[Adopted 9-14-2021 by Ord. No. 1246]
A.
The Police Accountability and Internal Affairs Policy, as adopted
on June 9, 2020, is hereby ratified and included in this article.
The appointment of members to the Police Accountability and Internal
Affairs Board (also called the Police Accountability and Internal
Affairs Committee, in the aforementioned June 9, 2020, Policy) on
August 11, 2020, are hereby ratified.
B.
A Police Accountability and Internal Affairs Board is hereby created
by and for the City of Monessen. The Board shall consist of five voting
members, with staggered terms of five years each, one of which shall
be the Mayor. The four citizen members shall be appointed by the procedures
laid out in Ordinance 1243,[1] as it related to Board appointments. Once a term has expired,
members shall be appointed or re-appointed by a majority vote of City
Council, after the vacancy has been advertised and the public has
been notified. The Board shall not elect officers or bylaws, but shall
follow the procedures in this article. The Chief of Police shall serve
as a nonvoting liaison to the Board, in order to update the Board
on police matters. Board members shall not disclose any personnel
information or other confidential information to the public. Disclosing
such information shall constitute the removal of the Board member
in question, by Monessen City Council. In such case a vacancy arises,
standard appointment procedures shall follow.
A.
It is the policy of the City to continually review and evaluate the
policies, procedures, rules, regulations, and training relating to
its Police Department.
B.
It is the policy of the City to investigate all complaints against
a member of its Police Department regardless of the source of such
complaints through a regulated, fair, and impartial internal investigation.
C.
Primary responsibility for supervising, conducting, coordinating,
and maintaining the effective governance and internal affairs functions
of the Police Department lies with the Chief of Police and the Police
Accountability and Internal Affairs Board.
D.
The governance function is important for the maintenance of professional
conduct in a law enforcement agency. The effectiveness of the Police
Department depends on the adequate and proper training and preparation
of each employee, particularly with respect to how to interact with
members of the public.
E.
The internal affairs function is important for the maintenance of
professional conduct in a law enforcement agency. The integrity of
the Police Department depends on the personal integrity and discipline
of each employee. To a large degree, the public image of the Police
Department is determined by the quality of the internal affairs function
in responding to allegations of misconduct against the Police Department
and its officers.
F.
Internal affairs investigation involves allegations against a member
of the Police Department; it is essential that the process be not
only lawful, but confidential as well. This necessitates strict confidentiality
and full adherence to procedure.
G.
The objective of the accountability reviews are:
(1)
Protection of the public;
(2)
Protection of the Police Department;
(3)
Protection of employees;
(4)
Review of Police Department policies, procedures, rules, and regulations
to evaluate their effectiveness and appropriateness;
(5)
Recommendations for revision and additions of policies, procedures,
rules, or regulations.
A.
The Police Accountability and Internal Affairs Board shall periodically
review City policies, procedures, rules, and regulations relating
to the Police Department to determine whether such policies, procedures,
rules, and regulations constitute best practices, or affective, or
create unnecessary risks for the safety of employees or members of
the public.
B.
The Police Accountability and Internal Affairs Board shall make recommendations
to the Chief of Police, the Mayor, and the City Council regarding
the revision, addition, amendment, and implementation of policies,
procedures, rules, and regulations.
A.
In order to ensure full and fair investigation of citizens'
complaints against police officers and to create a system for formally
recording and accounting for such investigations, any and all complaints
will henceforth be initiated by the filing of a formal sworn complaint
which shall contain the following information:
(1)
Name of complainant;
(2)
Name and/or description of the officer alleged to have committed
the improper act(s) complained of to the best of complainant's
knowledge;
(3)
Date and approximate time of incident;
(4)
Description of act(s) complained of in sufficient detail so as to
permit a reasonable investigation;
(5)
Address and telephone number, if available, of complainant;
(6)
Name(s), address(es), and telephone number(s) of eyewitnesses to
support allegations of complaint.
B.
A citizen who makes a complaint against a police officer but fails
to file a formal complaint in connection therewith shall be informed
that all citizens are afforded the right to have allegation against
police officers officially investigated by way of filing a formal
sworn complaint.
C.
The complaint shall be made on a form to be provided by the City
and shall be in triplicate, one copy to be retained by the complainant,
one copy to be provided immediately to the Chief of Police, the Mayor,
and the Police Accountability and Internal Affairs Board, and, unless
inappropriate under the circumstances, one copy to be forwarded to
the police officer under investigation, who may be required to draft
a formal response to such charges as alleged.
D.
The complaint shall be sworn and attested to in the same manner as
a criminal complaint and shall be given an identifying number so that
it may be referred to and/or tracked throughout all phases of investigation
and/or disposition. Forms for citizen complaints shall be made available
at the City Municipal Building.
E.
In any matter involving the Chief of Police, the complaint shall
be submitted directly to the Mayor and the Police Accountability and
Internal Affairs Board for investigation and determination.
A.
All complaints shall be fully investigated by the Police Accountability
and Internal Affairs Board, or by personnel designated by the same.
Upon completion of the investigation, the Police Accountability and
Internal Affairs Board, or designated personnel or representative,
as the case may be, shall issue a formal report, which shall include
a summary of the facts gathered and a recommendation for disposition
of the complaint. Such recommendation for disposition shall be expressed
in the following manner:
B.
The formal report shall be forwarded to and reviewed by the Chief
of Police, the Mayor, or City Council, who shall thereafter determine,
among other things, whether or not disciplinary action is warranted.
C.
The City shall provide written notification to the complainant of
the final disposition of the complaint. Those categories of recommended
disposition enumerated in this section as applicable to the formal
report shall likewise be applicable to the City's written notification
of final disposition to the complainant.
All ordinances or resolutions or parts of ordinances or resolutions
or code sections insofar as they are inconsistent herewith are hereby
repealed and rescinded to the extent of any such conflict.
This article shall come into effect immediately upon enactment.
