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HomeMy WebLinkAboutBias-Based Policing 8-11-2023Policy 401 Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office Otter Tail Cnty SO Policy Manual Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2023/08/11, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office Bias-Based Policing - 1 Bias-Based Policing 401.1 PURPOSE AND SCOPE This policy provides guidance to office members that affirms the Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office 's commitment to policing that is fair and objective. Nothing in this policy prohibits the use of specified characteristics in law enforcement activities designed to strengthen the office’s relationship with its diverse communities (e.g., cultural and ethnicity awareness training, youth programs, community group outreach, partnerships). 401.1.1 DEFINITIONS Definitions related to this policy include: Bias-based policing - An inappropriate reliance on actual or perceived characteristics such as race, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, economic status, age, cultural group, disability, or affiliation with any non-criminal group (protected characteristics) as the basis for providing differing law enforcement service or enforcement. This includes use of racial or ethnic stereotypes as factors in selecting whom to stop and search. It does not include law enforcement’s use of race or ethnicity to determine whether a person matches a specific description of a particular subject (Minn. Stat. § 626.8471). 401.2 POLICY The Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office is committed to providing law enforcement services to the community with due regard for the racial, cultural or other differences of those served. It is the policy of this office to provide law enforcement services and to enforce the law equally, fairly, objectively and without discrimination toward any individual or group (Minn. Stat. § 626.8471, Subd. 3). 401.3 BIAS-BASED POLICING PROHIBITED Bias-based policing is strictly prohibited. However, nothing in this policy is intended to prohibit a deputy from considering protected characteristics in combination with credible, timely and distinct information connecting a person or people of a specific characteristic to a specific unlawful incident, or to specific unlawful incidents, specific criminal patterns or specific schemes. 401.4 MEMBER RESPONSIBILITIES Every member of this office shall perform his/her duties in a fair and objective manner and is responsible for promptly reporting any suspected or known instances of bias-based policing to a supervisor. Members should, when reasonable to do so, intervene to prevent any biased-based actions by another member. Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office Otter Tail Cnty SO Policy Manual Bias-Based Policing Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2023/08/11, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office Bias-Based Policing - 2 401.4.1 REASON FOR CONTACT Deputies contacting a person shall be prepared to articulate sufficient reason for the contact, independent of the protected characteristics of the individual. To the extent that written documentation would otherwise be completed (e.g., arrest report, Field Interview (FI) card), the involved deputy should include those facts giving rise to the contact, as applicable. Except for required data-collection forms or methods, nothing in this policy shall require any deputy to document a contact that would not otherwise require reporting. 401.4.2 INFORMATION TO BE PROVIDED Deputies shall (Minn. Stat. § 626.8471, Subd. 3): (a)Introduce or identify themselves and state the reason for a contact as soon as practicable unless providing the information could compromise deputy or public safety. (b)Attempt to answer questions the person may have regarding the contact, including relevant referrals to other agencies when appropriate. (c)Explain the reason for the contact if it is determined the reasonable suspicion was unfounded. (d)When requested, provide their name and badge number and identify this office during routine stops. (e)When requested, deputies should inform a member of the public of the process to file a misconduct complaint for bias-based policing against a member of the Office, and that bias-based policing complaints may be made by calling the Attorney General’s office (Minn. Stat. § 626.9514). 401.5 SUPERVISOR RESPONSIBILITIES Supervisors should monitor those individuals under their command for compliance with this policy and shall handle any alleged or observed violations in accordance with the Personnel Complaints Policy. (a)Supervisors should discuss any issues with the involved deputy and his/her supervisor in a timely manner. 1.Supervisors should document these discussions, in the prescribed manner. (b)Supervisors should periodically review MAV recordings, portable audio/video recordings, Mobile Data Computer (MDC) data and any other available resource used to document contact between deputies and the public to ensure compliance with this policy. 1.Supervisors should document these periodic reviews. 2.Recordings that capture a potential instance of bias-based policing should be appropriately retained for administrative investigation purposes. Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office Otter Tail Cnty SO Policy Manual Bias-Based Policing Copyright Lexipol, LLC 2023/08/11, All Rights Reserved. Published with permission by Otter Tail County Sheriff's Office Bias-Based Policing - 3 (c)Supervisors shall initiate investigations of any actual or alleged violations of this policy. (d)Supervisors should take prompt and reasonable steps to address any retaliatory action taken against any member of this office who discloses information concerning bias- based policing. 401.6 ADMINISTRATION On an ongoing basis,, the Operations Lieutenant should review the efforts of the Office to provide fair and objective policing, including public concerns and complaints,and report this information to the Sheriff. The Sheriffwill use this information to identify any changes in training or operations that should be made to improve service. Supervisors should also review the the information and discuss with those they are assigned to supervise. 401.7 TRAINING Training on fair and objective policing and review of this policy should be conducted as directed by the Training Unit. The Sheriff and supervisors should receive and review training materials prepared by the Board of Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) (Minn. Stat. § 626.8471, Subd. 7). Training should also include in-service training on recognizing and valuing community diversity and cultural differences, including implicit bias, as required by Minn. Stat. § 626.8469, Subd. 1.