Public access to records concerning the conduct of law enforcement officers. (FE)

1. Any record relating to the report, investigation, or findings of any incident involving the discharge of a firearm at a person by a law enforcement officer or an incident in which the use of force by a law enforcement officer against a person resulted in death or in great bodily harm.

2. Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made that a law enforcement officer engaged in sexual assault involving a member of the public. The bill defines “sustained finding” to mean “a final determination by an investigating agency, commission, board, hearing officer, or arbitrator, following an investigation and opportunity for an administrative appeal, if applicable, that the conduct of a law enforcement officer violated law or law enforcement agency policy.” 3. Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made that a law enforcement officer used unreasonable or excessive force.

4. Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made that a law enforcement officer failed to intervene against another officer using force that was clearly unreasonable or excessive.

5. Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made of dishonesty by a law enforcement officer directly relating to the reporting, investigation, or prosecution of a crime, or directly relating to the reporting or investigation of misconduct by another law enforcement officer, including any sustained finding of perjury, false statements, filing false reports, or the destruction, falsification, or concealment of evidence.

6. Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made that a law enforcement officer engaged in conduct, including verbal statements, writings, online posts, recordings, or gestures, involving prejudice or discrimination against a person on the basis of race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, marital status, sex, gender, gender identity, gender expression, age, sexual orientation, or military or veteran status.

7. Any record relating to an incident in which a sustained finding was made that a law enforcement officer made an unlawful arrest or conducted an unlawful search.

Under the bill, subject to a number of exceptions, a record of an incident specified above that is the subject of an active criminal or administrative investigation may be withheld.

Under the bill, records subject to disclosure above may be withheld or redacted for any of the following purposes:

1. To remove the home address, home e-mail address, home telephone number, or social security number of a law enforcement officer.

2. To preserve the anonymity of whistleblowers, complainants, victims, and witnesses.

3. To protect confidential medical, financial, or other information of which disclosure is specifically prohibited by federal law or would cause an unwarranted invasion of personal privacy that clearly outweighs the strong public interest in disclosure of records about misconduct and serious use of force by law enforcement officers.

4. To protect the safety of an individual identified in a record in a case in which there is a specific, articulable, and particularized reason to believe that disclosure of the record would pose a significant danger to that individual.

Finally, under the bill, if criminal charges are filed related to an incident in which misconduct by a law enforcement officer occurred or in which force was used, the disclosure of records otherwise subject to disclosure under the bill may be delayed until a verdict on those charges is returned at trial or, if a plea of guilty or no contest is entered, the time to withdraw the plea. Also, the bill prohibits the disclosure of records regarding a civilian complaint against a law enforcement officer if the complaint is unfounded or frivolous.