SB 456-FN-A - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
03/17/2022 1042s
2022 SESSION
22-3123
04/08
SENATE BILL 456-FN-A
AN ACT establishing a law enforcement conduct review committee in the police standards
and training council and making an appropriation therefor.
SPONSORS: Sen. Carson, Dist 14
COMMITTEE: Judiciary
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ANALYSIS
This bill establishes the law enforcement conduct review committee in the New Hampshire
police standards and training council and makes an appropriation therefor.
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Explanation: Matter added to current law appears in bold italics.
Matter removed from current law appears [in brackets and struckthrough.]
Matter which is either (a) all new or (b) repealed and reenacted appears in regular type.
 SB 456-FN-A - AS AMENDED BY THE SENATE
03/17/2022 1042s 22-3123
04/08
STATE OF NEW HAMPSHIRE
In the Year of Our Lord Two Thousand Twenty Two
AN ACT establishing a law enforcement conduct review committee in the police standards
and training council and making an appropriation therefor.
Be it Enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives in General Court convened:
1 1 Findings and Policy; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:1 to read as
2 follows:
3 106-L:1 Findings and Policy.
4 I. The legislature finds that the administration of criminal justice is of statewide concern;
5 that police and corrections work are important to the health, safety, and welfare of the people of this
6 state; that police and corrections work are of such a nature as to require education and training of a
7 professional character; and that it is in the public interest that such education and training be made
8 available to persons who seek to become police and corrections officers, persons who are serving as
9 police and corrections officers in a temporary or probationary capacity, and persons already in
10 regular service.
11 II. Further, the legislature finds that law enforcement officers are vested with
12 responsibilities that require high standards of moral character, integrity, knowledge and
13 trust. In support of these heightened responsibilities and to continuously strive for public
14 confidence in law enforcement officers, the law enforcement conduct review committee is
15 created at New Hampshire police standards and training council.
16 2 Definitions; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:2 to read as follows:
17 106-L:2 Definitions. In this chapter:
18 I. ["Police officer" means any appointed or elected employee of a police department or any
19 appointed employee of a sheriff's department, the fish and game department, the department of
20 safety, or any special agent appointed by the state liquor commission which is administered by the
21 state or any of its political subdivisions and who is responsible for the prevention, detection or
22 prosecution of crime or the enforcement of the penal, traffic, highway, boating, liquor, or bingo and
23 lucky 7 laws of this state or any of its political subdivisions.] "Committee" means the law
24 enforcement conduct review committee.
25 II. "Council" means the police standards and training council.
26 III. "Director" means the director of the police standards and training council.
27 IV. “Law enforcement officer" means any individual who is
28 (a) Employed by a local, municipal, county, or state governmental agency in the
29 state of New Hampshire;
30 (b) Certified or certifiable by the police standards and training council;
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1 (c) Responsible for the prevention, detection, or prosecution of crimes and the
2 enforcement of the laws of the state and of its political subdivisions; and at least one of the
3 following:
4 (1) Has full general arrest powers, or
5 (2) A certified or certifiable state corrections officer, or
6 (3) A certified or certifiable state probation-parole officer.
7 V. "Misconduct" means:
8 (a) An officer has been convicted of one or more the following:
9 (1) A crime which constitutes a felony in this or any other state;
10 (2) A misdemeanor for which there was a sentence of incarceration,
11 regardless of whether all or part of the sentence was suspended;
12 (3) Driving while intoxicated in this or any other state;
13 (4) A crime of moral turpitude. "Moral turpitude" means an illegal act
14 involving dishonesty, deceit, theft, or willful misrepresentation, or a crime which tends to
15 bring discredit on the police or corrections service. A crime of moral turpitude shall
16 include those crimes listed in POL 402.02(a)(4); or
17 (b) A sustained finding that the officer has engaged in conduct negatively
18 reflecting on the officer’s trustworthiness or credibility, including but not limited to:
19 (1) A deliberate and material lie during a civil, administrative, or criminal
20 proceeding, in a police report, an internal investigation, or an investigation conducted by
21 the New Hampshire police standards and training council;
22 (2) A falsification of records or evidence in an investigation or official
23 proceeding; or
24 (3) A misrepresentation or tampering with official records or reports,
25 tampering with witnesses or falsifying evidence; or
26 (c) A sustained finding that during the course of the officer’s official duties, the
27 officer engaged in discriminatory conduct on the basis of age, sex, sexual orientation,
28 gender identity, race, religious creed, color, marital status, familial status, physical or
29 mental disability, or national origin prohibited by RSA 354-A; or
30 (d) A sustained finding that the officer engaged in conduct, whether on or off
31 duty, that would adversely reflect on their fitness to perform law enforcement or
32 corrections duties to include engaging in racist conduct or making racist statements; or
33 (e) A sustained finding that the officer engaged in acts or omissions of conduct
34 which would cause a reasonable person to have doubts about the individual's honesty,
35 fairness, and respect for the rights of others and for the laws of the state or nation; or
36 (f) A sustained finding that the officer knowingly committed an egregious
37 dereliction of duty resulting in a preventable fatality or serious bodily injury or resulting
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1 in the deprivation of constitutional rights or leads to the failure of someone to be
2 prosecuted for a felony; or
3 (g) A sustained finding that during the course of the officer’s official duties, the
4 officer engaged in the use of excessive and illegal force.
5 [IV.] VI. "State corrections officer" means any sworn classified employee of the New
6 Hampshire department of corrections who is responsible for the physical custody and security of
7 inmates at a state correctional institution and is authorized by law to use force to prevent escapes
8 from such institution.
9 VII. “Sustained finding” means a final determination on the merits of an allegation
10 only after the completion of the grievance or legal appeal process, and after the officer has
11 exhausted all appellate rights, unless the grievance or legal process determines that the
12 alleged misconduct was unfounded, not sustained, or that the officer was exonerated.
13 [V.] VIII. "State probation-parole officer" means any sworn employee of the New Hampshire
14 department of corrections who is responsible for the supervision of probationers and parolees, who
15 has an assigned caseload, and who has the authority to arrest for violations of the rules of probation
16 or parole.
17 IX. “Valid complaint” means a statement in writing made by a person who
18 identifies themselves to the council or any law enforcement agency that alleges a certified
19 law enforcement officer, state corrections officer or probation parole officer has committed
20 an act or acts of misconduct.
21 X. "Valid investigation" means an investigation conducted pursuant to a law
22 enforcement agency's established or accepted procedures. An investigation shall not be
23 valid if:
24 (a) The agency has not adopted an effective internal affairs program;
25 (b) The agency refuses, without any legitimate basis, to conduct an
26 investigation;
27 (c) The agency intentionally did not report allegations to the council as
28 required;
29 (d) The agency attempts to cover up the misconduct or takes an action intended
30 to discourage or intimidate a complainant;
31 (e) The agency's executive officer is the officer accused of the misconduct; or
32 (f) The agency’s findings or conclusions are clearly not supported by the
33 evidence or contain material errors or omissions of fact or law.
34 XI. "Administrative suspension" means a temporary and non-disciplinary
35 suspension of the certification of a police officer, corrections officer, or probation-parole
36 officer for regulatory purposes pending an investigation or hearing.
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1 3 Membership; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:3, I-II to read as
2 follows:
3 I. There is established a police standards and training council. It shall consist of the
4 following members:
5 (a) Two members shall be [chiefs of police in towns] a chief of police in a town or for
6 a university;
7 (b) Two members shall be chiefs of police in cities;
8 (c) Two members shall be county sheriffs;
9 (d) Two members shall be judges of courts with criminal jurisdiction;
10 (e) [The chancellor of the community college system of New Hampshire, or designee;] A
11 professor from a New Hampshire college or university whose primary teaching
12 responsibilities are in the field of criminal justice or similar course of study;
13 (f) A law enforcement officer of a town or city employed at a rank below
14 lieutenant;
15 [(f)] (g) The director of the division of state police, or designee;
16 [(g)] (h) The attorney general, or designee;
17 [(h)] (i) The commissioner of the department of corrections, or designee; and
18 [(i)] (j) [Two] Four public members, [neither] none of whom shall be a certified police
19 officer, lawyer, or judge, and [neither] none of whom shall have a spouse, sibling, or parent, by birth,
20 adoption, or marriage, who is a certified police officer, lawyer, or judge.
21 II. Except for the members appointed pursuant to subparagraphs [I(e)-(h)] I(g)-(i) who shall
22 serve during their continuance in office, members of the council shall be appointed by the governor
23 for terms of 2 years. No member shall serve beyond the time that the office or employment which
24 qualified such member for appointment. Any vacancy on the council shall be filled for the unexpired
25 term in the same manner as the original appointment is held. Persons filling vacancies shall be
26 appointed to serve out the unexpired term and shall have the same qualifications for office as the
27 member whose vacancy they are filling.
28 4 Executive Branch Jurisdiction; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:4
29 to read as follows:
30 106-L:4 Executive Branch Jurisdiction. The police standards and training council, its
31 committees, and its employees [is] are an executive branch [council] agency pursuant to RSA
32 21-G:6-b, III. The council, the director, and employees hired by the director performing the
33 functions required by this chapter shall be subject to RSA 7:8, RSA 541-B, and RSA 99-D, and
34 contracts by them shall be subject to attorney general review and review and approval by the
35 governor and executive council.
36 5 Powers; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:5, III to read as follows:
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1 III. For the purposes of a disciplinary hearing, investigate, review investigative reports,
2 subpoena and examine witnesses under oath, take oaths or affirmations, and reduce to writing
3 testimony given at any hearing. Any person whose rights or privileges may be affected at such a
4 disciplinary hearing may appear with witnesses and be represented by counsel. A disciplinary
5 hearing shall be public; however, a portion of the hearing may be closed to the public only if the
6 party seeking closure can prove with specificity that the portion of the hearing will reveal
7 confidential information that creates a compelling interest outweighing the public's presumed right
8 of access. The council may, in a nonpublic session, hear and consider the request for closure and rule
9 on such request.
10 6 Powers; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:5, V to read as follows:
11 V. Certify persons as being qualified under the provisions of this chapter to be police
12 officers, state corrections officers, state probation-parole officers, or certified border patrol agents for
13 the purposes of RSA 594:26, and establish rules under RSA 541-A for the investigation, suspension
14 or revocation of the certification of such persons in the case of egregious misconduct or failure to
15 comply with council standards.
16 7 Powers; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:5, XIV to read as follows:
17 XIV. Make such investigations as may be necessary to determine whether law enforcement
18 officers and governmental units are complying with the provisions of this chapter.
19 8 Powers; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:5, XX to read as follows:
20 XX. The director may grant authority to any certified full-time police officer or attorney
21 employed by the council to serve as an assistant director, [or] law enforcement training specialist,
22 or investigator to enforce the provisions of this chapter and any rules adopted under this chapter,
23 and cooperate and exchange information with any local, state, or federal law enforcement agency
24 relative to the qualification and moral fitness of applicants for employment or continued employment
25 as police officers or corrections officers. Certified full time law enforcement officers employed
26 by the council shall maintain their law enforcement certification during their employment
27 with the council, shall have statewide law enforcement authority, and shall be recognized
28 as a peace officer as defined by RSA 594:1, III.
29 9 New Paragraphs; Powers; Police Standards and Training Council. Amend RSA 106-L:5 by
30 inserting after paragraph XXII the following new paragraphs:
31 XXIII. The council shall assess whether law enforcement agencies are in compliance with
32 this chapter and whether they have sufficient policies and procedures to handle internal affairs
33 investigations governing allegations of misconduct;
34 XXIV. Upon receipt of written notification of the arrest of a law enforcement officer by the
35 council, to include a copy of the charging document, the director may impose an immediate and
36 temporary administrative suspension of the involved officer’s certification. The aggrieved officer
37 may file a written petition with the council to be heard at the next regularly scheduled council
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1 meeting on the administrative action. The administrative suspension or the failure of the officer to
2 request such hearing shall not be prejudicial. Until such time that the matter is heard and decided
3 on by the council, or resolved by informal process approved by the council, the administrative
4 suspension shall remain in place.
5 XXV. The council may impose any of the following sanctions on a law enforcement officer's
6 certification upon its final finding on clear and convincing evidence that a law enforcement officer
7 committed misconduct or violated any administrative rule:
8 (a) A written warning;
9 (b) A suspension, that may run concurrent with the length and time of any suspension
10 imposed by the employing law enforcement agency with an effective internal affairs program, which
1