HF 646

as introduced - 79th Legislature (1995 - 1996) Posted on 12/15/2009 12:00am

  1.1                          A bill for an act 
  1.2             relating to public safety; regulating law enforcement 
  1.3             reports filed with commissioner of public safety; 
  1.4             amending Minnesota Statutes 1994, sections 626.553, 
  1.5             subdivision 2; and 626.5531.  
  1.6   BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF MINNESOTA: 
  1.7      Section 1.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 626.553, 
  1.8   subdivision 2, is amended to read: 
  1.9      Subd. 2.  Whenever a peace officer discharges a firearm in 
  1.10  the course of duty, other than for training purposes or the 
  1.11  killing of an animal that is sick, injured, or dangerous, 
  1.12  notification shall be filed within 30 days of the incident by 
  1.13  the officer's department head with the commissioner of public 
  1.14  safety.  The commissioner of public safety shall forward a copy 
  1.15  of the filing to the board of peace officer standards and 
  1.16  training.  The notification shall contain information concerning 
  1.17  the reason for and circumstances surrounding discharge of the 
  1.18  firearm.  Annually, the commissioner of public safety shall file 
  1.19  a report with the legislature by November 15 of each 
  1.20  even-numbered year a report containing summary information 
  1.21  concerning use of firearms by peace officers. 
  1.22     Sec. 2.  Minnesota Statutes 1994, section 626.5531, is 
  1.23  amended to read: 
  1.24     626.5531 [REPORTING OF CRIMES MOTIVATED BY BIAS.] 
  1.25     Subdivision 1.  [REPORTS REQUIRED.] A peace officer must 
  2.1   report to the head of the officer's department every violation 
  2.2   of chapter 609 or a local criminal ordinance if the officer has 
  2.3   reason to believe, or if the victim alleges, that the offender 
  2.4   was motivated to commit the act by the victim's race, religion, 
  2.5   national origin, sex, age, disability, or characteristics 
  2.6   identified as sexual orientation.  The superintendent of the 
  2.7   bureau of criminal apprehension commissioner of public safety 
  2.8   shall adopt a reporting form to be used by law enforcement 
  2.9   agencies in making the reports required under this section.  The 
  2.10  reports must include for each incident all of the following: 
  2.11     (1) the date of the offense; 
  2.12     (2) the location of the offense; 
  2.13     (3) whether the target of the incident is a person, private 
  2.14  property, or public property; 
  2.15     (4) the crime committed; 
  2.16     (5) the type of bias and information about the offender and 
  2.17  the victim that is relevant to that bias; 
  2.18     (6) any organized group involved in the incident; 
  2.19     (7) the disposition of the case; 
  2.20     (8) whether the determination that the offense was 
  2.21  motivated by bias was based on the officer's reasonable belief 
  2.22  or on the victim's allegation; and 
  2.23     (9) any additional information the superintendent deems 
  2.24  necessary for the acquisition of accurate and relevant data. 
  2.25     Subd. 2.  [USE OF INFORMATION COLLECTED.] The head of a 
  2.26  local law enforcement agency or state law enforcement department 
  2.27  that employs peace officers licensed under section 626.843 must 
  2.28  file a monthly report describing crimes reported under this 
  2.29  section with the department of public safety, bureau of criminal 
  2.30  apprehension.  The commissioner of public safety must summarize 
  2.31  and analyze the information received and file an annual report 
  2.32  with the department of human rights and the legislature.  The 
  2.33  commissioner may include information in the annual report 
  2.34  concerning any additional criminal activity motivated by bias 
  2.35  that is not covered by this section.