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a. Internal disciplinary matrix. Within six months of the date this local law takes effect, the department shall post on its website a disciplinary matrix that sets forth an advisory schedule of violations, penalties, and mitigating and aggravating circumstances, or any other factors considered by the commissioner to be relevant to the process of determining the appropriate discipline for police department personnel for substantiated violations of department rules or other policies.
b. Disciplinary matrix development. Within three months of the date this local law takes effect, the department shall prepare and file with the mayor and the speaker of the council, and post on its website:
1. Factors relevant to developing the internal disciplinary matrix and steps undertaken by the department in developing the internal disciplinary matrix, including consultation with outside entities including stakeholders and community groups.
2. The proposed schedule of violations, penalties, and mitigating and aggravating circumstances, or any other factors considered by the commissioner to be relevant to the process of determining appropriate discipline.
c. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the discretion of the commissioner to impose discipline, and the commissioner may modify the disciplinary matrix at any time. A description of any such modifications shall be posted on the department website.
d. No later than January 30, 2022, and by each January 30 in each year thereafter, the department shall post on its website and deliver to the speaker of the council a report that includes the number and percentage of instances within the preceding calendar year in which the commissioner imposed a discipline penalty that is different from the disciplinary matrix penalty.
(L.L. 2020/069, 7/15/2020, eff. 7/15/2020)
a. An officer's shield number or rank designation shall be visible at all times while such officer is in uniform and performing any activity under the color of law.
b. 1. A claim of refusal to make a shield number or rank designation visible is established under this section when an individual demonstrates that they requested that an officer make their shield number or rank designation visible pursuant to subdivision a of this section and such officer did not comply.
2. An individual subject to refusal to make a shield number or rank designation visible as described in paragraph 1 of subdivision b of this section may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction for any damages, including punitive damages, and for declaratory and injunctive relief and such other remedies as may be appropriate.
3. In any action or proceeding to enforce this section, the court shall award a prevailing plaintiff reasonable attorney's fees and court costs, and may include expert fees as part of the attorney's fees.
4. Any action or proceeding to enforce this section shall be commenced no later than one year and 90 days after the date on which the violation of this section is committed.
c. This section does not limit or abrogate any claim or cause of action a person has under common law or by other law or rule. The provisions of this section are in addition to any other remedies that may be provided for under common law or by other law or rule.
(L.L. 2020/070, 7/15/2020, eff. 7/15/2020)
a. Definitions. As used in this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
Surveillance technology. The term "surveillance technology" means equipment, software, or systems capable of, or used or designed for, collecting, retaining, processing, or sharing audio, video, location, thermal, biometric, or similar information, that is operated by or at the direction of the department. Surveillance technology does not include:
1. routine office equipment used primarily for departmental administrative purposes;
2. parking ticket devices;
3. technology used primarily for internal department communication; or
4. cameras installed to monitor and protect the physical integrity of city infrastructure.
Surveillance technology impact and use policy. The term "surveillance impact and use policy" means a written document that includes the following information:
1. a description of the capabilities of a surveillance technology;
2. rules, processes and guidelines issued by the department regulating access to or use of such surveillance technology as well as any prohibitions or restrictions on use, including whether the department obtains a court authorization for such use of a surveillance technology, and, if so, the specific type of court authorization sought;
3. safeguards or security measures designed to protect information collected by such surveillance technology from unauthorized access, including but not limited to the existence of encryption and access control mechanisms;
4. policies and/or practices relating to the retention, access, and use of data collected by such surveillance technology;
5. policies and procedures relating to access or use of the data collected through such surveillance technology by members of the public;
6. whether entities outside the department have access to the information and data collected by such surveillance technology, including: (a) whether the entity is a local governmental entity, state governmental entity, federal governmental entity or a private entity, (b) the type of information and data that may be disclosed by such entity, and (c) any safeguards or restrictions imposed by the department on such entity regarding the use or dissemination of the information collected by such surveillance technology;
7. whether any training is required by the department for an individual to use such surveillance technology or access information collected by such surveillance technology;
8. a description of internal audit and oversight mechanisms within the department to ensure compliance with the surveillance technology impact and use policy governing the use of such surveillance technology;
9. any tests or reports regarding the health and safety effects of the surveillance technology; and
10. any potentially disparate impacts of the surveillance technology impact and use policy on any protected groups as defined in the New York city human rights law.
b. Publication of surveillance technology impact and use policy. The department shall propose a surveillance technology impact and use policy and post such proposal on the department's website, at least 90 days prior to the use of any new surveillance technology.
c. Existing surveillance technology. For existing surveillance technology as of the effective date of the local law that added this section, the department shall propose a surveillance technology impact and use policy and post such proposal on the department's website within 180 days of such effective date.
d. Addendum to surveillance technology impact and use policies. When the department seeks to acquire or acquires enhancements to surveillance technology or uses such surveillance technology for a purpose or in a manner not previously disclosed through the surveillance technology impact and use policy, the department shall provide an addendum to the existing surveillance technology impact and use policy describing such enhancement or additional use.
e. Upon publication of any proposed surveillance technology impact and use policy, the public shall have 45 days to submit comments on such policy to the commissioner.
f. The commissioner shall consider public comments and provide the final surveillance technology impact and use policy to the speaker and the mayor, and shall post it on the department's website no more than 45 days after the close of the public comment period established by subdivision e of this section.
(L.L. 2020/065, 7/15/2020, eff. 7/15/2020)
a. Definitions. For the purposes of this section, the following terms have the following meanings:
Officer. The term "officer" means any peace officer or police officer as defined in the criminal procedure law who is employed by the city of New York, or any special patrolman appointed by the police commissioner pursuant to section 14-106.
Police activities. The term "police activities" means any activity of an officer acting under the color of law.
Record. The term "record" means to capture or attempt to capture any moving or still image, sound, or impression through the use of any recording device, camera, or any other device capable of capturing audio, moving or still images, or by way of written notes or observations.
b. Right to record police activities. A person may record police activities and maintain custody and control of any such recording and of any property or instruments used in such recording. Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to permit a person to engage in actions that physically interfere with an official and lawful police function, or to prevent the seizure of any property or instruments used in a recording of police activities where the seizure is otherwise authorized by law, or to prohibit any officer from enforcing any other provision of law.
c. Private right of action.
1. A claim of unlawful interference with recording police activities is established under this section when an individual demonstrates that he or she recorded or attempted to record police activities in accordance with subdivision b and an officer interfered with such person's recording of police activities. Such interference includes but is not limited to the following actions:
(a) preventing or attempting to prevent the recording of police activities;
(b) threatening or making any effort to intimidate a person recording police activities;
(c) stopping, seizing, searching, issuing any summons, or arresting any individual because such individual recorded police activities; or
(d) seizing property or instruments used by any individual to record police activities.
2. It shall be an affirmative defense that (i) a reasonable officer in the position of such officer would have had probable cause to believe that the person recording police activities physically interfered with an official and lawful police function, or that such officer's actions were otherwise authorized by law or (ii) such officer did not know, and a reasonable officer in the position of such officer would not know, that such person was recording or attempting to record police activities.
3. A person subject to unlawful interference with recording police activities as described in subdivision b of this section may bring an action in any court of competent jurisdiction for any damages, including punitive damages, and for declaratory and injunctive relief and such other remedies as may be appropriate.
4. In any action or proceeding to enforce this section, the court shall allow a prevailing plaintiff reasonable attorney's fees as part of the costs, and may include expert fees as part of the attorney's fees.
5. Any action or proceeding to enforce this section shall be commenced no later than one year and 90 days after the date on which the violation of this section is committed.
d. Preservation of rights. This section shall be in addition to all rights, procedures, and remedies available under the United States constitution, section 1983 of title 42 of the United States code, the constitution of the state of New York and all other federal laws, state laws, laws of the city of New York including the administrative code, and all pre-existing civil remedies, including monetary damages, created by statute, ordinance, regulation or common law.
e. Reporting. The commissioner shall submit to the speaker of the council, the public advocate and the mayor, and post on the department's website, within 20 days after the beginning of the quarter that commences on January 1, 2021 and each quarter thereafter, a report containing the following information for the previous quarter: the number of arrests, criminal summonses, and civil summonses in which the person arrested or summonsed was recording police activities as defined in subdivision a of this section. Such report shall include this information in total and disaggregated by the following factors: the patrol precinct in which such arrest or summons occurred, the offense charged, and the apparent race, ethnicity, gender, and age of the person arrested or summonsed. The information to be reported pursuant to this section shall be compared with previous reporting periods, shall be permanently stored on the department's website, and shall be stored in alphanumeric form that can be digitally transmitted or processed and not in portable document format or scanned copies of original documents.
(L.L. 2020/067, 7/15/2020, eff. 8/14/2020)
a. The department shall maintain a centralized system that is used to record, track, review and evaluate officer activity and to identify officers who may be in need of enhanced training, monitoring or reassignment. Such system shall collect and utilize, at a minimum, the following:
(i) information reported pursuant to section 7-114;
(ii) complaints received and initiated by, and results of investigations based on such complaints conducted by the civilian complaint review board;
(iii) complaints received and results of investigations conducted by the department, including but not limited to investigations conducted by the internal affairs bureau, and any disposition resulting from any such investigation;
(iv) complaints received pursuant to section 804 of the charter;
(v) use of force incidents and incidents of excessive force, as those terms are defined in section 14-158;
(vi) arrests and summonses for violations of sections 240.20, 195.05 and 205.30 of the penal law;
(vii) judicial or departmental determinations that detentions of individuals were not legally justified;
(viii) criminal arrests or investigations of an officer, to the extent known to the department;
(ix) judicial determinations that an officer's testimony is not credible;
(x) vehicle pursuits and collisions involving department equipment;
(xi) violations of the department's patrol guide;
(xii) disciplinary actions and ongoing disciplinary proceedings;
(xiii) non-disciplinary corrective actions; and
(xiv) results of investigations conducted by the civilian complaint review board pursuant to section 441 of the charter.
b. By January 31 of each year, the department shall post on its website and submit to the mayor and the speaker of the council a report on the department's use of the early intervention system during the previous year, including, but not limited to (i) any additional information, other than the information required to be included in such system by subdivision a of this section, that is collected and utilized through such system; (ii) the process for identifying, through such system, officers who may be in need of enhanced training or monitoring; (iii) the interventions utilized by the department with such officers; (iv) procedures and systems for ongoing monitoring of such officers to ensure improvement; and (v) any information required to be included in such system by subdivision a of this section that the department believes should be eliminated and the reasons why.
(L.L. 2020/068, 7/15/2020, eff. 9/1/2020; Am. L.L. 2021/047, 4/25/2021, eff. 1/20/2022; Am. L.L. 2022/024, 1/9/2022, eff. 1/20/2022)
Editor's note: For related unconsolidated provisions, see Appendix A at L.L. 2021/047.
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