NJ Cops Nov18 | Page 21

Congress passes PROTECT Our Children Act In a victory for NAPO, Congress passed the Providing Resources, Officers and Technology to Eradicate Cyber Threats to (PROTECT) Our Children Act of 2017 on Oct. 26. The bill was sent to the president to be signed into law. NAPO was instrumental in getting the House Judi- ciary Committee, which had been holding the bill, to bring it to a vote. Because the House amended the bill slightly, it must go through the Senate again for final passage before it can become law. The legislation was sponsored by Senators John Cornyn (R-Tex- as) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Connecticut), as well as Congress- woman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Florida). It reauthorizes the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force Program, a national network of 61 coordinated task forces representing more than 3,500 federal, state and local law enforcement and prosecutorial agen- cies. These groups engage in proactive and reactive investigations and prosecutions of persons involved in child abuse and exploita- tion involving the internet. These task forces also provide forensic and investigative techni- cal assistance to law enforcement and prosecutors, and they help educate parents, educators, prosecutors, law enforcement officers and others concerned about child exploitation. NAPO on the Hill: Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights NAPO recently met with staff members for Senate Law Enforce- ment Caucus Co-Chair Senator Roy Blunt (R-Missouri) to discuss reintroducing the Law Enforcement Officers’ Procedural Bill of Rights Act. The bill would help law enforcement agencies develop standards for a fair and effective investigative process. It would en- sure that individuals have the right to file a complaint, to have the complaint investigated and to be informed of its final disposition, including the outcome of the investigation and any dis- ciplinary action that may result. Many of NAPO’s members are facing attacks on their due process rights from activists who believe that those rights given to officers — either through their collective bargaining agreements or their state’s law enforcement officers’ bill of rights — create a double standard and give officers undue protections against criminal investigations. Not all states have coherent guidelines and procedures for law enforcement officers’ due process rights. Officers are held to an ex- tremely high standard of personal and professional conduct, due to the enormous responsibilities they exercise. However, in only half of all states do officers have some legal protection against false ac- cusations and abusive conduct. This leaves hundreds of thousands of legal officers with limited or no due process, as well as many who face limitations or retaliation when exercising these rights. NAPO argues that taking away an officer’s due process rights is not the way to improve police accountability and responsibili- ty. The bill of rights act would ensure that all states have at least a minimum of standards and procedures in place to guide both state and local law enforcement agencies and officers during internal investigations, administrative hearings and evaluation of citizen complaints. Senator Blunt’s staff members communicated that while he would support the legislation, sponsoring it would be difficult for him given the current tension in Missouri between law enforce- ment and the community. They did help strategize other possible Republican sponsors and offered support in other ways. NAPO will continue to try to find a member of Congress who will fight for offi- cers’ due process rights. d The Law Firm of Alterman & Associates, LLC Stuart J. Alterman, Esquire Jeffrey S. Ziegelheim, Esquire Arthur J. Murray, Esquire Proudly representing Law Enforcement and Public Safety for a combined 80 years Contract Negotiation Contract Arbitration Grievances/ Arbitration Discipline Defense Whistleblower /CEPA Hostile Work Environment Pension/Disability Appeals Criminal Defense Workers Compensation Personal Injury Human Resource Issues Civil Rights Litigation Administrative One Stop Shop for Public Safety Alterman & Associates, LLC have been an approved law firm with the PBA Legal Protection Plan since its inception. South Jersey Location 8 South Maple Avenue, Marlton, NJ 08053 [phone] North Jersey Location 22 Church Street, Haledon, NJ 07508 [phone] [email protected] www.altermanandassociates.com www.NJPoliceAttorney.com www.NJCorrectionsAttorney.com www.njcopsmagazine.com ■ NOVEMBER 2017 21