Bill Text: NY S03595 | 2019-2020 | General Assembly | Amended

NOTE: There are more recent revisions of this legislation. Read Latest Draft
Bill Title: Creates the law enforcement misconduct investigative office.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 15-0)

Status: (Passed) 2020-06-16 - SIGNED CHAP.104 [S03595 Detail]

Download: New_York-2019-S03595-Amended.html



                STATE OF NEW YORK
        ________________________________________________________________________

                                         3595--A

                               2019-2020 Regular Sessions

                    IN SENATE

                                    February 11, 2019
                                       ___________

        Introduced by Sens. PARKER, BRESLIN, BROOKS, HOYLMAN, JACKSON, KAVANAGH,
          LIU, SANDERS -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be
          committed  to the Committee on Finance -- recommitted to the Committee
          on Finance in accordance with Senate  Rule  6,  sec.  8  --  committee
          discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted as amended and recommitted
          to said committee

        AN  ACT  to  amend  the  executive  law, in relation to establishing the
          office of the law enforcement inspector general

          The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and  Assem-
        bly, do enact as follows:

     1    Section  1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 75 to
     2  read as follows:
     3    § 75. Office of the law enforcement inspector  general.  1.  Jurisdic-
     4  tion.   This section shall, subject to the limitations contained in this
     5  section, confer upon the office of the law enforcement inspector general
     6  jurisdiction over all covered agencies. For the purposes of this section
     7  "covered agency" means a police agency or department of the state or any
     8  political subdivision thereof, including authorities or  agencies  main-
     9  taining a police force or police forces of individuals defined as police
    10  officers  in  section  1.20  of the criminal procedure law.   Wherever a
    11  covered agency is a board, commission,  a  public  authority  or  public
    12  benefit corporation, the head of the agency is the chairperson thereof.
    13    2. Establishment and organization. (a) There is hereby established the
    14  office  of  the  law  enforcement inspector general in the department of
    15  law. The head of the office  shall  be  the  law  enforcement  inspector
    16  general who shall be appointed by the attorney general.
    17    (b)  The law enforcement inspector general shall serve for a five-year
    18  term and shall not holdover pursuant to section five of the public offi-
    19  cers law.  Upon the expiration of a five-year term  or  a  vacancy,  the
    20  attorney  general shall reappoint the office holder or appoint a succes-
    21  sor within sixty days.  The attorney general may remove the law enforce-

         EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                              [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                   LBD09532-03-0

        S. 3595--A                          2

     1  ment inspector general during his or her term only for good cause  after
     2  an opportunity to be heard.
     3    (c)  The  law  enforcement  inspector  general may appoint one or more
     4  deputy inspectors general to serve at his or her pleasure.
     5    (d) The salary of the  law  enforcement  inspector  general  shall  be
     6  established  within  the  limit  of funds available therefore; provided,
     7  however, such salary shall be no less than the salaries of certain state
     8  officers holding the positions indicated in paragraph (a) of subdivision
     9  one of section one hundred sixty-nine of this chapter.
    10    (e) The mission of the office of the law enforcement inspector general
    11  shall be to review, study, audit and make  recommendations  relating  to
    12  the  operations,  policies,  programs  and  practices, including ongoing
    13  partnerships with other law enforcement agencies, of state and local law
    14  enforcement agencies with the goal of enhancing the effectiveness of law
    15  enforcement, increasing public safety, protecting  civil  liberties  and
    16  civil  rights,  ensuring  compliance with constitutional protections and
    17  local, state and federal laws, and increasing the public's confidence in
    18  law enforcement.
    19    3. Functions and duties. The law enforcement inspector  general  shall
    20  have the following duties and responsibilities:
    21    (a) receive and investigate complaints from any source, or upon his or
    22  her  own initiative, concerning allegations of corruption, fraud, use of
    23  excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts of interest  or  abuse  in
    24  any covered agency;
    25    (b)  inform  the heads of covered agencies of such allegations and the
    26  progress of investigations related thereto, unless special circumstances
    27  require confidentiality;
    28    (c) determine with respect to such  allegations  whether  disciplinary
    29  action,  civil  or  criminal prosecution, or further investigation by an
    30  appropriate federal, state or local agency is warranted, and  to  assist
    31  in such investigations;
    32    (d)  prepare  and  release  to  the public written reports of investi-
    33  gations, as appropriate and to the extent permitted by law,  subject  to
    34  redaction to protect the confidentiality of witnesses and other informa-
    35  tion  that  would  be  exempt  from  disclosure under article six of the
    36  public officers law. The release of all or portions of such reports  may
    37  be temporarily deferred to protect the confidentiality of ongoing inves-
    38  tigations;
    39    (e)  review  and  examine  periodically the policies and procedures of
    40  covered  agencies  with  regard  to  the  prevention  and  detection  of
    41  corruption,  fraud, use of excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts
    42  of interest and abuse;
    43    (f) recommend remedial action  to  prevent  or  eliminate  corruption,
    44  fraud,  use of excessive force, criminal activity, conflicts of interest
    45  and abuse in covered agencies; and
    46    (g) investigate patterns, practices, systemic issues, or trends  iden-
    47  tified  by  analyzing  actions,  claims, complaints, and investigations,
    48  including, but not limited to, any patterns or trends regarding  depart-
    49  ments, precincts, and commands; and
    50    (h)  on an annual basis, submit to the governor, the attorney general,
    51  the temporary president of the senate, the speaker of the assembly,  the
    52  minority  leader  of the senate and the minority leader of the assembly,
    53  no later than December thirty-first, a report summarizing the activities
    54  of the law  enforcement  inspector  general  and  recommending  specific
    55  changes  to  state  law  to further the mission of the office of the law
    56  enforcement inspector general.

        S. 3595--A                          3

     1    4. Powers. The law enforcement inspector general shall have the  power
     2  to:
     3    (a) subpoena and enforce the attendance of witnesses;
     4    (b) administer oaths or affirmations and examine witnesses under oath;
     5    (c)  require the production of any books and papers deemed relevant or
     6  material to any investigation, examination or review;
     7    (d) notwithstanding any law to  the  contrary,  examine  and  copy  or
     8  remove  documents or records of any kind prepared, maintained or held by
     9  any covered agency;
    10    (e) require any officer or employee in  a  covered  agency  to  answer
    11  questions concerning any matter related to the performance of his or her
    12  official duties. No statement or other evidence derived therefrom may be
    13  used  against such officer or employee in any subsequent criminal prose-
    14  cution other than for perjury or contempt arising from  such  testimony.
    15  The  refusal  of  any  officer  or employee to answer questions shall be
    16  cause for removal from office or employment or other appropriate  penal-
    17  ty;
    18    (f)  monitor the implementation by covered agencies of any recommenda-
    19  tions made by the law enforcement inspector general; and
    20    (g) perform any other functions that are necessary or  appropriate  to
    21  fulfill the duties and responsibilities of office.
    22    5.  Responsibilities  of covered agencies, officers and employees. (a)
    23  Every officer or employee in a covered agency shall report  promptly  to
    24  the   law  enforcement  inspector  general  any  information  concerning
    25  corruption, fraud, use of excessive force, criminal activity,  conflicts
    26  of  interest  or abuse by another officer or employee relating to his or
    27  her office or employment, or by a person having business dealings with a
    28  covered agency relating to those dealings. The knowing  failure  of  any
    29  officer  or employee to so report shall be cause for removal from office
    30  or employment or other appropriate penalty. Any officer or employee  who
    31  acts  pursuant  to  this subdivision by reporting to the law enforcement
    32  inspector general shall not be subject to dismissal, discipline or other
    33  adverse personnel action.
    34    (b) Upon receiving at least five complaints from five or more individ-
    35  uals relating to at least five separate incidents  involving  a  certain
    36  officer  or  employee  within  two years, the head of any covered agency
    37  shall refer such complaints to the law enforcement inspector general for
    38  review. The law enforcement inspector  general  shall  investigate  such
    39  complaints  to  determine  whether  the  subject officer or employee has
    40  engaged in a pattern or practice of misconduct, use of excessive  force,
    41  or  acts  of dishonesty. The referral and investigation pursuant to this
    42  subdivision shall be in addition to and shall not supersede  any  civil,
    43  criminal,  administrative or other action or proceeding relating to such
    44  complaints or the subject officer or employee.
    45    (c) The head of any covered agency  shall  advise  the  governor,  the
    46  temporary  president  of  the  senate,  the speaker of the assembly, the
    47  minority leader of the senate and the minority leader  of  the  assembly
    48  within  ninety  days  of the issuance of a report by the state inspector
    49  general as to the remedial action that the agency has taken in  response
    50  to any recommendation for such action contained in such report.
    51    (d) Nothing in this section shall be construed to impede, infringe, or
    52  diminish the rights, privileges, benefits or remedies that accrue to any
    53  employee  pursuant  to  any  agreement  entered into pursuant to article
    54  fourteen of the civil service law.
    55    § 2. Severability clause. If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivi-
    56  sion, section or part of this act shall be  adjudged  by  any  court  of

        S. 3595--A                          4

     1  competent  jurisdiction  to  be invalid, such judgment shall not affect,
     2  impair, or invalidate the remainder thereof, but shall  be  confined  in
     3  its  operation  to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section
     4  or part thereof directly involved in the controversy in which such judg-
     5  ment shall have been rendered. It is hereby declared to be the intent of
     6  the  legislature  that  this  act  would  have been enacted even if such
     7  invalid provisions had not been included herein.
     8    § 3. This act shall take effect on the first of April next  succeeding
     9  the date on which it shall have become a law.
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