FIRST REGULAR SESSION
SENATE BILL NO. 196
91ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY
INTRODUCED BY SENATOR SCOTT.
Pre-filed December 15, 2000, and 1,000 copies ordered printed.
TERRY L. SPIELER, Secretary.
0677S.01I
AN ACT
To repeal sections 84.020, 84.120 and 84.150, RSMo 2000, relating to the St. Louis police department, and to enact in lieu thereof three new sections relating to the same subject.
Section A. Sections 84.020, 84.120 and 84.150, RSMo 2000, are repealed and three new sections enacted in lieu thereof, to be known as sections 84.020, 84.120 and 84.150, to read as follows:
84.020. 1. In all cities of this state that now have, or may hereafter attain, a population of five hundred thousand inhabitants or over, there shall be, and is hereby established, within and for said cities, a board of police, to consist of four commissioners, as provided in sections 84.040 to 84.080, together with the mayor of said cities for the time being, or whosoever may be officially acting in that capacity, and said board shall appoint one of its members as president, and one member who shall act as vice president during the absence of the president; and such president or vice president shall be the executive officer of the board and shall act for it when the board is not in session.
2. A board of police established pursuant to subsection 1 of this section shall be designated as "The Board of Police Commissioners of the City of .................." and shall be vested with and possessed of the powers and duties specified for such a board in this chapter. The board may sue and be sued in its official name as "The Board of Police Commissioners of the City of ..................".
84.120. 1. No person shall be appointed or employed as policeman, turnkey, or officer of police who shall have been convicted of, or against whom any indictment may be pending, for any offense, the punishment of which may be confinement in the penitentiary; nor shall any person be so appointed who is not of good character, or who is not a citizen of the United States, or who is not able to read and write the English language, or who does not possess ordinary physical strength and courage. The patrolmen and turnkeys hereafter appointed shall serve while they shall faithfully perform their duties and possess mental and physical ability and be subject to removal only for cause after a hearing by the boards, who are hereby invested with the exclusive jurisdiction in the premises.
2. The boards shall establish such rules as may be necessary to give effect to the provisions of this section. The rules may provide that the boards or the chairman of any board may delegate responsibility for the conduct of investigations and the hearing of matters provided for pursuant to any section of this chapter to a member of the board or to a hearing officer designated by the board. Such hearing officer shall have the power to administer oaths, subpoena witnesses, compel the production of records pertinent to any hearing, and take any action in connection with such hearing which the boards, themselves, are authorized to take by law other than making the final decision and appropriate order. When the hearing has been completed, the individual board member or the hearing officer who conducted the hearing shall prepare a summary thereof and recommend findings of fact, conclusions of law, decision and appropriate order for approval of the board. The boards may adopt such recommendations in whole or in part, modify or reject such recommendations, require the production of additional testimony, reassign the case for rehearing, or conduct such new or additional hearing as is deemed necessary prior to rendering a final decision.
[84.150. The officers of the police force in each such city shall be as follows: One chief of police with the rank of colonel; one assistant chief of police with the rank of lieutenant colonel; one chief of detectives with the rank of lieutenant colonel; one inspector of police with the rank of lieutenant colonel; and two other lieutenant colonels, making a total of five lieutenant colonels, except that upon reaching two thousand eighty-seven patrolmen pursuant to the provisions of section 84.100 an additional lieutenant colonel shall be appointed, making a total of six lieutenant colonels; one assistant chief of detectives with the rank of major and five other majors, except that upon reaching two thousand eighty-seven patrolmen pursuant to the provisions of section 84.100 an additional major shall be appointed, making a total of seven majors; twenty-two captains, except that upon reaching two thousand eighty-seven patrolmen pursuant to the provisions of section 84.100 an additional two captains shall be appointed, making a total of twenty-four captains; sixty-seven lieutenants, except that for each thirty-eight additional patrolmen appointed pursuant to the provisions of section 84.100 an additional lieutenant shall be appointed; two hundred sixty sergeants, except that for each nine additional patrolmen appointed pursuant to the provisions of section 84.100 an additional sergeant shall be appointed. No further appointments to the rank of corporal shall hereafter be made, but all members of the force now holding the rank of corporal shall continue in such rank until their promotion, demotion, removal, resignation or other separation from the force. The officers of the police force shall have commissions issued to them by the boards of police commissioners, and those heretofore and those hereafter commissioned shall serve so long as they shall faithfully perform their duties and possess the necessary mental and physical ability, and be subject to removal only for cause after a hearing by the board, who are hereby invested with exclusive jurisdiction in the premises. Any increase in the number of officers to be appointed, in addition to that provided for above, shall be permitted upon recommendation by the board of police commissioners with the approval of the municipal board of estimate and apportionment.]84.150. The ranks of the officers of the police force in each such city shall be as follows: colonel; lieutenant colonel; major; captain; lieutenant; sergeant and police officer. There shall be only one individual appointed to the rank of colonel at any given time and that individual shall be the chief of police. The numbers of officers appointed to the ranks of lieutenant colonel, major, captain, lieutenant, sergeant and police officer shall be determined by the board of police commissioners and shall be based upon the board's determination of the numbers of officers necessary in each rank to provide adequate supervision and to carry out the board's duties and responsibilities pursuant to this chapter. The officers of the police force shall have commissions issued to them by the boards of police commissioners, and those heretofore and those hereafter commissioned shall serve so long as they shall faithfully perform their duties and possess the necessary mental and physical ability, and be subject to removal only for cause after a hearing by the board or its designee or designees, as authorized by statute.