Grants immunity from liability and professional retaliation against a law enforcement employee who intervenes against police misconduct committed by another member of law enforcement.
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
8576
IN SENATE
June 16, 2020
___________
Introduced by Sen. JACKSON -- read twice and ordered printed, and when
printed to be committed to the Committee on Rules
AN ACT to amend the executive law, in relation to law enforcement inter-
vention against police misconduct
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The executive law is amended by adding a new section 837-v
2 to read as follows:
3 § 837-v. Law enforcement intervention against police misconduct. 1.
4 Definitions. When used in this section, and unless the specific context
5 indicates otherwise, the following terms shall have the following mean-
6 ings:
7 (a) "Police misconduct" means conduct by a law enforcement officer in
8 the course of an arrest or otherwise in the official capacity of such
9 law enforcement officer that is:
10 (i) excessive, forceful, or violent and that is not justified under
11 section 35.30 of the penal law;
12 (ii) a false arrest;
13 (iii) sexual misconduct; or
14 (iv) witness tampering.
15 (b) A "law enforcement employee" means:
16 (i) any employee of the state police department, as defined in section
17 two hundred twenty-three of this chapter;
18 (ii) any employee of a county sheriff's department; or
19 (iii) any employee of a city, town, village, university, park, or
20 public authority's police department.
21 2. Immunity from liability and professional retaliation against a law
22 enforcement employee who intervenes against police misconduct.
23 (a) Any law enforcement employee who in good faith intervenes against
24 police misconduct in compliance with this article shall have immunity
25 from any liability, civil or criminal, that might otherwise result by
26 reason of such actions.
27 (b) A law enforcement agency shall not take any retaliatory personnel
28 action, as such term is defined in paragraph (e) of subdivision one of
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD16620-02-0
S. 8576 2
1 section seven hundred forty of the labor law, against a law enforcement
2 employee because such employee believes that he or she had reasonable
3 cause to intervene against police misconduct and intervened against such
4 police misconduct.
5 § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.
