Bill Text: IA SF179 | 2021-2022 | 89th General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: A bill for an act relating to officer disciplinary actions.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2021-02-01 - Subcommittee: Johnson, Kinney, and Shipley. S.J. 207. [SF179 Detail]

Download: Iowa-2021-SF179-Introduced.html
Senate File 179 - Introduced SENATE FILE 179 BY NUNN A BILL FOR An Act relating to officer disciplinary actions. 1 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA: 2 TLSB 2116XS (1) 89 as/rh
S.F. 179 Section 1. Section 80F.1, subsection 1, Code 2021, is 1 amended by adding the following new paragraph: 2 NEW PARAGRAPH . 0a. “Brady list” means a list of officers 3 maintained by the county attorney’s office, including officers 4 who may have impeached themselves as witnesses and officers 5 who may have violated the pretrial discovery rule requiring 6 officers to turn over all evidence that might be used to 7 exonerate a defendant. 8 Sec. 2. Section 80F.1, Code 2021, is amended by adding the 9 following new subsection: 10 NEW SUBSECTION . 20. a. An officer shall not be discharged, 11 disciplined, or threatened with discharge or discipline by a 12 state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency solely due 13 to the inclusion of the officer’s name on a Brady list. 14 b. A county attorney’s office maintaining a Brady list 15 shall disclose the contents of the list to the law enforcement 16 agency of an officer included on the list and to the officer. 17 A county attorney’s office shall develop a procedure for a 18 law enforcement agency who employs an officer included on the 19 Brady list, and for an officer included on the Brady list, to 20 challenge the inclusion of an officer on the Brady list. 21 c. This subsection does not prohibit a law enforcement 22 agency from dismissing, suspending, demoting, or taking other 23 disciplinary actions against an officer based on the underlying 24 actions that resulted in the officer’s name being placed on 25 a Brady list including any impeachment evidence against the 26 officer or evidence that the officer may not have turned 27 over exculpatory evidence to a defendant. If a collective 28 bargaining agreement applies, the actions taken by the law 29 enforcement agency shall conform to the rules and procedures 30 adopted by the collective bargaining agreement. 31 EXPLANATION 32 The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with 33 the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly. 34 This bill relates to police officer disciplinary actions. 35 -1- LSB 2116XS (1) 89 as/rh 1/ 2
S.F. 179 The bill amends Code chapter 80F, relating to the rights of 1 officers and public safety and emergency personnel. The bill 2 prohibits an officer from being discharged, disciplined, or 3 threatened with discharge or discipline by a state, county, or 4 municipal law enforcement agency solely due to the inclusion 5 of the officer’s name on a Brady list. The bill defines “Brady 6 list” as a list of officers maintained by the county attorney’s 7 office, including officers who may have impeached themselves 8 as witnesses and officers who may have violated the pretrial 9 discovery rule requiring officers to turn over any evidence 10 that might be used to exonerate a defendant. 11 The bill provides that a county attorney’s office 12 maintaining a Brady list shall disclose the contents of the 13 list to the law enforcement agency of an officer included on 14 the list and to the officer. A county attorney’s office shall 15 develop a procedure for a law enforcement agency who employs an 16 officer included on the Brady list, and for an officer included 17 on the Brady list, to challenge the inclusion of an officer 18 on the Brady list. The bill provides that a law enforcement 19 agency may dismiss, suspend, demote, or take other disciplinary 20 action against an officer based on the underlying actions that 21 resulted in the officer’s name being placed on a Brady list 22 including any impeachment evidence against the officer or 23 evidence that the officer failed to provide a defendant with 24 exculpatory evidence. 25 -2- LSB 2116XS (1) 89 as/rh 2/ 2
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