HOUSE BILL 169
50th legislature - STATE OF NEW MEXICO - second session, 2012
INTRODUCED BY
Al Park
AN ACT
RELATING TO PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS; EXPANDING THE PEACE OFFICER'S EMPLOYER-EMPLOYEE RELATIONS ACT TO APPLY TO ALL PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS; ALLOWING AN OFFICER UNDER INVESTIGATION TO HAVE COUNSEL OR A REPRESENTATIVE DURING A GRIEVANCE PROCESS, INTERROGATION OR APPEAL; PROHIBITING INTERROGATORS FROM MAKING INTENTIONAL FALSE STATEMENTS; REQUIRING A BREAK DURING INTERROGATION; PROHIBITING DISCLOSURE OF FINANCIAL STATUS OF FAMILY MEMBERS OF AN OFFICER; REQUIRING REVIEW BY THE ATTORNEY GENERAL BEFORE ANY SANCTIONS MAY BE IMPOSED; PROVIDING A TIME LIMIT FOR INTERNAL INVESTIGATIONS OF CLAIMS OF EXCESSIVE FORCE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF NEW MEXICO:
SECTION 1. Section 29-14-1 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 1) is amended to read:
"29-14-1. SHORT TITLE.--[Sections 1 through 11 of this act] Chapter 29, Article 14 NMSA 1978 may be cited as the "[Peace] Public Safety Officer's Employer-Employee Relations Act"."
SECTION 2. Section 29-14-2 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 2) is amended to read:
"29-14-2. FINDINGS AND PURPOSE.--
A. The legislature finds and declares that [effective law enforcement] public safety is dependent upon the maintenance of stable relations between [peace] public safety officers and their employers. Moreover, the existence of stable relations between [peace] public safety officers and their employers will enhance [law enforcement] public safety services provided to the citizens of New Mexico.
B. The purpose of the [Peace] Public Safety Officer's Employer-Employee Relations Act is to prescribe certain rights for [peace] public safety officers, particularly when they are placed under investigation by their employer.
C. Provisions of [this] the Public Safety Officer's Employer-Employee Relations Act only apply to administrative actions and shall not apply to criminal investigations of a [peace] public safety officer except as provided in Section [8 of this act] 29-14-8 NMSA 1978."
SECTION 3. Section 29-14-3 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 3) is amended to read:
"29-14-3. DEFINITION.--As used in the [Peace] Public Safety Officer's Employer-Employee Relations Act, "[peace] public safety officer" or "officer" means any employee of a [police or sheriff's] department or agency that is part of [or administered by] the state or any political subdivision of the state who is [responsible for the prevention and detection of crime and the enforcement of the penal, traffic or highway laws of the state] or performs the functions of:
A. a law enforcement officer;
B. an adult corrections officer;
C. an adult probation and parole officer;
D. a juvenile corrections officer;
E. a juvenile probation and parole officer;
F. an animal control officer; or
G. a security officer."
SECTION 4. Section 29-14-4 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 4) is amended to read:
"29-14-4. INVESTIGATIONS OF [PEACE] PUBLIC SAFETY OFFICERS--REQUIREMENTS--REVIEW BY ATTORNEY GENERAL.--When [any peace] a public safety officer is under investigation by [his] the officer's employer for alleged actions that could result in administrative sanctions being levied against the officer, the following requirements shall be adhered to:
A. any interrogation of an officer shall be conducted when the officer is on duty or during [his] the officer's normal waking hours, unless the urgency of the investigation requires otherwise;
B. any interrogation of an officer shall be conducted at the employer's facility, unless the urgency of the investigation requires otherwise;
C. prior to commencement of any interrogation session:
(1) an officer shall be informed of the name and rank of the person in charge of the interrogation and all other persons who will be present during the interrogation;
(2) an officer shall be informed of the nature of the investigation, and the names of all known complainants shall be disclosed to the officer, unless the chief administrator of the officer's employer determines that the identification of the complainant shall not be disclosed because it is necessary for the protection of an informant or because disclosure would jeopardize or compromise the integrity or security of the investigation; and
(3) a reasonable attempt shall be made to notify the officer's commanding officer of the pending interrogation;
D. during any interrogation session, the following requirements shall be adhered to:
(1) each interrogation session shall not exceed two hours, unless the parties mutually consent to continuation of the session, and there shall be at least a fifteen-minute rest period between the two hours;
(2) there shall be not [be] more than two interrogation sessions within a twenty-four hour period, unless the parties mutually consent to additional sessions; provided that there shall be at least a one-hour rest period between the sessions;
(3) the combined duration of an officer's work shift and any interrogation session shall not exceed fourteen hours within a twenty-four hour period, unless the urgency of the investigation requires otherwise;
(4) there shall not be more than two interrogators at any given time;
(5) an officer shall be allowed to attend to physical necessities as they occur in the course of an interrogation session; and
(6) an officer shall not be subjected to offensive language or illegal coercion by [his] an interrogator in the course of an interrogation session;
E. an interrogator shall not intentionally make a false statement in the course of an interrogation. If an interrogator intentionally makes a false statement during an investigation, the interrogator shall be subject to discipline from the interrogator's employer, including termination;
F. an officer may have counsel or a representative present during an interrogation session. The officer's counsel or representative may object to any question posed, state the reason for the objection on the record and request a recess at any time to consult with the officer;
[E.] G. any interrogation of an officer shall be recorded, either mechanically or by a stenographer, and the complete interrogation shall be published as a transcript; provided that any recesses called during the interrogation shall be noted in the transcript; [and
F.] H. an accurate copy of the transcript or tape shall be provided to the officer or the officer's counsel or representative, upon [his] written request, no later than [fifteen] five working days after the investigation has been completed; and
I. an accurate copy of the transcript or tape and all evidence relevant to the investigation shall be provided to the office of the attorney general no later than ten days after the investigation has been completed. The office of the attorney general shall review all the evidence and no administrative sanctions shall be levied against the officer unless the office of the attorney general agrees that such sanctions are appropriate."
SECTION 5. Section 29-14-5 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 5) is amended to read:
"29-14-5. POLYGRAPH EXAMINATIONS.--After reviewing all the information collected in the course of an investigation of a [peace] public safety officer, the chief administrator of the officer's employer may order the officer to submit to a polygraph examination administered by a licensed polygraph examiner, provided that:
A. all other reasonable investigative means have been exhausted; and
B. the officer has been advised of the administrator's
reasons for ordering the polygraph examination."
SECTION 6. Section 29-14-6 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 6) is amended to read:
"29-14-6. INVESTIGATION OF ADMINISTRATIVE MATTERS.--When any [peace] public safety officer is under investigation for an administrative matter, the officer shall be permitted to have counsel or a representative present at all proceedings and to produce any relevant documents, witnesses or other evidence to support [his] the officer's case and [he may] to cross-examine any adverse witnesses during any grievance process or appeal involving disciplinary action."
SECTION 7. Section 29-14-7 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 7) is amended to read:
"29-14-7. PERSONNEL FILES.--
A. No document containing comments adverse to a [peace] public safety officer shall be entered into [his] the officer's personnel file, unless the officer has read and signed the document. When an officer refuses to sign a document containing comments adverse to [him] the officer, the document may be entered into an officer's personnel file if:
(1) the officer's refusal to sign is noted on the document by the chief administrator of the officer's employer; and
(2) the notation regarding the officer's refusal to sign the document is witnessed by a third party.
B. A [peace] public safety officer may file a written response to any document containing adverse comments entered into [his] the officer's personnel file and the response shall be filed with the officer's employer within thirty days after the document was entered into the officer's personnel file. A [peace] public safety officer's written response shall be attached to the document."
SECTION 8. Section 29-14-8 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 8) is amended to read:
"29-14-8. CONSTITUTIONAL RIGHTS--NOTIFICATION.--When any [peace] public safety officer is under administrative investigation and a determination is made to commence a criminal investigation, [he] the officer shall be immediately notified of the investigation and shall be afforded all the protections set forth in the bill of rights of the United States and New Mexico constitutions."
SECTION 9. Section 29-14-9 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 9) is amended to read:
"29-14-9. FORCED DISCLOSURE OF FINANCIAL STATUS PROHIBITED.--A [peace] public safety officer or a member of the officer's family or household shall not be required by [his police or sheriff's department] the officer's employer or any internal investigation unit to disclose information regarding [his] financial status, [unless all other reasonable investigative means have been exhausted or except as] property, income, sources of income, assets, debts or expenditures, unless the disclosure is otherwise required by state or federal law."
SECTION 10. Section 29-14-10 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 10) is amended to read:
"29-14-10. POLITICAL ACTIVITY.--
A. A [peace] public safety officer shall not be prohibited by [his police or sheriff's department] the officer's employer from engaging in any political activity when the officer is off duty, except as otherwise required by law.
B. Notwithstanding the provisions of Subsection A of this section, any [peace] public safety officer employed by the New Mexico state police [department] division shall be governed by the provisions of regulations adopted by the department of public safety regarding political activity."
SECTION 11. Section 29-14-11 NMSA 1978 (being Laws 1991, Chapter 117, Section 11) is amended to read:
"29-14-11. [EXERCISE OF RIGHTS] RETALIATION PROHIBITED.--A [peace] public safety officer shall not be subjected to any retaliation, including discharge, discipline, demotion, denial of promotion, transfer, reassignment or any discriminatory or adverse employment action or threat of such action by [his] the officer's employer due to the officer's lawful exercise of [his] the officer's rights under the [Peace] Public Safety Officer's Employer-Employee Relations Act or the constitution and laws of New Mexico or the United States."
SECTION 12. A new section of the Public Safety Officer's Employer-Employee Relations Act is enacted to read:
"[NEW MATERIAL] COMPLAINTS OF EXCESSIVE FORCE--TIME LIMIT.--A complaint against a public safety officer that alleges excessive force or brutality by the officer shall not be investigated by the officer's employer unless it is brought within fifteen days after the alleged incident occurred."
SECTION 13. EFFECTIVE DATE.--The effective date of the provisions of this act is July 1, 2012.
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