(A) Any city police officer or the Police Chief (hereinafter collectively referred to as officer) may be demoted, suspended with or without pay or discharged from duty for gross misconduct, neglect of duty, disobedience of orders of the Mayor or the City Council as a whole, or for any reason necessary for the proper management and the effective operation of the Police Department in the performance of its duties under the statutes of the state, upon the written accusation of the Police Chief, the Mayor or any citizen or taxpayer. In the event of gross misconduct, neglect of duty, disobedience of lawful orders of the Mayor or City Council as a whole, an officer may be subject to peremptory suspension or immediate removal from duty.
(B) Except in cases where the written accusation is made by the Mayor and cases where an officer has been peremptorily suspended or immediately removed from duty, within 30 days after receipt of a written accusation the Mayor shall meet with or make a good faith attempt to meet with the person making the written accusation. After such meeting or after good faith attempts to meet have failed, the Mayor shall take one of the following actions:
(1) Make a finding that no action shall be taken on the written accusation, in which case there shall be no informal hearing;
(2) Conduct such investigation concerning the allegations contained in the written accusation as he or she deems appropriate. At the conclusion of any such investigation, the Mayor shall either make a finding that no action shall be taken on the written accusation, in which case there shall be no informal hearing, or set a time and date for an informal hearing in front of the Mayor on the allegations contained in the written accusation; or
(3) An informal hearing, if any, shall be held no later than 30 days after receipt of the written accusation by the Mayor.
(C) In cases where the written accusation has been made by the Mayor and in cases where an officer has been peremptorily suspended or immediately removed from duty, the Mayor shall set a time and date for an informal hearing in front of the Mayor on the allegations contained in the written accusation. In the event of a written accusation by the Mayor, the informal hearing shall be no later than 30 days after the date of the written accusation. In the event of a peremptory suspension or immediate removal from duty, the informal hearing shall be not later than 30 days after the effective date of the suspension or removal.
(D) In all cases where an informal hearing is to be held, the Mayor or the City Administrator shall give the officer written notice of the date and time of such hearing. Notice shall be deemed sufficient if mailed to the officer’s address as maintained in the city’s records. Notice of any such hearing shall also be given by U.S. mail to any known representative of the officer.
(E) After receipt of a written accusation and prior to any informal hearing, the following shall occur.
(1) The Mayor or the City Administrator shall provide the officer with notice of and a complete copy of the written accusation.
(2) The Mayor or the City Administrator shall advise the officer of the following.
(a) He or she has the right to have an attorney or representative retained by the officer present at all hearings or proceedings regarding any written accusation.
(b) Upon receipt of any written accusation, he or she has the right to respond with a written statement regarding the incident(s) in question.
(c) The officer or his or her attorney or representative shall have the right to be heard and the right to present evidence on the incident(s) contained in any written accusation.
(d) The officer and his or her attorney or representative, and the individual imposing the disciplinary action, shall have the right to record all hearings or proceedings regarding the written accusation.
(e) The date and time at which the Mayor will conduct an informal hearing on the written accusation and that at such hearing the officer shall have the rights enumerated in this section.
(F) At the informal hearing, a representative of the city may present evidence concerning the incident(s) alleged in the written accusation and the officer or his representative shall have the right to respond and to present evidence concerning the incident(s) described in the written accusation. The rules of evidence shall not apply at such hearing; however, the Mayor shall have the right to exclude evidence which is not relevant to the proceedings. The City Administrator shall be present at the informal hearing. The Mayor shall make a decision on the written accusation within ten business days after the date of the hearing and shall immediately advise the officer and his or her representative in writing of such decision, including the actions to be taken against the officer, if any, and the officer’s right to appeal the decision to the City Council pursuant to the provisions of § 32.23.
(G) Nothing in this section shall be construed to prevent the peremptory suspension or immediate removal from duty of an officer by the Mayor, or the City Council acting as a whole, in cases of gross misconduct, neglect of duty or disobedience of orders.
(H) This section shall not apply to an officer during his or her probationary period.
(Prior Code, § 1-703)
(Ord. 630, passed 4-3-2012; Ord. 775, passed 5-10-2022)