New Hampshire Revised Statutes 106-L:22 – Accessibility and Confidentiality
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I. It is the purpose of this section both to protect the reputation of law enforcement officers from public disclosure of unwarranted complaints against them and to fulfill the public right to know of any action taken against a law enforcement officer when that action is based on a sustained finding of misconduct.
II. Meetings of the committee concerning an individual complaint shall not be open to the public. Records of the committee as well as investigations conducted by the committee shall be work product and shall not be made public or be discoverable under N.H. Rev. Stat. Chapter 91-A except as provided in this subdivision. If the committee recommends to the council that a finding of misconduct be sustained then such decision of the committee shall be public and the council shall schedule a public hearing.
III. The council shall prepare and maintain a register of all complaints reviewed by the committee which shall be open to public inspection and copying containing the following information:
(a) The date and the nature of the complaint, but not including the identity of the law enforcement officer or employing agency; and
(b) A summary of the disposition of the completed investigation.
IV. All hearings of the council concerning complaints of misconduct shall be conducted in accordance with N.H. Rev. Stat. § 106-L:5, III. At the time of the hearing, the committee’s investigative report and any records relied on by the committee to present its recommendation to the council shall be available for public inspection. After the council issues its final decision, the decision and all records or information relied on or presented to the council shall be public. However, any hearing or record, or any portion thereof, described in this paragraph may be sealed or redacted if the council determines with specificity that any such record will reveal confidential information that creates a compelling interest outweighing the public’s presumed right of access.
V. A person charged with committing an act or acts of misconduct may inspect and copy the investigation file that results in the charges against him or her, except for any attorney work product or other privileged information.
VI. Any person aggrieved by a final order of the council granting or denying in whole or in part the relief sought may obtain review of such order in the manner prescribed in RSA 541.
VII. Notwithstanding any other provision of law set forth in this chapter, a prosecutor in a criminal proceeding may review and disclose any such information or records related to a sustained finding of misconduct in the possession of any law enforcement agency, the council, or the committee subject to the procedure set forth in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 105:13-b in order to determine whether any such information contains potentially exculpatory materials consistent with the prosecutor’s constitutional, legal, or ethical obligations.
II. Meetings of the committee concerning an individual complaint shall not be open to the public. Records of the committee as well as investigations conducted by the committee shall be work product and shall not be made public or be discoverable under N.H. Rev. Stat. Chapter 91-A except as provided in this subdivision. If the committee recommends to the council that a finding of misconduct be sustained then such decision of the committee shall be public and the council shall schedule a public hearing.
Terms Used In New Hampshire Revised Statutes 106-L:22
- Complaint: A written statement by the plaintiff stating the wrongs allegedly committed by the defendant.
- following: when used by way of reference to any section of these laws, shall mean the section next preceding or following that in which such reference is made, unless some other is expressly designated. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:13
- person: may extend and be applied to bodies corporate and politic as well as to individuals. See New Hampshire Revised Statutes 21:9
III. The council shall prepare and maintain a register of all complaints reviewed by the committee which shall be open to public inspection and copying containing the following information:
(a) The date and the nature of the complaint, but not including the identity of the law enforcement officer or employing agency; and
(b) A summary of the disposition of the completed investigation.
IV. All hearings of the council concerning complaints of misconduct shall be conducted in accordance with N.H. Rev. Stat. § 106-L:5, III. At the time of the hearing, the committee’s investigative report and any records relied on by the committee to present its recommendation to the council shall be available for public inspection. After the council issues its final decision, the decision and all records or information relied on or presented to the council shall be public. However, any hearing or record, or any portion thereof, described in this paragraph may be sealed or redacted if the council determines with specificity that any such record will reveal confidential information that creates a compelling interest outweighing the public’s presumed right of access.
V. A person charged with committing an act or acts of misconduct may inspect and copy the investigation file that results in the charges against him or her, except for any attorney work product or other privileged information.
VI. Any person aggrieved by a final order of the council granting or denying in whole or in part the relief sought may obtain review of such order in the manner prescribed in RSA 541.
VII. Notwithstanding any other provision of law set forth in this chapter, a prosecutor in a criminal proceeding may review and disclose any such information or records related to a sustained finding of misconduct in the possession of any law enforcement agency, the council, or the committee subject to the procedure set forth in N.H. Rev. Stat. § 105:13-b in order to determine whether any such information contains potentially exculpatory materials consistent with the prosecutor’s constitutional, legal, or ethical obligations.