SAVANNAH, GA (October 30, 2015): “Administrative leave with pay is the SCMPD terminology used to satisfy ‘CALEA Standard 1.3.8., Removal from Line of Duty.’ As you can see from the below quoted CALEA Standard and commentary, in certain circumstances nationally accredited police agencies are required to remove officers from line of duty assignments. While the commentary section provided below is not mandatory, the standard is mandatory.
In short, application of ‘CALEA Standard – 1.3.8 Removal of Line of Duty Assignment,’ following use of force incidents serves the interests of citizens and an agency’s sworn and civilian employees as a means of decreasing the odds of confrontation. This practice is not limited to shootings, but may also be applied to any ‘critical or traumatic incident’ such as employee involvement in fatal vehicular accidents. During periods of administrative leave with pay, temporary alternative assignments (TAA) may be employed by this agency. TAA is also referred to as modified duty. Please see ‘CALEA Standard 1.3.8 Removal of Line of Duty Assignment’ below.
Again, the commentary is not mandatory; but the standard is mandatory.”
CALEA Standard – 1.3.8 Removal from Line of Duty Assignment, Use of Force
A written directive requires that any employee, whose action(s) or use of force in an official capacity results in death or serious physical injury, be removed from line-duty assignment, pending an administrative review.
Commentary—
The purpose of this standard is twofold: to protect the community’s interest when employees may have exceeded the scope of their authority in their actions or in their use of force and to shield employees who have not exceeded the scope of their authority from possible confrontations with the community.—
The agency should consider removing from duty status all employees involved in a critical or traumatic incident, not limited to shootings, and may include incidents such as a fatal motor vehicle collision involving the employee. During the period of administrative leave or reassignment, the agency should consider provisions for post-incident debriefing or counseling for those employees involved. In some critical incidents, the employee’s family may also require assistance.—
The removal process may have a detrimental effect on employees involved. Agencies may wish to routinely include a review of these procedures during in-service training sessions (see standard 1.3.11) to enhance understanding of this procedure. (M M M M) (LE1)
Chief Joseph H. Lumpkin, Sr.
Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department
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