PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT OF PEACE OFFICERS MODEL POLICY
MN STAT 626.8457 I. “POLICY It is the policy of the __________________________________________________ (law enforcement agency) to investigate circumstances that suggest an officer has engaged in unbecoming conduct, and impose disciplinary action when appropriate. II. PROCEDURE
This policy applies to all officers of this agency engaged in official duties whether within or outside of the territorial jurisdiction of this agency. Unless otherwise noted this policy also applies to off duty conduct. Conduct not mentioned under a specific rule but that violates a general principle is prohibited. A. PRINCIPLE ONE
Peace officers shall conduct themselves, whether on or off duty, in accordance with the Constitution of the United States, the Minnesota Constitution, and all applicable laws, ordinances and rules enacted or established pursuant to legal authority. 1. Rationale: Peace officers conduct their duties pursuant to a grant of limited authority from the community. Therefore, officers must understand the laws defining the scope of their enforcement powers. Peace officers may only act in accordance with the powers granted to them. 2. Rules a) Peace officers shall not knowingly exceed their authority in the enforcement of the law. b) Peace officers shall not knowingly disobey the law or rules of criminal procedure in such areas as interrogation, arrest, detention, searches, seizures, use of informants, and preservation of evidence, except where permitted in the performance of duty under proper authority. c) Peace officers shall not knowingly restrict the freedom of individuals, whether by arrest or detention, in violation of the Constitutions and laws of the United States and the State of Minnesota. d) Peace officers, whether on or off duty, shall not knowingly commit any criminal offense under any laws of the United States or any state or local jurisdiction. e) Peace officers will not, according to MN STAT 626.863, knowingly allow a person who is not a peace officer to make a representation of being a peace officer or perform any act, duty or responsibility reserved by law for a peace officer. B. PRINCIPLE TWO
Peace officers shall refrain from any conduct in an official capacity that detracts from the public’s faith in the integrity of the criminal justice system. 3. Rationale: Community cooperation with the police is a product of its trust that officers will act honestly and with impartiality. The peace officer, as the public’s initial contact with the criminal justice system, must act in a manner that instills such trust. 4. Rules f) Peace officers shall carry out their duties with integrity, fairness and impartiality. g) Peace officers shall not knowingly make false accusations of any criminal, ordinance, traffic or other law violation. This provision shall not prohibit the use of deception during criminal investigations or interrogations as permitted under law. h) Peace officers shall truthfully, completely, and impartially report, testify and present evidence, including exculpatory evidence, in all matters of an official nature. i) Peace officers shall take no action knowing it will violate the constitutional rights of any person. j) Peace officers must obey lawful orders but a peace officer must refuse to obey any order the officer knows would require the officer to commit an illegal act. If in doubt as to the clarity of an order the officer shall, if feasible, request the issuing officer to clarify the order. An officer refusing to obey an order shall be required to justify his or her actions. k) Peace officers learning of conduct or observing conduct that is in violation of any law or policy of this agency shall take necessary action and report the incident to the officer’s immediate supervisor who shall forward the information to the CLEO. If the officer’s immediate supervisor commits the misconduct the officer shall report the incident to the immediate supervisor’s supervisor. C. PRINCIPLE THREE
Peace officers shall perform their duties and apply the law impartially and without prejudice or discrimination. 5. Rationale: Law enforcement effectiveness requires public trust and confidence. Diverse communities must have faith in the fairness and impartiality of their police. Peace officers must refrain from fostering disharmony in their communities based upon diversity and perform their duties without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, marital status, or status with regard to public assistance, disability, sexual orientation or age. 6. Rules l) Peace officers shall provide every person in our society with professional, effective and efficient law enforcement services. m) Peace officers shall not allow their law enforcement decisions to be influenced by race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, marital status, or status with regard to public assistance, disability, sexual orientation or age. D. PRINCIPLE FOUR
Peace officers shall not, whether on or off duty, exhibit any conduct which discredits themselves or their agency or otherwise impairs their ability or that of other officers or the agency to provide law enforcement services to the community. 7. Rationale: A peace officer’s ability to perform his or her duties is dependent upon the respect and confidence communities have for the officer and law enforcement officers in general. Peace officers must conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the integrity and trustworthiness expected of them by the public. 8. Rules n) Peace officers shall not consume alcoholic beverages or chemical substances while on duty except as permitted in the performance of official duties, and under no circumstances while in uniform, except as provided for in c). o) Peace officers shall not consume alcoholic beverages to the extent the officer would be rendered unfit for the officer’s next scheduled shift. A peace officer shall not report for work with the odor of an alcoholic beverage on the officer’s breath. p) Peace officers shall not use narcotics, hallucinogens, or other controlled substances except when legally prescribed. When medications are prescribed, the officer shall inquire of the prescribing physician whether the medication will impair the officer in the performance of the officer’s duties. The officer shall immediately notify the officer’s supervisor if a prescribed medication is likely to impair the officer’s performance during the officer’s next scheduled shift. q) Peace officers, whether on or off duty, shall not engage in any conduct which the officer knows, or should reasonably know, constitutes sexual harassment as defined under Minnesota law, including but not limited to; making unwelcome sexual advances, requesting sexual favors, engaging in sexually motivated physical contact or other verbal or physical conduct or communication of a sexual nature. r) Peace officers shall not commit any acts which constitute sexual assault or indecent exposure as defined under Minnesota law. Sexual assault does not include a frisk or other search done in accordance with proper police procedures. s) Peace officers shall not commit any acts which, as defined under Minnesota law, constitute (1) domestic abuse, or (2) the violation of a court order restraining the officer from committing an act of domestic abuse or harassment, having contact with the petitioner, or excluding the peace officer from the petitioner’s home or workplace. t) Peace officers, in the course of performing their duties, shall not engage in any sexual contact or conduct constituting lewd behavior including but not limited to, showering or receiving a massage in the nude, exposing themselves, or making physical contact with the nude or partially nude body of any person, except as pursuant to a written policy of the agency. u) Peace officers shall avoid regular personal associations with persons who are known to engage in criminal activity where such associations will undermine the public trust and confidence in the officer or agency. This rule does not prohibit those associations that are necessary to the performance of official duties or where such associations are unavoidable because of the officer’s personal or family relationships. E. PRINCIPLE FIVE
Peace officers shall treat all members of the public courteously and with respect. 9. Rationale: Peace officers are the most visible form of local government. Therefore, peace officers must make a positive impression when interacting with the public and each other. 10. Rules v) Peace officers shall exercise reasonable courtesy in their dealings with the public, other officers, superiors and subordinates. w) No peace officer shall ridicule, mock, deride, taunt, belittle, willfully embarrass, humiliate, or shame any person to do anything reasonably calculated to incite a person to violence. x) Peace officers shall promptly advise any inquiring citizen of the agency’s complaint procedure and shall follow the established agency policy for processing complaints. F. PRINCIPLE SIX
Peace officers shall not compromise their integrity nor that of their agency or profession by accepting, giving or soliciting any gratuity which could be reasonably interpreted as capable of influencing their official acts or judgments or by using their status as a peace officer for personal, commercial or political gain. 11. Rationale: For a community to have faith in its peace officers, officers must avoid conduct that does or could cast doubt upon the impartiality of the individual officer or the agency. 12. Rules y) Peace officers shall not use their official position, identification cards or badges for: (1) personal or financial gain for themselves or another person; (2) obtaining privileges not otherwise available to them except in the performance of duty; and (3) avoiding consequences of unlawful or prohibited actions. z) Peace officers shall not lend to another person their identification cards or badges or permit these items to be photographed or reproduced without approval of the chief law enforcement officer. {) Peace officers shall refuse favors or gratuities which could reasonably be interpreted as capable of influencing official acts or judgments. |) Unless required for the performance of official duties, peace officers shall not, while on duty, be present at establishments that have the primary purpose of providing sexually oriented adult entertainment. This rule does not prohibit officers from conducting walk-throughs of such establishments as part of their regularly assigned duties. }) Peace officers shall: * not authorize the use of their names, photographs or titles in a manner that identifies the officer as an employee of this agency in connection with advertisements for any product, commodity or commercial enterprise; * maintain a neutral position with regard to the merits of any labor dispute, political protest, or other public demonstration while acting in an official capacity; * not make endorsements of political candidates while on duty or while wearing the agency’s official uniform. This section does not prohibit officers from expressing their views on existing, proposed or pending criminal justice legislation in their official capacity. G. PRINCIPLE SEVEN
Peace officers shall not compromise their integrity, nor that of their agency or profession, by taking or attempting to influence actions when a conflict of interest exists. 13. Rationale: For the public to maintain its faith in the integrity and impartiality of peace officers and their agencies officers must avoid taking or influencing official actions where those actions would or could conflict with the officer’s appropriate responsibilities. 14. Rules ~) Unless required by law or policy a peace officer shall refrain from becoming involved in official matters or influencing actions of other peace officers in official matters impacting the officer’s immediate family, relatives, or persons with whom the officer has or has had a significant personal relationship. ) Unless required by law or policy a peace officer shall refrain from acting or influencing official actions of other peace officers in official matters impacting persons with whom the officer has or has had a business or employment relationship. ) A peace officer shall not use the authority of their position as a peace officer or information available to them due to their status as a peace officer for any purpose of personal gain including but not limited to initiating or furthering personal and/or intimate interactions of any kind with persons with whom the officer has had contact while on duty. ) A peace officer shall not engage in any off-duty employment if the position compromises or would reasonably tend to compromise the officer’s ability to impartially perform the officer’s official duties. H. PRINCIPLE EIGHT
Peace officers shall observe the confidentiality of information available to them due to their status as peace officers. 15. Rationale: Peace officers are entrusted with vast amounts of private and personal information or access thereto. Peace officers must maintain the confidentiality of such information to protect the privacy of the subjects of that information and to maintain public faith in the officer’s and agency’s commitment to preserving such confidences. 16. Rules ) Peace officers shall not knowingly violate any legal restriction for the release or dissemination of information. ) Peace officers shall not, except in the course of official duties or as required by law, publicly disclose information likely to endanger or embarrass victims, witnesses or complainants. ) Peace officers shall not divulge the identity of persons giving confidential information except as required by law or agency policy. I. APPLICATION Any disciplinary actions arising from violations of this policy shall be investigated in accordance with MN STAT 626.89, Peace Officer Discipline Procedures Act and the law enforcement agency’s policy on Allegations of Misconduct as required by MN RULES 6700.2000 to 6700.2600.”

“PB Rev 01/2011”

Paragraph 1:
The group to whom this code of ethics most concerns is, the general public. Principle 3, rule number 2, subdivision a states, “Peace officers shall not allow their law enforcement decisions to be influenced by race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, marital status, or status with regard to public assistance, disability, sexual orientation or age.” Principle 4, rationale 1 states, “A peace officer’s ability to perform his or her duties is dependent upon the respect and confidence communities have for the officer and law enforcement officers in general. Peace officers must conduct themselves in a manner consistent with the integrity and trustworthiness expected of them by the public.” I believe that the wording in these two examples are mostly specific when explaining what is expected of the officers. It clearly states in the first example that officers shall not be influenced in their decision making based off of any bias. In the second example, it is also very apparent what is expected of the officers and what must be done. They are to conduct themselves in a trustworthy and truthful manner in order to keep a strong community bond.
Paragraph 2: a) I came upon a situation where I was working alongside my fellow officer and was assisting in making an arrest of a late teen’s, early twenties African American male. The suspect was already in handcuffs and was complying with all verbal commands when my fellow officer threw him against the ground and began throwing derogatory racial remarks towards the suspect. I had witnessed this behavior from my partner before, but he seems to always have a rationalization for the behavior. However, this time I believe he took it too far. b) Because we are not to allow our “law enforcement decisions to be influenced by race, color, creed, religion, national origin, gender, marital status, or status with regard to public assistance, disability, sexual orientation or age.” It is my responsibility to speak up about this because I am in a position to encourage a much needed change. I have no choice but to confront my partner on his behavior, as well as bring it to the attention of our superior officer. At which time, disciplinary action will be taken only after an investigation on my partner’s behavior. If I do not take this behavior to higher authorities, my partner has the ability to continue this racist behavior and the integrity of our obligations to the public will surely be tainted. My conscience knows that this is the right thing to do in order to protect the citizens as well as the name of my employers and co-workers.
Paragraph 3: a) When working with my partner on a recent bust for a small amount of drugs found on a suspect, my partner told me that I didn’t need to write a report for the drugs because it was just a small amount and wasn’t worth charging the suspect for it. I came to find out that my partner had been receiving regular payments in cash from the suspect, calling them “gifts” in order to avoid being arrested or fined by my partner. b) In our professional code of ethics it states in principle 6, rule a), subdivision 3, “Peace officers shall refuse favors or gratuities which could reasonably be interpreted as capable of influencing official acts or judgments.” Because we have all signed the code and sworn to uphold these rules, I know that I must let my superior know about the unethical practices being performed by my partner. There is a definite obligation to the other citizens of our city, to our written contract, or employers, our other co-workers, our entire profession and to our moral obligations. This is a “quid pro quo” situation for sure and if I turn a blind eye then I could very well be compromising my own job for not reporting it. The consequences are not only direct, but the intentional as well as legal side of the behaviors, if left unpunished could be extremely damaging to our department.
Paragraph 4: a) I was on the 2nd shift from 2:00 p.m.-10:00 p.m. at my work and the clock was slowly shifting past 10:00 p.m. My relief was supposed to be in at 9:50 p.m. to relieve me so I could go home. At 10:15 p.m. my relief finally walked into the department office and looked to be a little bit slower than usual and smelled of alcohol. I believed him to have been drinking right before his shift. b) In principle 4, rule b, it states that, “peace officers shall not consume alcoholic beverages to the extent the officer would be rendered unfit for the officer’s next scheduled shift. A peace officer shall not report for work with the odor of an alcoholic beverage on the officer’s breath.” In this situation I would stay on duty and contact the on-duty sergeant about my co-workers condition. Most likely he would be sent home and would face disciplinary action. I have a moral obligation to speak up as this puts citizens at risk for harm, as well as my co-worker. The department and all of its employees are at risk of an internal investigation if something had happened and our profession as a whole could receive a bad name, all because the poor judgment of one officer. His actions could have physical, financial, legal, direct, and unintentional consequences if the officer continues the pattern without ever being reprimanded for it because of property damage, personal injury or other damaging effects.