3.02.110 Duties of the Commission

(a) The Commission shall appoint, supervise, discipline, and terminate the Chief of Police of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Police Department.

(b) The Commission shall submit approved by-laws to Tribal Council. The Tribal Council shall review such by-laws, make any necessary changes and approve the by- laws within thirty (30) days with a Tribal Council Resolution. The Commission may adopt updates and/or amendments to the by-laws on an annual basis and submit such changes to Tribal Council approval with a Tribal Council Resolution.

(c) The Commission shall recommend to the Tribal Council officers qualified to exercise authority pursuant to New York State Article 8 § 114.

(d) The Commission shall review and recommend for approval of all policies and procedures of the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribal Police. Within 120 days of the adoption of this chapter, the Commission shall conduct, or cause to be conducted, a complete review of existing Policies and Procedures, and if necessary make recommendations to amend such Policies and Procedures for consistency with this chapter. All such Policies and Procedures shall be consistent with the Saint Regis Mohawk Tribe's goal of self- sufficiency and sovereignty through the implementation and enforcement of Tribal laws, regulations and ordinances. After the adoption, the Policies and Procedures may be amended under the following circumstances:

(1) The Chief of Police may provide the Commission with any recommended or necessary additions or amendments to Department policies and procedures.

(2) The Commission may also draft changes based upon issues identified by the community or the Commission.

(3) Upon receiving any amendments to policies and procedures from the Chief of Police, the Commission shall have up to sixty (60) days to review and recommend adoption to Tribal Council.

(4) After the review period, the Commission shall submit the proposed amendments to the Tribal Council for approval or request the Police Department to make further revisions.

(e) Upon submission to the Tribal Council of the policies and procedures, they shall become approved within sixty (60) days unless the Tribal Council votes to reject the new policies and procedures or request certain changes. If the Council votes to reject the policies and procedures, the Council shall give a written explanation to the Commission within fifteen (15) business days of the rejection. If changes are requested then the Police Commission shall determine whether to make further changes and resubmit to Tribal Council within thirty (30) days of receiving such changes. Thereafter, Tribal Council shall approve the policies and procedures within thirty (30) days.

(f) A member of the Commission may participate in hiring and promotion decisions of the Police Department, but the Chief of Police retains the authority to select a candidate. The actions of the Chief of Police must be consistent with departmental policies, the Tribe's current policies and procedures including the Employee Handbook or any amendments thereto. The Commission may terminate Police Department Personnel and Officers consistent with Section 3.02.160 herein.

(g) The Commission, with the input of the Chief of Police, may provide the Tribe's Human Resources Division with proposed policies for the hiring, promotion, suspension and removal of personnel and officers of the Police Department.

(h) The Commission shall oversee all complaints against the Chief of Police.

(i) The Commission may be involved in complaints against Department Personnel and Officers as outlined in the Police Manual and herein at Section 3.02.160. As outlined in Police Manual Section 1100 the Commission may hear appeals regarding certain disciplinary decisions involving Police Personnel reporting directly to the Chief of Police. It shall not oversee any complaints involving conduct or discipline relating to the Tribe's Employee Handbook unless such a review is outlined in the Tribe's Employee Handbook.

(j) The Commission shall not solicit complaints from the public. The Commission, however, shall make complaint forms accessible to the public and ensure all tribal agencies know the complaint process and where to submit a complaint form.

(k) The Commission, along with the Tribal Council, shall oversee the entering into of sharing of powers agreements, mutual aid agreements, and cross-deputization agreements by the Police Department with non-tribal law enforcement agencies.

(l) The Commission shall review all reports and audits conducted by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, or any other entity's reports or audits that are submitted to the Chief of Police.

(m) The Commission shall review closed complaints and disciplinary cases involving conduct related to the Police Manual every six (6) months to determine whether improvements to Department policies and procedures are needed. The Commission shall not reopen closed cases, but shall only review the cases to determine needed improvements in policies and procedures.

(n) The Commission shall review the Department's annual proposed budget and may provide recommendations to the Chief of Police regarding the Department' s finances, pending availability of funds, prior to its submission to the Tribal Administration Budget Team for review.

(o) The Commission shall review all summaries of use of force incidents, after investigations are complete. The summary shall include badge numbers of officers involved, circumstances of incidents, such as a shooting, and final determinations of investigation. The Commission shall identify patterns and trends and adjust policies and procedures and training when appropriate based on this review.

(p) The Commission shall work towards increasing public awareness of the Commission and the Police Department to include providing public notice of its monthly meetings, provided that all hearings involving disciplinary matters shall be held in executive (closed) session.

(q) The Commission, for any reason, may request that an independent police auditor be appointed by the Tribal Council to monitor a particular complaint or investigation.

(r) The Commission shall provide a report to the Tribal Council of its individual member's activities on a monthly basis. It shall also provide a monthly report to the Tribal Council to include, but not limited to, statistics on the number of complaints and disciplinary actions it has heard, and any other issues the Commission or the Tribal Council may deem important and appropriate.

(s) The Commission shall conduct a yearly evaluation of the Department. It shall be submitted by June 1st of each year. The Commission may hire an outside evaluator to assist with it. The evaluation shall include, but is not limited to:

(1) Interviews with Department personnel and officers.

(2) Conduct an anonymous survey of all Department personnel and officers regarding working conditions and overall satisfaction with the Department.

(3) A review of complaints and disciplinary actions regarding Department personnel and officers.

(4) A review of policies and procedures.

(5) A review of Department statistics, including statistics on the number of Tribal summonses and State summonses.

(6) A review of the Department's strategic plan including any implementation efforts.

(t) To coincide with the Department's annual evaluation from Section 3.02.110(s), the Commission shall submit to the Tribal Council an annual report. The annual report shall include a summary of each member's individual activities and should include, but is not limited to, the number of complaints filed and resolved by the Commission, the number of disciplinary actions it oversaw, changes in policies and procedures or recommendations for such changes, goals and needed resources for the following year.

(u) The Commission shall not respond to police scenes or calls for assistance. If any individual Commissioner responds to a police scene or calls for assistance, the Tribal Police on scene shall refer the matter to the Senior Officer on scene.