Friday, September 6, 2013

An ordinance establishing a Citizen Police Review Board in the City of St. Louis, containing definitions and a severability clause. 

WHEREAS, the Missouri Legislature, pursuant to Section 590.653 Revised Code of the State of Missouri, explicitly grants authority to local governments to locally establish civilian review bodies to investigate incidents of police misconduct involving police officers and members of the public, make findings and recommendations, and 

WHEREAS, the movement to create greater professionalism in this country's police departments has also been a step toward increasing accountability and has been enhanced by establishments of civilian review processes as affirmed by national studies, and 

WHEREAS, lasting change results from organizational reform that is greatly enhanced by third party review that can impartially identify patterns of practices in order to recommend policy changes which can improve such practices, and

WHEREAS, community policing which can only be achieved by citizen cooperation and direct citizen participation on an ongoing basis is a vital part of the St. Louis Police Department’s approach and where national studies have shown would only be enhanced by a citizen review process directly related to allegations of police misconduct, and 

WHEREAS, a system of accountability needs to be established whereby citizens can make complaints in an hospitable environment and expect their complaints to be thoroughly investigated by a third and unconnected party with subsequent findings and recommendations made to the Chief of Police, and the Mayor, and

WHEREAS, the ability to show due diligence through the use of modern practices in the implementation of civilian review has been shown through national studies to reduce the risk of civil liability litigation while engendering benefits for all parties, and 

WHEREAS, the Saint Louis Board of Aldermen does hereby establish the Saint Louis Citizen Police Review Board with the following authority;

BE IT ORDAINED BY THE CITY OF ST. LOUIS AS FOLLOWS: 

SECTION ONE. Citizen Police Review Board Established 

A Citizen Police Review Board is hereby established.

SECTION TWO. Definitions 

“Board" shall mean the Citizen Police Review Board.

“City” shall mean the City of St. Louis.

“Department” shall mean the Saint Louis Metropolitan Police Department.

"Complaint" shall mean any request to the Board pursuant to rules and regulations established by such Board to investigate alleged misconduct by members of the Department involving use of excessive force, abuse of authority, discourtesy, non-responsiveness, racial profiling or use of offensive language, including, but not limited to, slurs relating to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigrant status and disability.

“Hearing” shall mean any public and/or closed meeting held by the Board to conduct investigations and/or reviews of formally submitted complaints by members of the public related to allegations of misconduct by members of the Department in order to make findings and recommendations.

“Review” shall mean that part of a joint investigation conducted by the Board which examines documents pertaining to any investigation conducted by the Internal Affairs division of the Department and the Board resulting from a formal complaint by any person alleging official misconduct by a member of the Department.

“Investigation” shall mean to call and interview witnesses and examine evidence concerning a complaint submitted to or coming before the Board.

“Joint investigation” shall mean investigations conducted by the Board and the Internal Affairs division of the Department with certain authorities granted the Board by this ordinance.

“Independent investigation” shall mean any separately conducted investigation by the Board without control or direction of the Mayor, his employees or representatives, or of the Department, its employees or representatives.

SECTION THREE. Citizen Police Review Board 

The Citizen Police Review Board shall consist of seven (7) members who all shall be residents of the City of St. Louis. The members of the Board shall be selected as follows: 

1. Membership: There shall be seven Citizen Police Review Board Districts within the City of St. Louis. Each district shall be composed of groupings of four Aldermanic wards as delineated in this section and shall carry the numbers one through seven respectively. The Aldermen in each Citizen Police Review Board District shall present to the Mayor at least one, but not more than four, individuals who shall be a resident(s) of the respective district. From the names presented to the Mayor by the Aldermen in each Citizen Police Review Board District, the Mayor shall present the name and qualifications of one individual from each Citizen Police Review Board District to the Board of Aldermen for their final approval in accordance with the provisions of Paragraph 4 of this section. 

2. Citizen Police Review Board Districts shall be established as follows: 

District One: Wards 2, 3, 21, 27 
District Two: Wards 18, 19, 6, 5 
District Three: Wards 1, 4, 22, 26 
District Four: Wards 7, 8, 9, 17 
District Five: Wards 11, 12, 13, 16 
District Six: Wards 14, 15, 20, 25 
District Seven: Wards 10, 23, 24, 28 

3. Term of Office: Each member of the Citizen Police Review Board shall serve for a four (4) year term (except as provided herein with respect to the initial members), with terms expiring as of December 31st of the designated year or when their successors are appointed as provided herein, whichever is later. 

4. Initial Members and Terms: Within thirty (30) days of the effective date of this ordinance the Clerk of the Board of Aldermen shall deliver to the Office of the Mayor the names of the individuals presented by the Aldermen. Within sixty (60) days of receipt of such names, the Mayor shall deliver to the Board of Aldermen the names and qualifications of the seven individuals he has selected. Thereafter the Board of Aldermen shall have thirty (30) days in which to finally approve the individuals presented by the Mayor. Such approval shall be by a majority of all the members of the Board. In the event an individual does not receive the approval of the Board of Aldermen, the Mayor shall submit the name of a new individual from the list of existing nominees from the same Citizen Police Review Board District or in the event that only one individual is submitted to the Mayor by the Aldermen in a Citizen Police Review Board District the Mayor shall be presented with a new individual or individuals as determined by the Aldermen in that District. The initial members shall be appointed for the terms set forth as follows: members from even numbered Citizen Police Review Board Districts shall be appointed for a term expiring December 31, 2015; members from odd numbered Citizen Police Review Board Districts shall be appointed for a term expiring December 31, 2017.

5. Vacancies: Vacancies on the Citizen Police Review Board, occasioned by resignation, expiration of term, or otherwise, shall be reported in writing to the Mayor by the members of the Citizen Police Review Board. The vacancy shall be filled in like manner as an original appointment no later than thirty (30) days after the date of said report to the Mayor. Individuals considered for appointment to fill the vacancy shall be from the same Citizen Police Review Board District as the individual being replaced. Appointments to fill vacancies shall be for the unexpired portion of a term only.

6. No member of the Board shall hold any other public office or employment. No more than one member of the Board shall have experience as a law enforcement professional. For the purposes of this section, experience as law enforcement professionals shall include experience as police officer, criminal investigator, special agent, or a managerial or supervisory employee who exercised substantial policy discretion on law enforcement matters, in a federal, state, or local law enforcement agency. No person may be appointed if such person has been convicted of any State or Federal criminal offense constituting a felony. Every person appointed must be a resident of the City of St. Louis prior to appointment. Every person appointed must submit to mandatory drug testing and attend the Citizen Police Academy.

7. Compensation: The members of the Citizen Police Review Board shall serve without compensation of any kind.

SECTION FOUR. Powers and duties of the Board

1. The Board shall have the power to receive, investigate, hear, make findings and recommend disciplinary action upon complaints by members of the public against members of the Department that allege misconduct involving excessive use of force, abuse of authority, discourtesy, non-responsiveness, racial profiling or use of offensive language, including, but not limited to, slurs relating to race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigration status and disability. The findings and recommendations of the Board, and the basis therefore, shall be submitted to the Chief of Police. No finding or recommendation shall be based solely upon an unsworn complaint or statement, nor shall prior unsubstantiated, unfounded, or withdrawn complaints be the basis for any such findings or recommendations. The Board’s findings may include recommendations regarding policy and procedures based on a pattern of complaints. The Board's findings may also include a recommendation that a specific complaint be resolved through a process of voluntary mediation between the parties.

2. The Board may conduct audits regarding the implementation of Department policy and procedures.

3. The Board shall have the power to see all records, policy statements and manuals necessary to determine current standards and practices of the Department. 

4. The Board shall promulgate rules of procedures including rules that prescribe the manner in which it will conduct joint and independent investigations, make recommendations to the Chief of Police and the manner by which a member of the public is to be informed of the status of his or her complaint. 

5. The Board shall adopt and/or establish a system of internal controls for the development of a case management system. Timelines shall be established for each stage of the complaint process such as intake, classifying, investigating, and disposition of cases. 

6. It shall be the duty of the Board to implement a training program for members and hired personnel in cooperation with the Department in the areas of, but not limited to, investigative techniques, proper knowledge of the workings of the Department, field safety, the responsibilities of Board membership, human rights, constitutional rights, rights during police stops, and search warrant law. 

7. Whenever the Board shall authorize any investigation of any question or matter on which the Board may lawfully take action, the Board shall have authority upon a majority vote of the Board to issue writs of subpoena and subpoena duces tecum. Such writs shall be signed by the presiding officer of the Board, or, in case of his absence or inability to act, by the acting presiding officer of the Board, and shall be attested by the clerk of the Board. Every such writ shall be served and the return thereof made by the City Marshal to the presiding officer in like manner and with like effect as such writs issued from the Circuit Court are served and returned by the Sheriff. 

8. The Board shall issue to the Chief of Police, the Mayor, and the Board of Aldermen an annual report which describes its activities and summarizes its actions. This report shall identify systemic problems, give reports of any audits regarding implementation of previous policy and procedures, make analysis based upon collected data from the year’s complaints, analyze responses given on its feedback forms and may make policy and procedures. This report shall contain the number of complaints received by the Board, the type and/or category of such complaints including a breakdown of outcomes, the number of interviews and investigations conducted by the Board, the number of mediations and their success rate and the number of complaints for which the Board made a recommendation to the Chief of Police. This report shall also include statistics related to the Chief of Police’s response and actions taken related to the Board's recommendations. Statistics shall be broken down by police district and shall include number of officers with three or more complaints for the year. It shall also include a breakdown by race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, immigrant status and disability for each type and category of complaint as well as a similar breakdown by outcome. Other statistics may be included if deemed appropriate by the Board. This report shall be made available to the public and will be presented to the public at an annual meeting as prescribed and adopted by the Board. Such annual meeting shall be published in the City Journal. 

9. The Board shall have the responsibility of informing the public about the Board and its duties, and shall develop and administer an ongoing program for the education of the public regarding the provisions of this ordinance. Informational publications are to be published in each language spoken by one percent of the citizens of the City of St. Louis. The Board shall institute regular audits of intake procedures, investigations, timeliness, and disposition of complaints to ensure that the review mechanism of the Board is functioning according to its standards. Survey forms shall be distributed to all complainants and subject the Board’s officers to obtain feedback concerning the operation of the review mechanism of the Board.

10. When authorized by Missouri statutes, the Board shall review the statistics compiled by the State, any of its officers, offices, commissions or boards regarding racial profiling data. The Board may recommend discipline or policy changes it deems appropriate.

11. The provisions of this ordinance shall not be construed to permit the Board to accept or investigate a complaint from a police officer or member of the Commission which pertains to another police officer or member of the Commission for which the City personnel rules or police general orders provide a grievance or appeal procedure.

12. No member of the Board or the Police Department shall make any public comments about a complaint which imply guilt or innocence of any party involved before final resolution of the review process.

13. The Board shall have the authority to create by majority vote volunteer committees composed of as many St. Louis citizens as needed to assist in the compiling of data and/or to research specific aspects of policy and procedures to be reported to the Board. No volunteer committee member shall be directly involved in any case review process.

SECTION FIVE. Investigation and review procedures

1. The Board and the Department shall create a joint civilian complaint form that shall be used by the Board and the Department and shall be visible and readily available at all times at all Department Stations and Board offices and be administered and accepted in established and prescribed Board and Department procedure and etiquette. The Department or the Board may waive the necessity of signing a complaint based upon unusual circumstances. Such waiver may allow for the initiation of the complaint process but no such complaint may be considered evidence in an investigation.

2. A copy of all properly completed and received complaints prepared by the Board shall be forwarded to the Internal Affairs Division of the Department within 24 hours.

3. A copy of all properly completed and received complaints prepared by the Department shall be forwarded to the Board within 24 hours. 

4. All complaints officially accepted by the Board or the Department shall be jointly investigated by the Board and the Department’s Internal Affairs Division. Neither agency shall conduct a separate investigation until after the joint investigation. If both the complainant and the Department staff member whom a citizen complaint was made against agree, the case may be referred to mediation. The Department and the Board shall coordinate the calling of witnesses and coordinate the time and place of such interviews. Representatives of the Board as determined by the Board and representatives of the Department as determined by the Department may call complainants, witnesses and representative employees of the Department, attend all interviews, ask questions and take sworn testimony. The Department and the Board shall coordinate their representation with each other. Both the Department and the Board shall have access to all documents, tapes and recordings relevant to the joint investigation.

5. Within ninety days of receiving a complaint from the Board or directly receiving a complaint from a citizen, the Internal Affairs Division shall forward a copy of its findings, recommendations and basis thereto to the Board for review. The Chief of Police may authorize additional time for the Internal Affairs Division to respond to a specific complaint as warranted. No complaint investigation process shall exceed a total of one hundred twenty days. Within the same ninety days, Board investigators shall forward a copy of their findings, recommendations and basis therefore to the Board for review. The Board may authorize additional time for the Board investigators to respond to a specific complaint as warranted, not to exceed one hundred twenty days total. 

6. The Department and the Board investigators shall each make a determination and recommendation to the Board of the merit of the complaint after the completion of their inquiry as a part of the joint investigation. This shall mean when either the Board or the Department has completed its inquiry. The completion of questioning by the Board or the Department shall not constitute the completion of the joint investigation or the questioning of the other. 

7. The Board shall review findings and recommendations made by the Department and Board investigators after the joint investigation, determine if additional information is needed and/or additional witnesses should be interviewed, or accept the report of the Department, accept the report of the Board investigators, or accept a combination of the two. The Board shall make recommendations concerning discipline. If the Board findings differ from the report received by Department investigators, representatives of the Board and the Department shall confer to discover if any reconciliation of differences is possible. A report of said meeting shall be given to the Board at its next meeting. The Board shall then vote to amend or retain its findings and recommendations. Final findings and recommendations shall be submitted to the Chief of Police. 

8. The Board shall review the findings and recommendations of the Internal Affairs Division of the Department and the Board investigators at the next scheduled Board meeting following the Board receiving such findings and recommendations. 

9. If the Board determines by majority vote that additional information is needed it may submit additional questions to the Department and the Board investigators. The joint investigators shall attempt to acquire this additional information or interview additional witnesses, and submit new findings and recommendations to the Board. All rules pertaining to a joint investigation apply to this additional fact finding. This process may be repeated as necessary. 

10. If the Board is not satisfied after the additional fact finding it may by majority vote conduct an independent investigation as prescribed in this ordinance and make findings and recommendations upon its completion to be submitted to the Chief of the Police. The Board investigators shall be permitted to call complainants, witnesses, and representative employees of the Department, ask questions, take sworn testimony as part of these interviews and have access to all documents, tapes and recordings acquired and relevant to the joint investigation. The Board shall assign an investigator previously uninvolved with the joint investigation to any independent investigation. Hearings for such independent investigations shall be held in a closed session of the Board attended by board members, witnesses and staff designated by the Board. 

11. A complainant at any time may agree to or request mediation in lieu of an investigation. The Board or the Department may also recommend mediation. Mediation may only take place if the complainant and subject of the complaint so agree. 

12. After completion of all investigations, a majority of all of the members of the Board shall determine, based on a preponderance of the evidence, its findings and recommendations. A written statement indicating such findings and recommendations shall be forwarded to the Chief of Police and the complainant. The Chief shall not act on this report for a ten day period to allow for the filing of an appeal by the complainant. 

13. The Chief of Police shall refrain from any disposition of the case or disciplinary action until after studying the Board’s review process, findings and recommendations unless such disciplinary action is deemed necessary for the temporary protection of the public welfare. A final action by the Chief shall not take place until after the Board’s recommendation. 

14. Board independent investigation of any complaint shall be postponed, if grand jury proceedings are initiated against the subject officer, until the conclusion of all criminal proceedings relating to the subject’s conduct in the incident or complaint. 

15. Complainants may appeal the Board’s decision during a ten day period following official notification of the Board’s decision. Grounds for appeal must consist of the presentation of new evidence or a showing of inadequate investigative work. An investigator different from the original investigator on the case as selected by the Board and/or set forth in Board rules and procedures will examine the appeal and present that information to the Board for reevaluation. 

SECTION SIX. Cooperation of Department 

1. It shall be the duty of the Department to provide such assistance as the Board may reasonably request, to cooperate fully with investigations by the Board, and to provide to the Board, upon request, records and other materials which are necessary for the investigation of complaints submitted pursuant to this section. 

2. The Chief of Police shall ensure that officers and employees of the Department appear before and respond to inquiries of the Board and its civilian investigators in connection with the investigation of complaints submitted pursuant to this section, provided that such inquiries are conducted in accordance with department procedures for interrogation of members. 

3. The Chief of Police shall report in writing to the Board and to the Mayor any actions taken in cases in which the Board submitted a finding or recommendation to the Chief of Police with respect to a complaint or police policy recommendation. If the Chief’s actions related to a complaint are contrary to the Board’s recommendations the Chief shall provide an explanation to the Board. 

4. The provisions of this section or these articles shall not be construed to limit, interfere, or impair the authority or duties of the Chief of Police and the Mayor to discipline members of the Department. The provisions of this section or these articles shall not be construed to limit or impair the rights of members of the Department with respect to disciplinary action, including, but not limited to the right of notice and hearing, which may be established by any provision of law or otherwise. 

5. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to prevent or hinder the investigation or prosecution of members of the Department for violations of law by any court of competent jurisdiction, a grand jury, circuit attorney, or other authorized officer, agency, or body. 

SECTION SEVEN. Administrative Structure 

The Board shall be authorized to employ a director, who shall have professional experience related to investigations and office management and who does not have prior law enforcement experience. The director shall appoint such administrative personnel as needed to effectively administer the duties of the Board. This shall include both office staff and investigators. No employee engaged in investigation of any complaint may be or have been an employee of any law enforcement agency. Personnel shall be hired in conformity with the rules and regulations of the Personnel Department of the City. The salaries of the administrative employees shall be commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the respective positions. The Board may accept grants gifts or bequests, public or private, to help finance its activities. The Board may incur such expenses sufficient to allow fulfillment of Board responsibilities under this ordinance as are approved by the normal budgetary procedures of the City of St. Louis.

SECTION EIGHT. Confidentiality 

1. The Department shall when submitting information to the Board place identifying marks on any confidential information. 

2. The Board shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 610 of the Revised Code of the State of Missouri. 

3. The Board in reviewing or investigating any complaint which contains references to personnel records or any records which are protected from disclosure by law shall hold closed meetings in compliance with Section 610.021 RSMo. The confidentiality of any file, record, or other data received by the Board in its review or investigation of an incident or a complaint shall be strictly maintained by every member of the Board and its employees. 

4. It shall be a violation of this ordinance for any Board member or Board employee to disclose confidential information to anyone other than another Board member, a Board employee, authorized police personnel or as compelled testimony in a court proceeding. Any Board member or employee who is found guilty of such unlawful disclosure shall be subject to sanctions as set forth in rules and regulations of the Board. As defined in Chapter 610 RSMo., the members of the Board shall not be deemed the custodian of any records reviewed or prepared by the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department in response to a complaint.

SECTION NINE. Severability Clause 

The provisions of this ordinance shall be severable. In the event that any provision of this ordinance is found by a court of competent jurisdiction to be unconstitutional, the remaining provisions of this ordinance are valid unless the court finds the valid provisions of this ordinance are so essentially and inseparably connected with, and so dependent upon, the void provision that it cannot be presumed that the Board of Aldermen would have enacted the valid provisions without the void ones or unless the Court finds that the valid provisions, standing alone, are incomplete and incapable of being executed in accordance with the legislative intent.