SB 2289

If an employee or official of a state or local law enforcement agency becomes aware of a critical incident within this state involving a federal enforcement agency, then this bill requires the employee or officia l , within 24 hours, to notify all of the following:  The Tennessee bureau of investigation (TBI).  The district attorney general for the judicial district .  The chief law enforcement official where the critical incident took place if the chief law enforcement official is not the person making such required notification . This bill requires t he notification to include the time and location of the critical incident, the nature of the action, the type of force used, and whether state or local resources were involved. As used in this bill, a "critical incident"" means an enforcement action resulting in death or serious bodily injury to an individual regardless of whether or not the individual was the subject of the enforcement action . INDEPENDENT REVIEW – ANNUAL REPORT This bill requires t he TBI, within existing resources, to initiate an independent review of all critical incidents involving a federal enforcement agency. The review must assess foreseeability of the serious bodily injury or death, de-escalation opportunities, and the role of state resources, if any, in the critical incident. Such a review is for the purpose of transparency, legislative oversight, and public reporting only and is not a criminal investigation of a federal officer. T he TBI must publish th e review on the TBI 's website in a manner accessible to the public within 90 days of opening the independent review. The report must redact any confidential information or information that might compromise an ongoing criminal investigation. In addition to the independent review, this bill requires the TBI, within existing resources, to submit an annual report to the governor and to the speaker of the senate and the speaker of the house of representatives summarizing critical incidents, state resource involvement, and compliance with notification requirements as required by this bill . The report must include anonymized demographic information when available and whether the individual harmed was the subject of the enforcement action. A copy o f this report must be published on the TBI 's website in a manner available to the public. NON-EMERGENCY STATE RESOURCES This bill prohibits s tate and local officials and agencies from provid ing non-emergency state resources to a federal enforcement agency involved in a critical incident until the independent review has been completed. However, t his prohibition does not prohibit state and local officials and agencies from providing necessary emergency resources or any cooperation required by federal law or a valid court order before the independent review has been completed. LIMITS ON STATE AND LOCAL AGENCIES This bill prohibits a state or local law enforcement agency from detain ing, question ing, search ing, or subject ing an individual to force solely because the individual is (i) p resent at or near an enforcement action; ( ii ) o bserving, recording, or reporting on the enforcement action from a lawful location; ( iii ) t raveling to or from work, school, or caregiving responsibilities in the area of an enforcement action; or ( iv ) a ccompanying or assisting a family member, coworker, or neighbor in the area of an enfor cement action. This bill prohibits state and local agencies from provid ing personnel, equipment, facilities, or crowd management assistance for the purpose of detaining or dispersing individuals present at or near an enforcement action unless required by federal law or a valid court order. PROTECTIONS FOR REPORTING VIOLATIONS This bill provides that a state or local government employee or public official who in good faith reports a violation of this bill has all protections under present law for such reporting, and any other applicable protections provided by law. APPLICABILITY This bill clarifies that its provisions do not e xpand federal authority; a uthorize state prosecution of federal officers acting within the scope of federal law; l imit constitutionally protected rights; or i mpede federal law enforcement actions."