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An Ordinance of the County of Allegheny, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, amending the Allegheny County Code of Ordinances through the establishment of a new Division 9, entitled “Conduct,” and a new Chapter 905, entitled “Independent Police Review Board,” in order to establish a mechanism for citizen and/or municipal review of allegations of misconduct undertaken by police officers within Allegheny County.
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WHEREAS, from time to time, allegations of police misconduct are made by members of the general public; and
WHEREAS, these allegations are often subject to significant scrutiny by various media outlets and debate by the public, an issue highlighted by multiple recent events within the County; and
WHEREAS, this public discussion and debate over whether the actions of law enforcement officers, absent any formalized means of reviewing the allegations in a given case by citizens who are provided full information regarding the events in question, often leads to invalid assumptions and/or discussion of incorrect or partially correct factual information, and almost inevitably serves to undermine public confidence in law enforcement; and
WHEREAS, while the City of Pittsburgh established an Independent Citizen Police Review Board in 1997 as a result of a voter-approved referendum to the City Charter and specifically in order to restore public confidence in law enforcement to the extent possible, no such independent review board exists to perform a similar function on a Countywide basis; and
WHEREAS, it is the judgment of Council that the establishment of an independent Police Review Board is desirable as a means of improving public safety, fostering transparency in instances of alleged misconduct by law enforcement, and improving public confidence in law enforcement generally within the County; and
WHEREAS, pursuant to existing Commonwealth law, such a Countywide review board will necessarily have jurisdiction only over those municipalities that opt...
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