Assembly Bill A5617

                             
                     S T A T E   O F   N E W   Y O R K
 ________________________________________________________________________
 
                                   5617
 
                        2025-2026 Regular Sessions
 
                           I N  A S S E M B L Y
 
                             February 18, 2025
                                ___________
 
 Introduced  by M. of A. HYNDMAN -- read once and referred to the Commit-
   tee on Cities
 
 AN ACT to amend the New York city charter, in relation to expanding  the
   investigative  scope of the Civilian Complaint Review Board to include
   allegations of biased-based profiling

   THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF NEW YORK, REPRESENTED IN SENATE AND  ASSEM-
 BLY, DO ENACT AS FOLLOWS:
 
   Section  1.  Paragraph  1 of subdivision (c) of section 440 of the New
 York city charter, as amended by local law 24 of the city  of  New  York
 for the year 2022, is amended to read as follows:
   1.  The board shall have the power to receive, investigate, hear, make
 findings and recommend action upon complaints by members of  the  public
 or  complaints  initiated  by  the  board  against members of the police
 department that allege  BIAS-BASED  PROFILING  OR  misconduct  involving
 excessive use of force, abuse of authority including bias-based policing
 and racial profiling, discourtesy, or use of offensive language, includ-
 ing,  but  not  limited to, slurs relating to race, ethnicity, religion,
 gender, sexual orientation and disability. The board shall also have the
 power to investigate, hear, make findings and recommend action regarding
 the truthfulness of any material official statement made by a member  of
 the  police  department  who  is  the subject of a complaint received or
 initiated by the board, if such statement was made during the course  of
 and  in  relation to the board's resolution of such complaint. The find-
 ings and recommendations of the board, and the basis therefor, shall  be
 submitted to the police commissioner. No finding or recommendation shall
 be  based solely upon an unsworn complaint or statement, nor shall prior
 unsubstantiated, unfounded or withdrawn complaints be the basis for  any
 such  finding  or  recommendation.    FOR THE PURPOSES OF THIS PARAGRAPH
 "BIAS-BASED PROFILING" SHALL MEAN AN ACT BY A MEMBER  OF  THE  NEW  YORK
 CITY  POLICE  DEPARTMENT  OR  ANY  OTHER  NEW  YORK CITY LAW ENFORCEMENT
 PROFESSIONAL WHO RELY ON ACTUAL  OR  PERCEIVED  RACE,  NATIONAL  ORIGIN,
 
  EXPLANATION--Matter in ITALICS (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
                       [ ] is old law to be omitted.
                                                            LBD05198-01-5
              

 A. 5617                             2
 
 COLOR,  CREED,  AGE,  IMMIGRATION  OR CITIZENSHIP STATUS, GENDER, SEXUAL
 ORIENTATION, DISABILITY OR HOUSING STATUS AS THE DETERMINATIVE FACTOR IN
 INITIATING LAW ENFORCEMENT ACTION AGAINST AN INDIVIDUAL, RATHER THAN  AN
 INDIVIDUAL'S BEHAVIOR OR OTHER INFORMATION OR CIRCUMSTANCES THAT LINKS A
 PERSON OR PERSONS TO SUSPECTED UNLAWFUL ACTIVITY.
   § 2. This act shall take effect immediately.