41-1822. Powers and duties of board; definition

A. With respect to peace officer training and certification, the board shall:

1. Establish rules for the government and conduct of the board, including meeting times and places and matters to be placed on the agenda of each meeting.

2. Make recommendations, consistent with this article, to the governor, the speaker of the house of representatives and the president of the senate on all matters relating to law enforcement and public safety.

3. Prescribe reasonable minimum qualifications for officers to be appointed to enforce the laws of this state and the political subdivisions of this state and certify officers in compliance with these qualifications. Notwithstanding any other law, the qualifications shall require United States citizenship, shall relate to physical, mental and moral fitness and shall govern the recruitment, appointment and retention of all agents, peace officers and police officers of every political subdivision of this state. The board shall constantly review the qualifications established by this section and may amend the qualifications at any time, subject to the requirements of section 41-1823.

4. Prescribe minimum courses of training and minimum standards for training facilities for law enforcement officers. Only this state and political subdivisions of this state may conduct basic peace officer training. Basic peace officer academies may admit individuals who are not peace officer cadets only if a cadet meets the minimum qualifications established by paragraph 3 of this subsection. Training shall include:

(a) Courses in responding to and reporting all criminal offenses that are motivated by race, color, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, gender or disability.

(b) Training certified by the director of the department of health services with assistance from a representative of the board on the nature of unexplained infant death and the handling of cases involving the unexplained death of an infant.

(c) Medical information on unexplained infant death for first responders, including awareness and sensitivity in dealing with families and child care providers, and the importance of forensically competent death scene investigations.

(d) Information on the protocol of investigation in cases of an unexplained infant death, including the importance of a consistent policy of thorough death scene investigation.

(e) The use of the infant death investigation checklist pursuant to section 36-3506.

(f) If an unexplained infant death occurs, the value of timely communication between the medical examiner's office, the department of health services and appropriate social service agencies that address the issue of infant death and bereavement, to achieve a better understanding of these deaths and to connect families to various community and public health support systems to enhance recovery from grief.

5. Recommend curricula for advanced courses and seminars in law enforcement and intelligence training in universities, colleges and community colleges, in conjunction with the governing body of the educational institution.

6. Make inquiries to determine whether this state or political subdivisions of this state are adhering to the standards for recruitment, appointment, retention and training established pursuant to this article. The failure of this state or any political subdivision to adhere to the standards shall be reported at the next regularly scheduled meeting of the board for action deemed appropriate by that body.

7. Employ an executive director and other staff as are necessary to fulfill the powers and duties of the board in accordance with the requirements of the law enforcement merit system council.

B. With respect to state department of corrections correctional officers, the board shall:

1. Approve a basic training curriculum of at least two hundred forty hours.

2. Establish uniform minimum standards. These standards shall include high school graduation or the equivalent and a physical examination as prescribed by the director of the state department of corrections.

3. Establish uniform standards for background investigations, including criminal histories under section 41-1750, of all applicants before enrolling in the academy. The board may adopt special procedures for extended screening and investigations in extraordinary cases to ensure suitability and adaptability to a career as a correctional officer.

4. Issue a certificate of completion to any state department of corrections correctional officer who satisfactorily complies with the minimum standards and completes the basic training program. The board may issue a certificate of completion to a state department of corrections correctional officer who has received comparable training in another state if the board determines that the training was at least equivalent to that provided by the academy and if the person complies with the minimum standards.

5. Establish continuing training requirements and approve curricula.

C. With respect to peace officer misconduct, the board may:

1. Receive complaints of peace officer misconduct from any person, request law enforcement agencies to conduct investigations and conduct independent investigations into whether an officer is in compliance with the qualifications established pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 of this section.

2. Receive a complaint of peace officer misconduct from the president or chief executive officer of a board recognized law enforcement association that represents the interests of certified law enforcement officers if the association believes that a law enforcement agency refused to investigate or made findings that are contradictory to prima facie evidence of a violation of the qualifications established pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 of this section. If the board finds that the law enforcement agency refused to investigate or made findings that contradicted prima facie evidence of a violation of the qualifications established pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 of this section, the board shall conduct an independent investigation to determine whether the officer is in compliance with the qualifications established pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 of this section and provide a letter of the findings based on the investigation conducted by the board to the president or chief executive officer of the board recognized law enforcement association who made the complaint.

D. The board may:

1. Deny, suspend, revoke or cancel the certification of an officer who is not in compliance with the qualifications established pursuant to subsection A, paragraph 3 of this section.

2. Provide training and related services to assist state, tribal and local law enforcement agencies to better serve the public, including training for emergency alert notification systems.

3. Enter into contracts to carry out its powers and duties.

E. This section does not create a cause of action or a right to bring an action, including an action based on discrimination due to sexual orientation.

F. For the purposes of this section, " sexual orientation" means consensual homosexuality or heterosexuality.