Bill Text: NY S07626 | 2011-2012 | General Assembly | Introduced


Bill Title: Provides that an officer may be suspended without pay for only thirty days pending a trial of disciplinary charges.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Republican 1-0)

Status: (Introduced - Dead) 2012-06-08 - REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT [S07626 Detail]

Download: New_York-2011-S07626-Introduced.html
                           S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
       ________________________________________________________________________
           S. 7626                                                 A. 10598
                             S E N A T E - A S S E M B L Y
                                     June 8, 2012
                                      ___________
       IN  SENATE -- Introduced by Sen. BALL -- read twice and ordered printed,
         and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government
       IN ASSEMBLY -- Introduced by COMMITTEE ON RULES -- (at request of M.  of
         A.  Castelli)  --  read  once and referred to the Committee on Govern-
         mental Employees
       AN ACT to amend chapter 104 of the laws of 1936  relating  to  providing
         for  the  establishment,  organization and operation of police depart-
         ments in the towns of Westchester county and chapter 891 of  the  laws
         of  1972  relating to continuing special provisions relating to police
         departments of certain villages, in relation to suspension of an offi-
         cer pending a trial of disciplinary charges
         THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
       BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
    1    Section  1.  Section  7 of chapter 104 of the laws of 1936 relating to
    2  providing for the establishment, organization and  operation  of  police
    3  departments  in  the  towns of Westchester county, as amended by chapter
    4  812 of the laws of 1941, is amended to read as follows:
    5    S 7. Discipline and charges. Except as otherwise provided  by  law,  a
    6  member  of  such  police  department  shall  continue  in  office unless
    7  suspended or dismissed. The town board or board of police  commissioners
    8  shall  have  power  and  is authorized to adopt and make rules and regu-
    9  lations for the examination, hearing, investigation and determination of
   10  charges, made or preferred against any member or members of such  police
   11  department,  but no member or members of such police department shall be
   12  fined, reprimanded, removed or dismissed  until  written  charges  shall
   13  have  been  investigated,  examined,  heard  and determined by such town
   14  board or board of police commissioners in such manner, procedure,  prac-
   15  tice, examination and investigation as such board may, by such rules and
   16  regulations  from  time to time prescribe, except that the trial of such
   17  charges shall not be delegated and must be heard before  the  full  town
   18  board or full board of police commissioners or a majority of the members
   19  of either of such boards, and the affirmative vote of a majority of such
   20  members  shall  be  necessary for a conviction on any such charges. Such
        EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                             [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                                  LBD16158-01-2
       S. 7626                             2                           A. 10598
    1  charges shall not be brought more than ninety days after the  time  when
    2  the facts upon which such charges are based are known to such town board
    3  or  board of police commissioners.  Any member of such police department
    4  at  the  time  of  the hearing or trial of such charges before such town
    5  board or board of police commissioners shall have the right to a  public
    6  hearing  and  trial and to be represented by counsel at any such hearing
    7  or trial and any person who shall have preferred  such  charges  or  any
    8  part  of  the same shall not sit as a member of such town board or board
    9  of police commissioners upon such hearing  or  trial  and  any  and  all
   10  witnesses produced upon the trial shall testify under oath.
   11    Any  member  of  such  department found guilty upon charges after five
   12  days' written notice and an opportunity to be heard in his  defense,  of
   13  neglect or dereliction in the performance of official duty, or violation
   14  of  rules  or  regulations  or  disobedience, or incompetency to perform
   15  official duty, or an act of delinquency seriously affecting his  general
   16  character  or  fitness for office, may be punished by such town board or
   17  board of police commissioners before which such charges  are  tried,  by
   18  reprimand,  forfeiture and the withholding of salary or compensation for
   19  a specified time not exceeding twenty days, by suspension from duty  for
   20  a specified time not exceeding twenty days and the withholding of salary
   21  or compensation during such suspension, or by dismissal from the depart-
   22  ment.  Such  town  board or board of police commissioners shall have the
   23  power to suspend, without pay, pending the trial of charges, any  member
   24  of  such  police  department FOR A PERIOD NOT EXCEEDING THIRTY DAYS.  If
   25  any member of such police department so suspended shall not be convicted
   26  by such board  of  the  charges  so  preferred,  or  if  on  review  his
   27  conviction  shall  be  reversed,  then, notwithstanding such charges and
   28  suspension, he shall be entitled to full pay from the date of suspension
   29  to the date of reinstatement less the amount of  compensation,  if  any,
   30  received by him from any other employment or occupation during the peri-
   31  od  beginning  with  such  date  of  suspension to the date of his rein-
   32  statement and he shall be entitled to [an] A COURT order [as provided in
   33  article seventy-eight  of  the  civil  practice  act]  to  enforce  such
   34  payment.
   35    S  2.   Subdivision 9 of section 18 of chapter 891 of the laws of 1972
   36  relating to continuing special provisions relating to police departments
   37  of certain villages is amended to read as follows:
   38    9. Discipline and charges. Except as  otherwise  provided  by  law,  a
   39  member of such police force shall continue in office unless suspended or
   40  dismissed. The board of trustees or municipal board shall have power and
   41  is  authorized  to adopt and make rules and regulations for the examina-
   42  tion, hearing, investigation  and  determination  of  charges,  made  or
   43  preferred  against  any  member  or members of such police force, but no
   44  member or members of such police  force  shall  be  fined,  reprimanded,
   45  removed  or  dismissed  until  written  charges shall have been made and
   46  preferred against him or them, nor until such charges have been investi-
   47  gated, examined, heard and determined  by  such  board  of  trustees  or
   48  municipal  board  in  such  manner, procedure, practice, examination and
   49  investigation as such board may by such rules and regulations from  time
   50  to  time  prescribe,  except that the trial of such charges shall not be
   51  delegated and must be heard before the full board of  trustees  or  full
   52  municipal  board, or a majority of the members of either of such boards,
   53  and the affirmative vote of a majority of such members shall  be  neces-
   54  sary  to  a  conviction  on  any such charges. Such charges shall not be
   55  brought more than ninety days after the time when the facts  upon  which
   56  such  charges are based are known to such board of trustees or municipal
       S. 7626                             3                           A. 10598
    1  board. Any member of such police force at the time  of  the  hearing  or
    2  trial  of  such charges before such board of trustees or municipal board
    3  shall have the right to a public hearing and trial and to be represented
    4  by  counsel  at any such hearing or trial, and any person who shall have
    5  preferred such charges or any part of the same shall not sit as a member
    6  of such board of trustees or municipal board upon such hearing or trial.
    7  Any and all witnesses produced upon the trial shall testify under  oath.
    8  Any  member  of  such  force found guilty upon charges, after five days'
    9  written notice and an opportunity to be heard in his defense, of neglect
   10  or dereliction in the performance of  official  duty,  or  violation  of
   11  rules and regulations, or disobedience, or incompetency to perform offi-
   12  cial  duty,  or  an  act  of delinquency seriously affecting his general
   13  character or fitness for office, may be punished by such board of  trus-
   14  tees  or  municipal board before which such charges are tried, by repri-
   15  mand, forfeiture and the withholding of salary  or  compensation  for  a
   16  specified  time  not exceeding twenty days and the withholding of salary
   17  or compensation during such suspension, or by dismissal from the depart-
   18  ment. Such board of trustees or municipal board shall have the power  to
   19  suspend  without  pay,  pending the trial of charges, any member of such
   20  police force FOR A PERIOD NOT TO EXCEED THIRTY DAYS.  If any  member  of
   21  such  police  force so suspended shall not be convicted by such board of
   22  the charges so preferred, or  if  on  review  his  conviction  shall  be
   23  reversed, then, notwithstanding such charges and suspension, he shall be
   24  entitled  to receive full pay from the date of suspension to the date of
   25  reimbursement less the amount of compensation, if any, received  by  him
   26  from any other employment or occupation during the period beginning with
   27  such date of suspension to the date of his reinstatement and he shall be
   28  entitled  to [an] A COURT order [as provided in article seventy-eight of
   29  the civil practice act] to enforce the payment thereof.
   30    S 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
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