SB 135 - Under current law, an officer is required to report certain information in order to combat racial profiling with regards to searches and seizures in motor vehicles of minority groups by officers. This act establishes the "Fourth Amendment Affirmation Act" which modifies the information to be reported by an officer when he or she stops a driver of a motor vehicle. Under this act, an officer is required to report whether the driver who is stopped resides in the jurisdiction of the stop and, in the event a search was conducted, the officer shall report how the driver's consent was documented. The act additionally provides examples of what qualifies as a reason for a stop.
This act provides that the Attorney General may allow the Department of Public Safety to extract data from reports filed by law enforcement agencies relating to motor vehicle stops. The act also modifies the information required to be included in the Attorney General's annual report to the Governor, General Assembly, and each law enforcement agency in the state.
The act requires each law enforcement agency to adopt a policy on discriminatory policing, as well as a policy eliminating discriminatory policing in the administration of consent searches, and it provides what each policy shall accomplish. The act provides a process for review and potential penalties imposed by the Attorney General if a law enforcement agency reports a significant disproportion, as defined in the act, for three consecutive years.
This act allows any law enforcement agency to purchase body cameras with federal funds.
Finally, this act repeals the provision that an officer who stops a driver pursuant to a sobriety check point or road block is exempt from reporting requirements.
This act is identical to SB 985 (2020) and SB 493 (2019) and substantially similar to HB 484 (2019).
MARY GRACE BRUNTRAGER