|
Trenton,
NJ -- Attorney General Anne Milgram has issued
a model police department policy for handling
domestic violence incidents that involve law
enforcement officers.
The
model policy, supplementing long-standing
Attorney General directives related to the
seizure of weapons from state, county or local
law enforcement officers involved in domestic
violence incidents (Directives 2000-3 and
2000-4), is designed to ensure that police
departments have in place clear guidelines
when investigating domestic violence complaints
involving their own officers.
“This
model policy should ensure a thorough fact-finding
process that is fair to both domestic violence
victims and the accused officers by incorporating
the involvement of police chiefs and county
prosecutors,” Attorney General Milgram
said. “It is especially important that
victims understand that domestic violence
complaints against law enforcement officers
are free of any bias during investigations.
Victims should not be intimidated to bring
domestic violence complaints because the alleged
abusers are police officers.”
The
policy would apply to all municipal police
departments, as well as state and county law
enforcement agencies, Milgram said.
The
model policy is based on a policy promulgated
by the International Association of Chiefs
of Police and a report of the NJ Domestic
Violence Fatality Review Board. It recommends
background investigations for new employees
that would screen out candidates with histories
of domestic violence or sexual assault. It
also recommends psychological examinations
of all candidates for law enforcement positions
and regular annual training on domestic violence
issues and the impact of domestic violence
within police departments. Supervisors would
be trained on how to recognize early warning
signs of domestic violence behavior such as
excessive or increased use of force on the
job, deteriorating work performance, or alcohol
or drug abuse.
The
model policy details incident response protocols,
reporting and documentation protocols and
recommends that any allegations of domestic
violence offenses by high-ranking law enforcement
officers - police chiefs or police directors
-- be referred to prosecutors’ offices
for oversight. In addition, if a domestic
violence incident involves a law enforcement
officer from another county, the chief of
police would notify the county prosecutor
where the officer is employed. Victim safety
and protection measures are also detailed
in the model policy.
The
full policy is available on-line at www.nj.gov/oag/dcj/agguide/DV-Model-Policy-Final-12-11-09.pdf
###
|
