Police transparency in the spotlight during Senate hearing
A police recruit simulates a night time traffic stop under the eye of a New Hampshire Police Academy instructor inside the building at NHTI campus recently. GEOFF FORESTER
Published: 1/19/2021 4:51:06 PM
Three months after the New Hampshire Supreme Court delivered a transformative ruling over government personnel practices, including police disciplinary records, state lawmakers are considering creating new laws around them.
At a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing Tuesday, members of the public testified on Senate Bill 39, which would bar public access to police officers’ personnel files.
Senate Bill 39 would directly exempt any information in an officer’s personnel file from becoming public under the state’s right-to-know law, which allows citizens to request and receive government documents. Currently, police personnel files can only be disclosed if there is a compelling public interest, a determination that can o