Bill Text: HI SB3009 | 2024 | Regular Session | Amended

Hawaii Senate Bill 3009

Bill Title: Relating To The Department Of Law Enforcement.

Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 5-0)

Status: (Engrossed) 2024-03-19 - Passed Second Reading as amended in HD 1 and referred to the committee(s) on FIN with none voting aye with reservations; none voting no (0) and Representative(s) Belatti, Hashem, Kong, Sayama excused (4). [SB3009 Detail]

Download: Hawaii-2024-SB3009-Amended.html

THE SENATE	S.B. NO.	3009
THIRTY-SECOND LEGISLATURE, 2024		S.D. 2
STATE OF HAWAII

A BILL FOR AN ACT

RELATING TO THE DEPARTMENT OF LAW ENFORCEMENT.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF HAWAII:

SECTION 1. The legislature finds that on a daily basis, the branches of state government take official actions that regularly affect Hawaii residents, providing ample opportunities for potential security risks to arise for government agencies. Law enforcement and security professionals have long understood that targeted violence towards government agencies and employees is often related to an individual's unhealthy reaction to life changes resulting from official action taken pursuant to a government agency's mission or a government employee's duties.

Public officials and employees increasingly face the risk of personal reprisal from individuals affected by decisions made in the exercise of their official duties. Nationally, court personnel have been exposed to an increasing number of personal threats, including a recent incident in Las Vegas, Nevada, where a party to a criminal matter physically attacked the presiding judge. According to the United States Marshals Service, threats and other inappropriate communications against federal judges and other judiciary personnel increased from nine hundred twenty-six incidents in fiscal year 2015 to 4,449 in fiscal year 2019. In Hawaii, threats and other inappropriate communications towards judges have increased tenfold and threats towards judiciary social workers providing probation oversight have increased ninefold over the last decade. Security checkpoints with metal detectors have been installed at various entrances into the state capitol building in response to growing security concerns from legislative members, staff, and visitors to the building.

In light of the escalating safety risks for public officials, and to establish appropriate priorities for the newly created department of law enforcement, the legislature finds that statutory amendments are necessary to specify the sheriff division's responsibilities for legislative and judicial security.

Accordingly, the purpose of this Act is to:

(1) Establish a specific statutory duty of the department of law enforcement and its sheriff division to ensure the safety and security of all judicial and legislative personnel and facilities by maintaining as its core mission service as the law enforcement and protective security entity for the legislative and judicial branches of the State; and

(2) Require the sheriff division to pursue accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc., as recommended by the auditor in 2010 in auditor report no. 10-06, and to obtain and maintain that accreditation.

SECTION 2. Chapter 353C, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended by adding three new sections to be appropriately designated and to read as follows:

"§353C- Sheriff division; responsibilities. (a) In addition to any other function designated by the department of law enforcement, the sheriff division of the department shall have primary responsibility for:

(1) Protecting judicial and legislative personnel;

(2) Protecting and securing judicial and legislative facilities; and

(3) Preventing, detecting, and investigating criminal acts, and enforcing traffic regulations, throughout judicial and legislative buildings, parks, and thoroughfares.

(b) The sheriff division shall have concurrent jurisdiction with any other agency of the department of law enforcement to take enforcement action when a sheriff observes or is made aware of crimes of violence while on or off duty.

(c) The sheriff division shall be responsible for the physical, technical, and programmatic security of judicial and legislative buildings, facilities, personnel, and visitors, and the establishment of programs to protect key personnel, including:

(1) Physical and technical security programs;

(2) Physical security staffing;

(3) Threat-based protection of personnel; and

(4) A legislative and judicial threat and risk monitoring program, conducted in partnership with the Hawaii state fusion center, for gathering intelligence relating to threats, violence, and other risks, for the purpose of protecting the judiciary and the legislature; provided that the program shall include:

(A) Threat identification, monitoring, and reporting;

(B) Threat assessment methods;

(D) Disaster planning or evacuation;

(E) Workplace violence planning, training, and response;

(F) Active shooter or targeted violence planning, training, and response; and

(G) Collaboration with external law enforcement agencies during a mutual aid incident.

§353C- Meetings; judicial and legislative security requirements; authority. (a) Within thirty days of the effective date of Act , Session Laws of Hawaii 2024, and each year thereafter, the director of law enforcement and a representative of the sheriff division shall meet and confer with the administrative director of the courts, the president of the senate, and the speaker of the house of representatives, or their respective designees. Each meeting shall focus on the security requirements for the judiciary and the legislature, including:

(1) The security of buildings housing the judiciary or the legislature;

(2) The personal security of justices, judges, and legislators, including the assessment of threats directed at those individuals; and

(3) The protection of all other judicial and legislative personnel.

(b) The department of law enforcement shall have the final authority regarding law enforcement and security requirements for both the judiciary and the legislature; provided that the department shall take into account the views of the judiciary and the legislature, as expressed at the meeting required by this section, regarding those security requirements when determining staffing levels, setting priorities for judicial and legislative security programs, and allocating appropriate law enforcement and security resources.

§353C- Sheriff division; accreditation required. (a) The sheriff division shall pursue, obtain, and maintain accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc.; provided that the division shall obtain its initial accreditation no later than two years after the effective date of Act , Session Laws of Hawaii 2024.

(b) Within one hundred twenty days after the effective date of Act , Session Laws of Hawaii 2024, and each year thereafter, the division shall submit to the judiciary and the legislature a report that includes, to the extent applicable:

(1) The status of the division's accreditation, or efforts to obtain accreditation or reaccreditation;

(2) Any issues that may prevent the division from obtaining accreditation or reaccreditation, or maintaining accreditation;

(3) Any proposed legislation that may facilitate the division's ability to obtain accreditation or reaccreditation, or maintain accreditation; and

(4) Any other information relevant for the purposes of this section."

SECTION 3. Section 353C-2, Hawaii Revised Statutes, is amended to read as follows:

"§353C-2 Director of law enforcement; powers and duties. The director of law enforcement shall administer the public safety programs of the department and shall be responsible for the formulation and implementation of state goals and objectives for state law enforcement programs [~~and~~]; homeland security, including the deployment of adequate resources and coordination with county police departments to protect the health and safety of homestead communities on Hawaiian home lands[.]; and judicial and legislative protection and security services. In the administration of these programs, the director may:

(1) Preserve the public peace, prevent crime, detect and arrest offenders against the law, protect the rights of persons and property, and enforce and prevent violation of all laws and administrative rules of the State as the director deems to be necessary or desirable or upon request, to assist other state officers or agencies that have primary administrative responsibility over specific subject matters or programs;

(2) Train, equip, maintain, and supervise the force of law enforcement officers and other employees of the department;

(3) Serve process both in civil and criminal proceedings;

(4) Perform other duties as may be required by law;

(5) Adopt, pursuant to chapter 91, rules that are necessary or desirable for the administration of state law enforcement programs; and

(6) Enter into contracts on behalf of the department and take all actions deemed necessary and appropriate for the proper and efficient administration of the department."

SECTION 4. Within ninety days of the effective date of this Act, the director of law enforcement shall submit to the judiciary and the legislature a twelve-month plan regarding the transition of responsibilities and implementation of sheriff division programs as required by this Act.

SECTION 5. Statutory material to be repealed is bracketed and stricken. New statutory material is underscored.

SECTION 6. This Act shall take effect on July 1, 2024.

Report Title:

DLE; Sheriff Division; Judicial and Legislative Security

Description:

Specifies the responsibilities of the Department of Law Enforcement's Sheriff Division regarding judicial and legislative security. Requires the Sheriff Division to pursue, obtain, and maintain accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies, Inc. (SD2)

The summary description of legislation appearing on this page is for informational purposes only and is not legislation or evidence of legislative intent.