§ 42:1442 — Law enforcement officers accused of crimes committed while acting within or in furtherance of their scope and course of employment

A. When (1) a law enforcement officer, employed by the state or an agency thereof or by a political subdivision, as that term is defined in Article VI, Section 44 of the Constitution of Louisiana, has been subjected to an institution of prosecution for an alleged criminal act committed when the law enforcement officer is acting in good faith in the performance or in furtherance of the course and scope of his employment as defined by law and the policies and procedures of the law enforcement agency employing him, and (2) he is acquitted of the charge, the prosecution has been dismissed by the district attorney, or the periods of time have expired in which he could be brought to trial and convicted, the officer shall be reimbursed for reasonable attorney's fees incurred by him on account of the institution of prosecution. No reimbursement shall take place under the provisions of this Section until the suit is dismissed or finally adjudicated by a court of competent jurisdiction and the period for taking an appeal has expired. Reimbursement shall be from the governing authority by whom the officer was employed at the time of the alleged crime.
B. In a case of dismissal of prosecution, the officer may agree with the employer prior to the dismissal to waive any or all of his rights under this Section if the prosecution is dismissed. If an officer enters into a waiver agreement, it shall not be used as evidence of anything except as evidence of itself in a proceeding by the officer against his employer on matters affected by the waiver.
C. No law enforcement officer, unclassified or otherwise, shall lose any seniority, back pay, or other benefits within the authority of his employer to grant or withhold on account of institution of prosecution for a crime allegedly committed within the performance or in furtherance of the course and scope of his employment without an independent hearing or other established procedural step by the employer to meet fair due process standards.
D. Nothing herein shall prohibit an employer from suspending an employee pending a final resolution of an instituted prosecution.
E. Notwithstanding any other provision herein, the payments authorized by this Section shall be made only if the law enforcement officer has not violated any other rights or privileges secured by the state or federal constitution. The rights of such law enforcement officer shall not be construed as greater than those of an ordinary citizen.

Legislative History

Added by Acts 1983, No. 258, §1.