[Ord. No. 626 §§1 —
4, 10-13-1997; Ord. No.
04-037 §§1 — 2, 11-22-2004; Ord. No. 05-001 §§1,
4, 1-10-2005; Ord. No.
05-010 §1, 3-14-2005; Ord. No. 43-2020, 12-7-2020[1]]
A.
Appointment
— Term Of Office. An Emergency Services Personnel Board is hereby
established in the City. The Board shall be composed of five (5) members,
one (1) of whom shall be a member of the Board of Aldermen, appointed
by the Mayor for a one (1) year term. The other four (4) members of
the Emergency Services Personnel Board shall be appointed by the Mayor
with the consent of a majority of the elected members of the Board
of Aldermen for a term of two (2) years each. The Mayor, with the
consent of the majority of the members of the Board of Aldermen, shall
fill vacancies for any unexpired term. A member of the Emergency Services
Personnel Board may be removed in the same manner as prescribed by
ordinance for the removal of other appointed City Officers. Members
of the Emergency Services Personnel Board shall serve until their
successors shall have been appointed and qualified. Members of the
Board shall serve without pay for such service.
B.
Qualifications.
Persons appointed as members of the Emergency Services Personnel Board
shall, as of the time of their appointment, be at least twenty-one
(21) years of age, a qualified voter of the City of Herculaneum, and
shall have been a resident of the City for at least one (1) year immediately
prior to appointment. Any member of the Board who ceases to be a resident
or a qualified voter in the City shall automatically cease to be a
member of the Board. Members of the Board shall be required to take
the oath of office prescribed by ordinance for City Officers.
C.
Organization
— Rules — Compensation. The member of the Emergency Services
Personnel Board who is also a member of the Board of Aldermen shall
serve as Chairman of the Emergency Services Personnel Board. The Emergency
Services Personnel Board shall elect one (1) of its members to serve
as Vice Chairman, and the Personnel Board may adopt and amend from
time to time rules governing its internal operation. Such rules shall
not be inconsistent with the ordinances of the City or the Statutes
of the State of Missouri. Should the Board adopt such rules, it shall
file a copy of same with the City Clerk. A majority of the members
of the Personnel Board shall constitute a quorum, and the action of
a majority of the members present at the meeting at which a quorum
is present shall be the action of the Personnel Board.
D.
Powers
And Duties. The Emergency Services Personnel Board shall have the
following powers and duties:
1.
The Board shall be empowered to consider and recommend Police and
Fire personnel policies.
2.
The Board shall, when referred to it by the Mayor or the Board of
Aldermen, hear complaints by citizens directed against the Chief of
Police, Fire Chief or other members of the Police Department or Fire
Department of the City.
3.
The Board shall, if requested by the Mayor or the Board of Aldermen,
interview prospective applicants for the job of Chief of Police, Fire
Chief, Policeman or Firefighter within the City. In doing so, the
Board may consider recommendations of the Police Chief or Fire Chief
and any relevant factors, including training and experience, aptitude,
knowledge, character, existence of criminal record, health, physical
fitness, marksmanship and other qualifications as, in the judgment
of the Board, shall enter into a proper determination of the relative
fitness of the applicants. Examinations may be conducted; the same
may be either written, oral or physical, and may evaluate training
and experience, require a demonstration of skill or any combination
of these factors. Political or religious opinions or affiliations
shall not be considered in determining the qualifications of any applicant,
and the Board shall not elicit information concerning same. The Board
shall make recommendations to the Board of Aldermen; however, the
appointing authority shall remain in the Mayor with the consent of
a majority of the elected members of the Board of Aldermen.
a.
Any Police Officer or Firefighter hired from and after the effective
date of this Section shall be on a period of probation for one (1)
year within the City of Herculaneum. Such probation can be extended
upon recommendation of the Chief of Police for policemen or Fire Chief
for Firefighters with the consent of a majority of the members of
the Board of Aldermen.
4.
The Mayor and the Board of Aldermen may take such disciplinary or
other action affecting the Police Chief, Fire Chief, Policeman or
Firefighter as they deem appropriate without charges, notice of hearing
or hearing. Nothing herein shall change the status of a City employee
from an employee at will status. If the Police Chief, Fire Chief,
a Policeman or a Firefighter has received notice of his/her suspension
from duty, demotion or discharge or recommendation for discharge and
believes he/she is entitled to a hearing, he/she must deliver a written
request for hearing to the City Clerk within five (5) calendar days
of such notice; and failing such request, such Policeman or Firefighter
shall not be entitled to a hearing. If such request is given to the
City Clerk, he/she shall be responsible for immediately transmitting
it to the Mayor. Upon receipt of such request, and it is so determined
by the Mayor or the Board of Aldermen, the Emergency Services Personnel
Board or the Board of Aldermen shall hold a personnel hearing with
reference to the disciplinary action against any member of the Police
Department or Fire Department. Nothing herein shall be interpreted
to require the City to provide a hearing. If a hearing is provided,
the following procedures shall be followed:
a.
Notice of any allegations for the disciplinary action shall be preferred
in writing by the Mayor or by the City Attorney. A copy of the allegation
shall be delivered to the firefighter involved or mailed by registered
mail to him/her at his/her last known address.
b.
Thereafter, the Personnel Board or the Board of Aldermen shall hold
a hearing on the matter and shall give written notice of the date,
time and place of such hearing to the affected member of the Police
or Fire Department. At such hearing, the Emergency Services Personnel
Board or the Board of Aldermen shall hear evidence of the City; and
the affected member of the Police or Fire Department shall be entitled
to be present with counsel and shall be entitled to cross-examine
witnesses and to present evidence. The Personnel Board or the Board
of Aldermen shall have the right to compel attendance at such hearing
by way of subpoena and to compel the production of objects, books
and records.
c.
Promptly after the conclusion of the hearing, the Personnel Board
or the Board of Aldermen shall in open or closed session determine
what action, if any, should be taken with respect to such officer
or firefighter; shall reduce their recommendation to writing. If the
hearing is held by the Emergency Services Personnel Board, such recommendations
shall be brought before the Board of Aldermen at its regular meeting
or at a special meeting held for that purpose. The final action to
be taken shall be determined by the Mayor and Board of Aldermen pursuant
to the provisions of the Revised Statutes of Missouri.
