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NOTE: This column is a new feature of CALEA Update that will appear periodically. Its purpose is to inform CALEA’s clients of legislative and legal events that may be of general interest to them. In June, a House Judiciary subcommittee approved proposed legislation which would require that federal agencies follow each federal circuit court's interpretation of laws and regulations, even when they conflict with the agency interpretation, and restrict agency attempts to convince other circuits to adopt the agency's view. The Department of Justice, which represents federal agencies in litigation, opposes the bill on the grounds that agencies already follow circuit precedent in the vast majority of cases, and the bill would interfere with the process by which legal issues develop and percolate up to the U.S. Supreme Court. Several police agencies in Canada have been giving their officers an
additional set of tools for effectively dealing with people A federal court in Missouri held that a city did not violate the constitutional rights of a police officer when, in an effort to enforce a police department regulation forbidding officers from knowingly associating with convicted criminals, it ordered the officer to terminate his personal relationship with a woman on probation. In his suit against the city, the officer had claimed that the department’s policy violated his constitutional right of free association and his constitutional right to privacy. He also argued that the regulation was unconstitutionally vague and broad. The Court ruled that while the city could not enforce such a regulation against the general public, and probably could not enforce it against other civic employees, it may regulate the behavior of its police officers more carefully. The U.S. Justice Department announced the settlement of an Americans with Disability Act discrimination suit against the city and county of Denver, CO over a policy that prevented the reassignment of police officers to civilian jobs to accommodate a disability. Under the consent decree, Denver agreed to implement a written policy within 120 days that will allow disabled police officers to be reassigned to vacant civilian career service positions. In the interim, Denver must offer reassignment as a "reasonable accommodation." The U.S. Supreme Court let stand an appeals court ruling that a systems analyst with anxiety and panic disorders whose medications caused impotence could proceed with his claim under the Americans with Disabilities Act that he was denied reasonable accommodation in the form of a job transfer. The U.S. Court of Appeals held that the plaintiff presented sufficient evidence that he was substantially limited in the major life activities of sleeping, engaging in sexual relations, and interacting with others. Recognizing that engaging in sexual relations is a major life activity under the ADA is a logical extension of the Supreme Court’s earlier holding that reproduction is a major life activity.
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and providing a
higher quality of service. This new tool is not a new, electronic device or a
new less-than-lethal weapon. Rather, this tool comes in the shape of a new
program in customer service training. It is designed to provide another set of
skills that officers can draw upon to de-escalate a tense situation before the
use of force is needed. This training is aimed at helping an officer deal with
the public and their own colleagues more effectively. It helps officers
understand their own strengths and provides the tools necessary to strengthen
those areas in which they may be lacking. 
