PRIOR PRINTER'S NO. 1157 PRINTER'S NO. 2060
No. 6 Session of 1999
INTRODUCED BY PERZEL, CLARK, ARMSTRONG, DeWEESE, ORIE,
TANGRETTI, McGEEHAN, SOLOBAY, ARGALL, MARKOSEK, YUDICHAK,
VEON, SATHER, WALKO, FICHTER, GRUCELA, EACHUS, BELFANTI,
GODSHALL, MUNDY, BLAUM, SHANER, CHADWICK, LaGROTTA, BUNT AND
LAWLESS, MARCH 23, 1999
AS REPORTED FROM COMMITTEE ON JUDICIARY, HOUSE OF
REPRESENTATIVES, AS AMENDED, JUNE 15, 1999
AN ACT
1 Authorizing certain officers in the Department of Corrections to
2 perform certain peace officer duties.
3 The General Assembly of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
4 hereby enacts as follows:
5 Section 1. Short title.
6 This act shall be known and may be cited as the Peace Officer
7 Law.
8 Section 2. Definitions.
9 The following words and phrases when used in this act shall
10 have the meanings given to them in this section unless the
11 context clearly indicates otherwise:
12 "Correctional officer." A person who is employed by the
13 Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Department of Corrections, and who <--
14 works at a State correctional institution or a State boot camp
15 to guard and protect inmates or the properties of the
1 Commonwealth.
2 Section 3. Peace officer duties.
3 All superintendents, deputy superintendents of operation and
4 correctional officers of all ranks, while acting within the
5 scope of their employment and during their normal working hours
6 within the Department of Corrections, shall have the authority
7 and may, WHEN SO DIRECTED BY THE SECRETARY OF CORRECTIONS, <--
8 exercise the powers of peace officers. Such duties shall include <--
9 BE LIMITED TO the following: <--
10 (1) Guarding, protecting and delivering prisoners.
11 (2) Enforcing the laws of this Commonwealth on any
12 property owned or operated under the jurisdiction of the
13 Department of Corrections.
14 Section 4. Educational program.
15 (a) General rule.--The Department of Corrections and the <--
16 Pennsylvania State Police shall establish a committee consisting
17 of three persons from each agency to, JOINT LABOR MANAGEMENT <--
18 APPRENTICESHIP COMMITTEE, IN CONSULTATION WITH THE PENNSYLVANIA
19 STATE POLICE, SHALL formulate a mandatory basic course of peace
20 officer study, which shall include a minimum of 200 hours of <--
21 classroom study, for the officers identified in section 3. <--
22 Courses shall begin one year from the date of final enactment of
23 this section.
24 (b) Applicability.--The officers identified in section 3 who
25 are employed prior to the passage of this act shall not be
26 required to take the basic course of study in subsection (a).
27 Those officers employed prior to the passage of this act shall
28 complete 40 hours of appropriate peace officer training as
29 prescribed and administered by the Pennsylvania State Police.
30 Section 5. Effective date.
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1 This act shall take effect as follows:
2 (1) Section 3 shall take effect in 60 days.
3 (2) The remainder of this act shall take effect
4 immediately.
5 SECTION 3. NO PERSON SHALL BE DEEMED A PEACE OFFICER PURSUANT TO <--
6 THIS ACT UNLESS SO TRAINED.
7 SECTION 5. EFFECTIVE DATE.
8 THIS ACT SHALL TAKE EFFECT IN 60 DAYS.
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