Bill Text: NY S09080 | 2023-2024 | General Assembly | Introduced
Bill Title: Provides that a police officer in the county of Westchester can be suspended without pay for not more than 30 days pending a trial of disciplinary charges.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Introduced) 2024-04-16 - REFERRED TO LOCAL GOVERNMENT [S09080 Detail]
Download: New_York-2023-S09080-Introduced.html
STATE OF NEW YORK ________________________________________________________________________ 9080 IN SENATE April 16, 2024 ___________ Introduced by Sen. MAYER -- read twice and ordered printed, and when printed to be committed to the Committee on Local Government 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 § 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 21 charges shall not be brought more than ninety days after the time when 22 the facts upon which such charges are based are known to such town board 23 or board of police commissioners. Any member of such police department 24 at the time of the hearing or trial of such charges before such town EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets [] is old law to be omitted. LBD14779-01-4S. 9080 2 1 board or board of police commissioners shall have the right to a public 2 hearing and trial and to be represented by counsel at any such hearing 3 or trial and any person who shall have preferred such charges or any 4 part of the same shall not sit as a member of such town board or board 5 of police commissioners upon such hearing or trial and any and all 6 witnesses produced upon the trial shall testify under oath. 7 Any member of such department found guilty upon charges after five 8 days' written notice and an opportunity to be heard in [his] their 9 defense, of neglect or dereliction in the performance of official duty, 10 or violation of rules or regulations or disobedience, or incompetency to 11 perform official duty, or an act of delinquency seriously affecting 12 [his] such member's general character or fitness for office, may be 13 punished by such town board or board of police commissioners before 14 which such charges are tried, by reprimand, forfeiture and the withhold- 15 ing of salary or compensation for a specified time not exceeding twenty 16 days, by suspension from duty for a specified time not exceeding twenty 17 days and the withholding of salary or compensation during such suspen- 18 sion, or by dismissal from the department. Such town board or board of 19 police commissioners shall have the power to suspend, without pay, pend- 20 ing the trial of charges, any member of such police department for a 21 period not exceeding thirty days. If any member of such police depart- 22 ment so suspended shall not be convicted by such board of the charges so 23 preferred, or if on review [his] such member's conviction shall be 24 reversed, then, notwithstanding such charges and suspension, [he] such 25 member shall be entitled to full pay from the date of suspension to the 26 date of reinstatement less the amount of compensation, if any, received 27 by [him] such member from any other employment or occupation during the 28 period beginning with such date of suspension to the date of [his] such 29 member's reinstatement and [he] such member shall be entitled to an 30 order as provided in article seventy-eight of the civil practice [act] 31 law and rules to enforce such payment. 32 § 2. Subdivision 9 of section 18 of section 2 of chapter 891 of the 33 laws of 1972 relating to continuing special provisions relating to 34 police departments of certain villages is amended to read as follows: 35 9. Discipline and charges. Except as otherwise provided by law, a 36 member of such police force shall continue in office unless suspended or 37 dismissed. The board of trustees or municipal board shall have power and 38 is authorized to adopt and make rules and regulations for the examina- 39 tion, hearing, investigation and determination of charges, made or 40 preferred against any member or members of such police force, but no 41 member or members of such police force shall be fined, reprimanded, 42 removed or dismissed until written charges shall have been made and 43 preferred against [him] such member or them, nor until such charges have 44 been investigated, examined, heard and determined by such board of trus- 45 tees or municipal board in such manner, procedure, practice, examination 46 and investigation as such board may by such rules and regulations from 47 time to time prescribe, except that the trial of such charges shall not 48 be delegated and must be heard before the full board of trustees or full 49 municipal board, or a majority of the members of either of such boards, 50 and the affirmative vote of a majority of such members shall be neces- 51 sary to a conviction on any such charges. Such charges shall not be 52 brought more than ninety days after the time when the facts upon which 53 such charges are based are known to such board of trustees or municipal 54 board. Any member of such police force at the time of the hearing or 55 trial of such charges before such board of trustees or municipal board 56 shall have the right to a public hearing and trial and to be representedS. 9080 3 1 by counsel at any such hearing or trial, and any person who shall have 2 preferred such charges or any part of the same shall not sit as a member 3 of such board of trustees or municipal board upon such hearing or trial. 4 Any and all witnesses produced upon the trial shall testify under oath. 5 Any member of such force found guilty upon charges, after five days' 6 written notice and an opportunity to be heard in [his] such member's 7 defense, of neglect or dereliction in the performance of official duty, 8 or violation of rules and regulations, or disobedience, or incompetency 9 to perform official duty, or an act of delinquency seriously affecting 10 [his] such member's general character or fitness for office, may be 11 punished by such board of trustees or municipal board before which such 12 charges are tried, by reprimand, forfeiture and the withholding of sala- 13 ry or compensation for a specified time not exceeding twenty days and 14 the withholding of salary or compensation during such suspension, or by 15 dismissal from the department. Such board of trustees or municipal board 16 shall have the power to suspend without pay, pending the trial of charg- 17 es, any member of such police force for a period not to exceed thirty 18 days. If any member of such police force so suspended shall not be 19 convicted by such board of the charges so preferred, or if on review 20 [his] such member's conviction shall be reversed, then, notwithstanding 21 such charges and suspension, [he] such member shall be entitled to 22 receive full pay from the date of suspension to the date of [reimburse-23ment] reinstatement less the amount of compensation, if any, received by 24 [him] such member from any other employment or occupation during the 25 period beginning with such date of suspension to the date of [his] such 26 member's reinstatement and [he] such member shall be entitled to an 27 order as provided in article seventy-eight of the civil practice [act] 28 law and rules to enforce the payment thereof. 29 § 3. This act shall take effect immediately.
