(D) Prohibiting the prosecuting attorney from introducing specified\nevidence; and\n(E) Dismissing charges.\n(d) In civil cases, the court may make any order the interests of justice require if the\ninformer has pertinent information. Evidence presented to the court shall be sealed\nand preserved to be made available to the appellate court in the event of an app eal,\nand the contents shall not otherwise be revealed without consent of the informed\npublic entity.","path":["KENTUCKY RULES OF EVIDENCE ----- Legislative Research Commission Note (7/1/92). Although denominated \"rules,\" the elements of the Kentucky Rules of Evidence were enacted as statutes by the Kentucky General Assembly. See 1990 Ky. Acts ch. 88; 1992 Ky. Acts ch. 324. Originally codified as KRS Chapter 422A in 1990, the Kentucky Rules of Evidence were renumbered by the Reviser of Statutes, effective July 1, 1992, pursuant to 1992 Ky. Acts ch. 324, sec. 34. By an order dated May 12, 1992, the Kentucky Supreme Court \"adopt[ed] so much of the Kentucky Rules of Evidence as enacted by HB 241 [1992 Ky. Acts ch. 324] as comes within the rule making power of the Court, pursuant to Ky. Const. sec. 116.\""],"source_url":"https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/statutes/statute.aspx?id=20382","current_through":"Includes enactments through the 2026 Regular Session","vintage":"09/05/2026","retrieved_at":"2026-09-05T21:00:10Z","sha256":"903a386e854a772855645cb6c3eaeb5cc16f9da83e3d436b267b4b24af9f1c17","source_id":"us-ky","stale":false,"prev":"us-ky/kre-507","next":"us-ky/kre-509"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}