08 LC
35 0751
Senate
Bill 373
By:
Senators Murphy of the 27th, Grant of the 25th, Mullis of the 53rd, Rogers of
the 21st and Douglas of the 17th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Chapter 8 of Title 35 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to the employment and training of peace officers, so as to provide for the
emergency suspension of a peace officer´s certification under limited
circumstances; to modify certain requirements pertaining to officer interviews
for employment; to change references consistent with the modification; to repeal
conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Chapter
8 of Title 35 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to the
employment and training of peace officers, is amended in Code Section 35-8-7.1,
relating to the authority of the Peace Officer Standards and Training Council to
refuse certification of or discipline peace officers, by adding a new subsection
to read as follows:
"(d)
Upon arrest or indictment of a peace officer for any crime which is punishable
as a felony, the executive director of the council shall order the emergency
suspension of such officer´s certification upon the executive
director´s determination that the suspension is in the best interest of the
health, safety, or welfare of the public. The order of emergency suspension
shall be made in writing and shall specify the basis for the executive
director´s determination. Following the issuance of an emergency
suspension order, proceedings of the council in the exercise of its authority to
discipline any peace officer shall be promptly scheduled as provided for in Code
Section 35-8-7.2. The emergency suspension order of the executive director
shall continue in effect until issuance of the final decision of the council or
such order is withdrawn by the executive director."
SECTION
2.
Code
Section 35-8-8 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
requirements for appointment or certification of persons as peace officers, is
revised as follows:
"35-8-8.
(a)
Any person employed or certified as a peace officer shall:
(1)
Be at least 18 years of age;
(2)
Be a citizen of the United States;
(3)
Have a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent;
(4)
Not have been convicted by any state or by the federal government of any crime
the punishment for which could have been imprisonment in the federal or state
prison or institution nor have been convicted of sufficient misdemeanors to
establish a pattern of disregard for the law, provided that, for purposes of
this paragraph, violations of traffic laws and other offenses involving the
operation of motor vehicles when the applicant has received a pardon shall not
be considered;
(5)
Be fingerprinted for the purpose of conducting a fingerprint based search at the
Georgia Bureau of Investigation and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to
determine the existence of any criminal record;
(6)
Possess good moral character as determined by investigation under procedure
established by the council;
(7)
Have an oral interview with the hiring authority or its representative to
determine the applicant´s appearance, background, and ability to
communicate;
(8)(7)
Be found, after examination by a licensed physician or surgeon, to be free from
any physical, emotional, or mental conditions which might adversely affect his
or her exercising the powers or duties of a peace officer; and
(9)(8)
Successfully complete a job related academy entrance examination provided for
and administered by the council in conformity with state and federal law. Such
examination shall be administered prior to entrance to the basic course provided
for in Code Sections 35-8-9 and 35-8-11. The council may change or modify such
examination and shall establish the criteria for determining satisfactory
performance on such examination. Peace officers who do not perform
satisfactorily on the examination shall be ineligible to retake such examination
for a period of six months after an unsuccessful attempt. The provisions of
this paragraph establish only the minimum requirements of academy entrance
examinations for peace officer candidates in this state; each law enforcement
unit is encouraged to provide such additional requirements and any preemployment
examination as it deems necessary and appropriate.
(b)
Any person authorized to attend the basic training course prior to employment as
a peace officer shall meet the requirements of this Code section
with the
exception of paragraph (7) of subsection (a) of this Code
section."
SECTION
3.
Code
Section 35-8-24 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to training
requirements for jail officers and juvenile correctional officers, is amended in
subsection (c) as follows:
"(c)
Applicants and persons certified under this Code section shall be subject to the
powers and authority of the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council
applicable to peace officers as defined in this chapter and shall be required to
fulfill all requirements of a peace officer, except the requirements of
paragraph
(9)(8)
of subsection (a) of Code Section 35-8-8 and peace officer training requirements
applicable to peace officers only."
SECTION
4.
This
Act shall become effective upon its approval by the Governor or upon its
becoming law without such approval.
SECTION
5.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.