DOVER, Del. (AP) — Delaware lawmakers gave final approval Friday to bills aimed at providing greater transparency and public accountability in cases alleging police misconduct. The state Senate voted unanimously for legislation revising Delaware’s Law Enforcement Officers’ Bill of Rights, following overwhelming House passage of the measure last week.
Critics have argued for years that confidentiality provisions in LEOBOR have been used to shield information from the public regarding officers who have been disciplined for misconduct. The Senate also voted unanimously for a bill that establishes a new Police Officer Standards and Training Commission, which will replace the Council on Police Training. The legislation, which received unanimous approval in the House on Thursday, shifts responsibility for administrative support and oversight of mandatory training and education programs for police officers from the Delaware State Police to the Department of Safety and Homeland Security.
The bill also requires that all police departments, establish either individually or in combination with other departments, police accountability committees or boards to provide advice to departments on policy, training, and other issues. It also requires that every police department, large or small, be accredited by July 2028. Currently, only 21 of Delaware’s 52 police departments meet that standard.
Meanwhile, the LEOBOR reform measure has been years in the making. “This bill is a serious and meaningful step in the right direction after several attempts to make progress on this issue,” said House Majority Whip Melissa Minor-Brown, chief sponsor of the measure.
Representatives of the NAACP, ACLU and Metropolitan Wilmington Urban League have argued, however, that the bill does not go far enough and is too police-friendly. Rep. Madinah Wilson-Anton, a progressive Democrat from Newark, is the only lawmaker to vote against the bill.
Wilson-Anton said Friday that she did not like how advocates for reform were treated during the committee process, and that they should have been given a role in helping to draft the legislation.
Under the legislation, a police agency will be required to report to the state Criminal Justice Council when an investigation into possible misconduct finds that an officer engaged in sexual assault, sexual harassment, dishonest conduct or domestic violence. Instances involving an officer firing his weapon at a person or causing serious physical injury also would have to be reported. The council would be required to post the narratives on its website within 30 days.
The bill also requires that the person who makes a complaint or the victim be informed of the findings of an investigation into officer misconduct. Prosecutors in criminal cases would be required to provide the defense, upon request, with records including personnel files involving sustained findings of dishonest conduct, including false statements and witness tampering, by an officer involved in the case. A police agency also would be required to disclose to prosecutors unsubstantiated allegations of dishonest conduct by an officer involved in a criminal case — if the allegations are the subject of an ongoing investigation. If that investigation cannot substantiate the allegation, the information could not be used in the case.
The legislation also requires police agencies to submit annual reports to the Criminal Justice Council regarding the number of misconduct complaints received each year, the number of formal investigations undertaken, the number of investigations substantiating misconduct, and the number of complaints resolved without a formal investigation.
Earlier police reform efforts include laws requiring police officers to use body-worn cameras, banning the use of chokeholds unless an officer believes deadly force is warranted to protect the life of an officer or civilian, establishing a statewide use-of-force standard, and mandating the recording of all police custodial interrogations.