SF 2377 (LSB 5680SV (1) 88)

SENATE FILE 2377

BY  COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY

(SUCCESSOR TO SSB 3174)

A BILL FOR

An Act relating to officer disciplinary actions.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF IOWA:

    Section 1.  Section 80F.1, subsection 1, Code 2020, is amended by adding the following new paragraph:
   NEW PARAGRAPH.  g.  “Brady list” means a list of officers maintained by the county attorney’s office, including officers who may have impeached themselves as witnesses and officers who may have violated the pretrial discovery rule requiring officers to turn over all evidence that might be used to exonerate a defendant. 
    Sec. 2.  Section 80F.1, Code 2020, is amended by adding the following new subsection:
   NEW SUBSECTION.  20.  a.  An officer shall not be discharged, disciplined, or threatened with discharge or discipline by a state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency solely due to the inclusion of the officer’s name on a Brady list.
   b.  This subsection does not prohibit a law enforcement agency from dismissing, suspending, demoting, or taking other disciplinary actions against an officer based on the underlying actions that resulted in the officer’s name being placed on a Brady list including any impeachment evidence against the officer or evidence that the officer may not have turned over exculpatory evidence to a defendant. If a collective bargaining agreement applies, the actions taken by the law enforcement agency shall conform to the rules and procedures adopted by the collective bargaining agreement. 
    Sec. 3.  BRADY LIST INTERIM COMMITTEE.
   1.  The legislative council is requested to establish a Brady list interim committee for the 2020 interim. The purpose of the committee shall be to do all of the following:
   a.  Study the disclosure of information contained in officer personnel files as such information relates to a Brady list as defined in section 80F.1. 
   b.  Study the efficiency of implementing a statewide system for a Brady list, identifying impartial entities to conduct investigations pertaining to an officer’s acts or omissions to act, and recommending the appropriate procedures, due process protections, appeal rights, and criteria for the placement and removal of an officer’s name on and from a Brady list.
   c.  Study any other issues that the committee determines relevant to its objective. The committee may solicit the advice or testimony of any organization or individual with information or expertise relevant to the purpose of the committee.
   2.  The committee shall consist of three members of the senate appointed by the majority leader of the senate, two members of the senate appointed by the minority leader of the senate, three members of the house of representatives appointed by the speaker of the house of representatives, and two members of the house of representatives appointed by the minority leader of the house of representatives. Additional committee members shall include the commissioner of the department of public safety or the commissioner’s designee, a district court judge appointed by the supreme court, and representatives from all of the following: the Iowa county attorneys association, the Iowa sheriffs and deputies association, the Iowa police chiefs association, the Iowa state police association, the Iowa peace officers association, the Iowa professional fire fighters, the Iowa state troopers association, and the Iowa state patrol supervisors association. The Iowa sheriffs and deputies association member representative shall be an officer who does not hold rank.
   3.  The committee shall elect a chairperson from the members appointed. 
   4.  The committee shall issue a report, including findings and recommendations, to the governor and the general assembly no later than December 16, 2020. 
EXPLANATION
The inclusion of this explanation does not constitute agreement with
the explanation’s substance by the members of the general assembly.
   This bill relates to police officer disciplinary actions and establishes a legislative interim committee. 
   The bill amends Code chapter 80F, relating to the rights of officers and public safety and emergency personnel. The bill prohibits an officer from being discharged, disciplined, or threatened with discharge or discipline by a state, county, or municipal law enforcement agency solely due to the inclusion of the officer’s name on a Brady list. The bill defines “Brady list” as a list of officers maintained by the county attorney’s office, including officers who may have impeached themselves as witnesses and officers who may have violated the pretrial discovery rule requiring officers to turn over any evidence that might be used to exonerate a defendant. However, a law enforcement agency may dismiss, suspend, demote, or take other disciplinary action against an officer based on the underlying actions that resulted in the officer’s name being placed on a Brady list including any impeachment evidence against the officer or evidence that the officer failed to provide a defendant with exculpatory evidence.
   The bill establishes a legislative interim committee to study the disclosure of officer personnel files as such information relates to a Brady list, study the efficiency of implementing a statewide system for a Brady list, identify impartial entities to conduct investigations pertaining to an officer’s acts and omissions to act, and recommend appropriate procedures, due process protections, appeal rights, and criteria for the placement and removal of an officer’s name on and from a Brady list. The committee may solicit the advice or testimony of any organization or individual with information or expertise relevant to its study.
   The committee shall consist of 10 legislative members and 10 members representing various interested stakeholder organizations, the department of public safety, and the court. The committee shall issue a report, including findings and recommendations, to the governor and the general assembly no later than December 16, 2020. 
   The bill defines “Brady list” as a list of officers maintained by the county attorney’s office, including officers who may have impeached themselves as witnesses and officers who may have violated the pretrial discovery rule established by Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963) requiring officers to turn over all evidence that might be used to exonerate a defendant.
   Under Code section 80F.1, “officer” means a certified law enforcement officer, fire fighter, emergency medical technician, corrections officer, detention officer, jailer, probation or parole officer, communications officer, or any other law enforcement officer certified by the Iowa law enforcement academy and employed by a municipality, county, or state agency.