TO AMEND THE CODE OF LAWS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, 1976, BY ADDING CHAPTER 2 TO TITLE 23 SO AS TO ENACT THE "ETHICAL POLICING TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY ACT" SO AS TO DEFINE CERTAIN TERMS, TO PROVIDE FOR A FRAMEWORK TO INSTITUTIONALIZE HIGH STANDARDS FOR POLICING PRACTICES AND CONDUCT BY THE CREATION OF CITIZEN REVIEW BOARDS AND THEIR DUTIES, TO PROVIDE FOR THE USE OF STANDARD FORMS TO RECORD LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER COMPLAINTS, TO PROVIDE A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY SHALL RECORD ALL INSTANCES OF DISCIPLINARY ACTION AGAINST A LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICER, TO PROVIDE ALL LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS SHALL ENGAGE IN ETHICAL POLICING, TO PROVIDE PENALTIES FOR VIOLATING CERTAIN PROVISIONS OF THIS CHAPTER, TO PROVIDE LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS MUST COMPLETE CERTAIN TRAINING AND CARRY LIABILITY INSURANCE, TO PROVIDE A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY MUST RELEASE AN ANNUAL REPORT THAT CONTAINS COMPLAINTS FILED AND DISCIPLINARY ACTIONS IMPOSED ON ITS LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS, AND TRACK THIS INFORMATION TO DETERMINE WHETHER CERTAIN UNETHICAL POLICING PATTERNS OF CONDUCT ARE OCCURRING, AND TO PROVIDE THAT CERTAIN CONDUCT BY LAW ENFORCEMENT OFFICERS SHALL PROHIBIT THEM FROM BEING REINSTATED, TRANSFERRED, OR EMPLOYED BY A LAW ENFORCEMENT AGENCY.
Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
SECTION 1. This act must be known and may be cited as the "Ethical Policing Transparency and Accountability Act".
SECTION 2. Title 23 of the 1976 Code is amended by adding:
Section 23-2-15. As contained in this chapter:
(1) 'Board' means citizen review board.
(2) 'Bodily injury' means any injury caused to an individual's person by a law enforcement officer as a result of law enforcement misconduct, including death.
(3) 'Citizen review board' means a board comprised of no less than five and no more than nine residents of the State, which meets no less than once every three months.
(4) 'Disciplinary action' means all discipline imposed as a result of conduct in violation of this chapter or the policies of a law enforcement agency.
(5) 'Disposition' means any status, applied to a complaint alleging law enforcement misconduct, after the complaint has been investigated, including investigations left incomplete or which are ongoing.
(6) 'Duty to intervene' means the requirement to intervene when misconduct occurs and to report any misconduct witnessed or learned of.
(7) 'Duty to safeguard life' means the requirement to refrain from law enforcement misconduct in the discharge of responsibilities, the requirement to discharge ones professional duties in the best interest of public safety, and the requirement to adhere to law enforcement policies and standards.
(8) 'Early warning system' means a system for electronically tracking complaints and disciplinary action, disaggregated by individual law enforcement officers.
(9) 'Ethical policing' means the discharge of responsibilities, stemming from employment as a law enforcement officer, which is devoid of law enforcement misconduct and which is carried out in conformance with this chapter, including the duty to safeguard life and the duty to intervene.
(10) 'Family unit' means individuals related by blood, marriage, or domestic partnership.
(11) 'Inspection' means the examination of information and records qualifying for public inspection, including securing physical copies and electronic copies, pursuant to the requirements of this chapter.
(12) 'Law enforcement misconduct' means conduct that violates ethical policing as defined in this section or the policies and standards of the employing law enforcement agency, including the following conduct:
(a) excessive use of force;
(b) bodily injury;
(c) sexual violence;
(d) exceeding authority;
(e) racial profiling; and
(f) failure to act on the duty to intervene.
(13) 'Qualified board member' means a resident of the State, no younger than eighteen years of age. However, the following individuals shall not be deemed qualified:
(a) an elected or appointed official;
(b) a member of a law enforcement agency; and
(c) an employee or representative of any agency responsible for training or certifying law enforcement officers.
Board membership shall reflect the general demographics of the jurisdiction it serves.
Section 23-2-20. (A) A state or local jurisdiction shall have the right to form citizen review boards comprised of qualified board members.
(B) Board membership shall be volunteer-based. However, where a jurisdiction has appropriated funds for use by the board, members may be offered a stipend.
(C) The board shall not spend more than fifty percent of its funds on stipends.
(D) The board shall be required to adopt a policy statement of non-discrimination. The policy statement shall apply to identification of qualified board members and the manner in which the board conducts its work. Members of the same family unit shall not serve on the board simultaneously and denial of membership in furtherance of this restriction shall not qualify as discrimination. A person shall not be denied the opportunity to serve on the board as a result of having been previously incarcerated.
(E) Any person or entity who denies the public the right to form, or otherwise interferes with formation of a review board is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than thirty days.
(F) Qualified board members shall serve a term of twelve consecutive months, but may not serve more than twenty-four consecutive months. Board membership shall be limited to two terms.
(G) A citizens review board shall convene for the purposes of discharging its responsibilities no less than once every three months.
(H) The board shall have the authority to meet as often as it deems necessary to discharge its responsibilities.
Section 23-2-25. (A) A municipality with a population of at least two thousand five hundred shall be qualified to form a board at the local level.
(B) The opportunity to form a board at the local level must be extended to the residents of a qualified jurisdiction before a board serving the qualified jurisdiction can be formed at any other level.
(C) A board formed at the local level shall have the authority to examine the policing practices, as set forth in this chapter, of any law enforcement agency providing service within the borders of its jurisdiction.
(D) If the population requirements to form a board at the local level do not exist or where the residents of a qualified jurisdiction choose not to form a board at the local level, the board can be formed at the county level.
(E) If a board is not formed at the county level, the board can be formed at the state level. A board formed at the state level can be comprised of qualified board members from anywhere within the State. A state-level board shall not discharge its responsibilities within any jurisdiction already served by a board which has been formed at the local level. Where a local-level board is formed after a state-level board has been formed, the state-level board shall yield to the local-level board.
Section 23-2-30. (A) A board shall have the authority to:
(1) examine, at will, complaint records and records of disciplinary action to identify best practices related to a law enforcement agency's response to, and its resolution of, law enforcement misconduct;
(2) examine, at will, complaint records and records of disciplinary action to assess a law enforcement agency's overall policing culture for conformance with ethical policing;
(3) examine, at will, complaint records and records of disciplinary action upon receipt of notice from any member of the public alleging law enforcement misconduct;
(4) examine, at will, complaint records and records of disciplinary action in response to publicly disclosed acts of alleged law enforcement misconduct;
(5) investigate and issue findings on incidents, including the use of force by a law enforcement officer, death or serious injury to any person held in custody, serious abuse of authority or misconduct, allegedly discriminatory stops, and other incidents regarding the conduct of law enforcement officers or civilian employees of a law enforcement agency serving under the authority of the locality;
(6) examine, at will, any written recommendation or final order issued as part of the disposition of a law enforcement action;
(7) examine, at will, any written recommendation or final order issued by a hearing board or similar body with the responsibility of adjudicating law enforcement complaints or law enforcement disciplinary actions;
(8) examine, at will, any recommendation resulting from an investigation or interrogation of a law enforcement officer;
(9) examine, at will, complaint records and records of disciplinary action held by any state or local law enforcement agency providing services within the boundaries of the jurisdiction served by the board;
(10) file a complaint, using the process set forth in this chapter, asserting law enforcement misconduct on behalf of a community member upon his request or upon the board's impression that a violation of ethical policing has occurred;
(11) engage in public education regarding its responsibilities and the breadth of its authority;
(12) publish, for public consumption, its findings and recommendations;
(13) request the agency with the authority to act on violations of this chapter to examine complaints of misconduct and records of disciplinary action for the purposes of determining whether a violation of this chapter has occurred;
(14) initiate an independent investigation into misconduct complaints without regard to the disposition of those complaints. Where the State has not appropriated funds to be used by the board for these purposes, the board shall have the authority to solicit donations to cover the expenses of the independent investigation;
(15) initiate an independent investigation into any law enforcement officer who has been reinstated and who does, or will, provide services within the borders of the jurisdiction served by the board. Where the State has not appropriated funds to be used by the board for these purposes, the board shall have the authority to solicit donations to cover the expenses of the independent investigation;
(16) initiate an investigation into any person, other than a member of the judiciary, who reinstates a law enforcement official. Where the State or local governing body has not appropriated funds to be used by the board for these purposes, the board shall have the authority to solicit donations to cover the expenses of the independent investigation;
(17) concordant with any investigation conducted pursuant to subsection (B)(1) or (2) and after consultation with the officer or employee's direct supervisor or commander, to make binding disciplinary determinations in cases that involve serious breaches of departmental and professional standards, as defined by the locality. These disciplinary determinations may include letters of reprimand, suspension without pay, suspension with pay, demotion within the department, reassignment within the department, termination, involuntary restitution, or mediation to be implemented by the local governmental employee with ultimate supervisory authority over officers or employees of law enforcement agencies under the authority of the locality;
(18) investigate policies, practices, and procedures of law enforcement agencies under the authority of the locality and to make recommendations regarding changes to the policies, practices, and procedures of law enforcement agencies under the authority of the locality. If the law enforcement agency declines to implement any recommended changes from the board, the law enforcement agency may be required to create a written record, which must be made available to the public, of its rationale for declining to implement recommendations of the board;
(19) review all investigations conducted internally by law enforcement agencies under the authority of the locality, including internal investigations of civilians employed by the law enforcement agencies, and to issue findings regarding the accuracy, completeness, and impartiality of those investigations and the sufficiency of any discipline resulting from those investigations;
(20) make public reports on the activities of the board, including investigations, hearings, findings, recommendations, determinations, and oversight activities;
(21) undertake any other duties as reasonably necessary for the board to effectuate its lawful purpose as provided for in this section to effectively oversee the law enforcement agencies as authorized by the locality; and
(22) hold hearings and, if after making a good faith effort to voluntarily obtain the attendance of witnesses and the production of books, papers, and other evidence necessary to perform its duties the board is unable to obtain such attendance or production, it may apply to the circuit court for a subpoena compelling the attendance of such witnesses or the production of such books, papers, and other evidence, and the court, upon good cause shown, may cause the subpoena to be issued. Any person so subpoenaed may apply to the court that issued the subpoena to quash it.
(B) An examination authorized by this section shall extend to the complaint and disciplinary records of:
(1) law enforcement officers; and
(2) the chief law enforcement officer, his deputies and assistants, and any person exercising the duties and responsibilities common to the roles contained in this section.
(C) Any person, agency, or entity who denies or otherwise thwarts the authority granted to a citizen review board is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, must be fined not more than one thousand dollars or imprisoned not more than thirty days.
(D) Any person currently employed by a law enforcement agency is ineligible to serve on a civilian review board established pursuant to this section.
(E) The board may retain legal counsel to represent it in all cases, hearings, controversies, or matters involving its interest.
Section 23-2-35. (A) All law enforcement agencies within the State shall use the same form to record complaints alleging law enforcement misconduct.
(B) Complaints alleging law enforcement officer misconduct filed by a law enforcement officer against another law enforcement officer must be recorded on the standardized complaint form.
(C) All information submitted on the standardized complaint form must be made available for public inspection without regard to the status of any underlying or related investigation except where the complaint was filed as contained in subsection (B). The complainant shall have the opportunity to indicate whether the complainant's personal contact information should be withheld from inspection.
(D) A complainant must be afforded the opportunity to file a complaint in person, electronically, or by telephone interview. If the complainant files the complaint electronically, he shall have the right to receive assistance from a person he chooses.
(E) The standardized form shall include:
(1) the date and time the complaint was received;
(2) the location at which the complaint was taken;
(3) the name, rank, and badge number of the person taking the complaint;
(4) the telephone number at which the person taking the complaint can be reached;
(5) the date and approximate time of the incident;
(6) the location of the incident;
(7) a check box to indicate the total number of complainants;
(8) the name of each complainant;
(9) the race or ethnicity of the complainant;