COUNCIL PASSES LEGISLATION CALLING FOR PUBLISHED REPORTS ON
POLICE MISCONDUCT
Council Member Jumaane D. Williams (center) delivering remarks on Intro 119-D during a pre-stated press conference on August 24.
Photo Credit: Vania Andre, NYC Council
NEW YORK, NY: On August 24, the New York City Council passed Intro 119-D, which seeks to reduce police misconduct and improve support for police officers.
The bill compiles already publicly available information into one report in an effort to find patterns that can be used to strengthen training efforts to better police officers. Intro 119-D, is not a punitive bill and does not garner information that does not already exist.
Information will be collected through complaints and lawsuits filed against police officers.
The Inspector General will work with the Law Department, the Police Department, the Comptroller, the Civilian Complaint Review Board, and Commission to Combat Police Corruption to facilitate this review.
"
I want to thank the, Speaker Mark-Viverito, Mayor de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner O'Neill for working together to get this bill done,"
said Council Member Williams.
"However, these accomplishments haven't necessarily been felt on the ground in certain communities because our City still has areas of opportunity when it comes to police accountability and transparency.
I believe that Intro 119 will help move us forward by providing real information on patterns of behavior so that issues, patterns and problems can be identified more swiftly and addressed."
Intro 119-D mandates biannual reporting of law suits alleging police misconduct, regular studies by the Inspector General examining all sources of information on police misconduct, and identifying patterns to issue recommendations on ways to reduce misconduct. Intro 119-D also calls for a study by the police department on determinations by judges that an officer's testimony at a trial is not credible.
"Intro. 119 will comprehensively review patterns of police misfeasance and malfeasance by six City agencies and/or entities," said Council Member Rosie Mendez. "I believe that this multi-agency approach will result in a level of accountability that is pervasive, concrete, and transparent. I applaud Councilmember Jumaane Williams' persistence and hard work in passing this legislation."
The bill goes into effect immediately once signed into law.
