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Home My WebLink AboutO-091271 7/10/80, ORDINANCE NO. 9 1 y AN ORDINANCE CREATING A NEW OFFICE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF POLICE, WITHIN THE OFFICE OF THE POLICE CHIEF, TO BE KNOWN AS THE "OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL COMPLIANCE" (OPC); PROVID- ING FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF A DIRECTOR OF SAID OFFICE BY THE CITY MANAGER AFTER SELECTION BY THE CHIEF OF POLICE, AND FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF THREE INVESTIGATORS, TO BE RECOMMENDED BY A SEVEN MEMBER ADVISORY COMMITTEE WHICH IS ALSO BEING ESTABLISHED BY THE TERMS OF THIS ORDINANCE, AND FOR THE APPOINTMENT BY THE CITY MANAGER OF ONE SECRETARY TO BE SELECTED BY SAID DIRECTOR; PROVIDING FOR THE OPERATION OF THE OPC AND PRESCRIBING THE. FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES THEREOF; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVISION AND A SEVERA- BILITY CLAUSE. WHEREAS, Section 19-A of the Charter of the City of Miami provides that the City Commission may create new departments or discontinue any department or determine, combine and distribute the functions and duties of depart- ments and subdivisions; and WHEREAS, it is the desire of the City Commission to exercise such authority and to create a new office to be known as the "Office of Professional Compliance" (OPC) and to allocate to it certain functions and duties necessary to insure citizen participation in and observation of the inves- tigations of Police Department shooting incidents and alleged abuses of citizens by City of Miami Police personnel; NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COMMISSION OF THE CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA: Section 1. (a) There is hereby created as an agency and instrumentality of the City an "Office of Professional Compliance" (OPC) which shall participate in and observe the internal investigations of alleged abuses of police personnel. ?l� (b) The OPC shall function within the office of the Chief of Police, the Department of Police. (c) The head of the OPC shall be known as the Director of the Office of Professional Compliance and shall be an unclassified salaried civilian employee of the City. Section 2. (a) The City Manager is hereby authorized to appoint the person selected by the Chief of Police to serve as the Director of the Office of Professional Compliance. The selection shall be made from three (3) candidates recom- mended by a seven (7) member committee to be known as the "Office of Professional Compliance (OPC) Advisory Committee". (b) The composition of the said committee shall consist of four (4) community representatives selected and appointed by the City Commission; one (1) Fraternal Order of Police, Miami Lodge No. 20, representative, who shall be designated by said Lodge; one (1) representative of the Chief of Police; and one (1) Assistant City Manager designated by the City Manager. (c) The term of office of the members of said committee, except for the four (4) community representa- tives, shall. be indefinite and the committee will select a Chairman and Vice -Chairman from its members and shall adopt rules and regulations for the conduct of its business with four (4) members constituting a quorum for the transaction of business. -2- 1` 9127 (d) The term of office of the four (4) community representatives shall be as follows: Group I - Two (2) members shall serve an initial one (1) year term expiring August 1, 1981 and two (2) year terms thereafter; Group II - Two (2) members shall serve an initial two (2) year term expiring August 1, 1982 and two (2) year terms thereafter. (e) All committee members shall commence to serve their terms upon passage of a City Commission resolution appointing them and they shall. continue to serve until the expiration of their term or until their successors are duly appointed. Section 3. (a) The OPC Director and the Chief of Police shall select three (3) investigators for appointment by the City Manager as unclassified civilian employees of the City, who shall be representative of the ethnic compo- sition of the City and who shall be selected from among nine (9) candidates recommended by the OPC Advisory Committee. There shall be three (3) candidates recommended for each of the three (3) investigator positions. (b) If any of the persons recommended as candidates for Director or investigator are not acceptable to the Chief of Police or the City Manager, then a written explanation of the reasons for such nonacceptability must be provided the OPC Advisory Committee. -3- 91 2 '7 (c) Upon receipt of the explanation for nonacceptability of any candidate, the OPC Advisory Committee shall furnish the Chief of Police with the names of addi- tional candidates as may be necessary to provide three (3) candidates for each position. (d) There shall also be one (1) person selected by the Director of the OPC for appointment by the City Manager as Secretary to the OPC, who shall serve as an unclassified salaried civilian employee of the City. Section 4. (a) OPC personnel can be removed from their positions by the City Manager pursuant to the recom- mendation of the Chief of Police after consultation by the City Manager with the OPC Director and the OPC Advisory Committee. (b) To insure proper functioning of the OPC staff, the OPC Advisory Committee shall designate two (2) persons who reside within the City to monitor the activity of the OPC. Said monitors will function as nonpaid observors; however, the City Manager is authorized to pay reasonable expenses incurred in connection with their activities, upon submission of satisfactory docu- mentation thereof. Section 5. (a) The OPC shall become involved in the investigations of alleged police abuse of citizens and in the investigations of complaints arising from Police Depart- ment shooting incidents from the inception of the complaint to the submission of findings and conclusions of the inves- tigations as participants in said investigation on a limited basis and as observors thereof on an unlimited basis. The limitations to be imposed upon the OPC shall only be such as to insure that the integrity of Police Department inves- tigations is maintained in accordance with federal and state laws, including rules of evidence, prescribed Police departmental procedures, and employees' rights. -4- o- 9127 (b) The OPC is hereby authorized to exercise, in accordance with law, the privilege of examin- ing all records and evidence and is hereby encouraged to provide input into any investigation hereunder conducted by the Police Department by expressing concern, comments, and recommendations to any Police personnel. (c) If at any time an OPC investigator is of the opinion that an investigation is incomplete, biased, or otherwise deficient, he or she shall report his or her opinion to the OPC Director who will have immediate access to the Chief of Police for resolution of the problem(s) raised by such opinion. If the OPC Director is not satisfied with the resolution of the problem(s) at this level, he or she shall bring the matter to the attention of an Assistant City Manager designated by the City Manager to assist in the resolu- tion of such problem(s). The Assistant City Manager so desig- nated may be the same person designated in Section 2(a) hereof as a member of the OPC Advisory Committee. (d) In all matters relating to the activity of the OPC and the OPC Advisory Committee, the legal, advisor of, and attorney and counsel for, said OPC and OPC Advisory Committee shall be the City Attorney. Section 6. (a) The activity of the OPC shall be con- ducted in substantial accordance with the procedure or process indicated as follows: M Citizens may file complaints of wrong- doing against Police Officers at the Police Complaint Center located at Police Headquarters or an outreach center that is to be established within each of six (6) sectors which are geographical areas of the City so designated by the Police Department for the purpose of patrol activity. (ii) The outreach center or the said Police Complaint Center shall then call the OPC and the Internal Security Unit (IS Unit) of the Police Department. W5 9127 (iii) Where possible, OPC investigators and IS Unit personnel shall report to the outreach center or Police Complaint Center and take the complaint from the complainant in the presence of the outreach center repre- sentative. The complaint is to be written on a three-part form. A copy is to be given to the complainant, the out- reach center or the Police Complaint Center, and the original is to be retained by the IS Unit. (iv) After the case has been assigned for investigation, a registered letter establishing a time frame for the completion of the investigation is sent to the complainant, and the outreach center or the Police Complaint Center. (v) The investigation is conducted and a report of the findings is prepared and submitted to the complainant, and the outreach center or the Police Complaint Center. If it is determined that the investigation will last longer than originally planned, the complainant and the outreachi center or Police Complaint Center will be informed by registered letter and given a new time frame. NOTE: The results contained in.the reports of the investigation may fall" nto one of three categories: Unfounded; Sustained; and Not Sustained. "Unfounded" means an officer has been exonerated of wrongdoing. _ "Sustained" means an officer has been found guilty of wrongdoing. "Not Sustained" means that no conclusion can be reached that an office has or has not been guilty of wrongdoing. (vi) A registered letter is sent to the complainant and the outreach center or the Police Complaint Center informing them of the conclusions of the investigation. (vii) If the complaint is sustained, disciplinary action is to be recommended by the officer's -6- 91 2 '7 superiors and forwarded to the officer. The complainant and the outreach center or the Police Complaint Center are informed of the results of such consideration. (viii) Pursuant to any existing collec- tive bargaining agreemen the said officer may request a hearing before the Departmental Disciplinary Review Board (DDRB) which will make advisory determinations and nonbind- ing recommendations to the Chief of Police. The complainant the outreach center or Police Complaint Center are informed of this decision by registered mail. (ix) The Chief of Police has the option to concur with the DDRB's recommendation or take alternate action. (x) The officer is informed of the Chief's decision and may choose to appeal the decision to the Civil Service Board. The complainant and outreach center or Police Complaint Center are informed of this decision by registered mail. (xi) Should the officer timely choose a Civil Service hearing, the Civil Service Board will review the case and provide its findings and recommendations to the City Manager. The complainant and outreach center or Police Complaint Center are informed of this decision by registered mail. (xii) The City Manager shall review the case and make a decision thereon. The City Manager may decide to accept the recommendation of the Civil Service Board or take alternate actions. The complainant and out- reach center or Police Complaint Center are informed of this decision by registered mail. (xiii) The OPC and representatives of the Police Department designated by the Chief of Police shall make themselves available to discuss investigations hereunder of alleged police abuse or shooting incidents with community groups. NOTE: Use herein of the term "registered mail" shall include mail sent "Certified Mail --Return Receipt Requested" and shall also include personal delivery upon the addressee. -7- 9127 NOTE: Use of the term "police officer" shall include all sworn police personnel. Section 7. If any section, part of section, para- graph, clause, phrase, or word of this ordinance is declared invalid, the remaining provisions of this ordinance shall not be affected. Section 8. All ordinances or parts of ordinances insofar as they are inconsistent or in conflict with the provisions of this ordinance are hereby repealed. Nothing herein contained shall be construed to alter, modify or amend the disciplinary process as it may exist from time to time under the City Charter and Code and under any applicable collective bargaining agreement. PASSED ON FIRST READING BY TITLE ONLY this 26th day of .Tune, 1980. PASSED AND ADOPTED ON SECOND AND FINAL READING BY TITLE ONLY this 10 day of July, 1980. MAURICE A. FERRE M A Y 0 R ATTEST: RAL G. ONGIE, CITY CkrAK PREPARED AND APPROVED BY: ROBERT F. CLARK ASSISTANT CITY ATTORNEY APPROVED AS(TO FORM AND}CORRECTNESS: GE F. KNOX, JR.\, CITY ATTORNEY am W. 9127 MIAMI REVIEW AND DAILY RECORD Published Daily except Saturday, Sunday an%. Legal Holidays Miami, Dade County, Florida. STATE OF FLORIDA COUNTY OF DADE: Before the undersigned authority personally appeared Becky Caskey, who on oath says that she Is the Assistant Director of Legal Advertising of the Miami Review and Daily Record, a daily (except Saturday, Sunday and Legal Holidays) newspaper, published at Miami in Dade County, Florida; that the attached copy of advertisement, being a Legal Advertisement or Notice in the matter of CI,TY..... OF MIAMI Re: Ordinance 9127 .................................................................................................. Inthe ..................... X....X....x.................................. Court, was published in said newspaper in the issues of .J.0 I......1. ra ........ 1.9.8.Q.................................................. .................................... ................................ I............................. Affiant further says that the said Miami Review and Daily Record Is a newspaper published at Miami, in said Dade County, Florida, and that the said newspaper has heretofore been continuously published In said Dade County, Florida, each day (except Saturday, Sunday and Legal Holidays) and has been entered as second class mail matter at the post office in Miami, in said Dade County, Florida, for a period of one year next preceding the first publication of the attached copy of advertisement; and affiant further says that she has neither paid nor promised any person, firm or corporation any discount, rebate, commission or refund for the purpose of securing this advertisement for publicati6on the said n yRp 1 givorn,IjiJ `tu�y�t,FibeQ before me%this ..day. at cn.:.. .9..m....... �w=19...8 0 ul Not •51i�3a0lpF1� eat Large (SEAL) i��f1/lIi1�1 �1NN�'� My Commission expires July I 1982. �0 r^ CI?Y OF MIAMI, DADE COUNTY, FLORIDA LEGAL NOTICE All interested will take notice that or tha 101h day of July )"0. the City Commission of Miami, Florida passed and adopted the following fitted ordinance: ORDINANCE NO. 9127 AN' ORDINANCE CREATING A NEW OFFICE IN THE DEPARTMENT OF POLICE, WITHIN THE OFFICE OF THE POLICE CHIEF, TO BE KNOWN AS THE "OFFICE OF PROFESSIONAL COMPLIANCE" (OPC); PROVIDING FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF A DIRECTOR OF SAID OFFICE BY THE CITY MANAGER AFTER SELECTION BY THE CHIEF OF POLICE, AND FOR THE APPOINTMENT OF THREE INVESTIGATORS, TO BE RECOMMENDED BY A SEVEN MEMBER ADVISORY COMMITTEE WHICH IS ALSO BEING ESTABLISHED BY THE TERMS OF THIS OR- DINANCE, AND FOR THE APPOINTMENT BY THE CITY MANAGER OF ONE SECRETARY TO BE SELECTED BY SAID DIRECTOR; PROVIDING FOR THE OPERATION OF THE OPC AND PRESCRIBING THE FUNCTIONS AND DUTIES THEREOF; CONTAINING A REPEALER PROVI- SION AND A SEVERABIL(TY CLAUSE. RALPH ONGIE CITY CLERK CITY OF MIAMI, FLORIDA Publication of this Notice on the 16 day of July 1980 '/}6 M80-071603