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.