2014 LMC Law Summaries

A new law allows for first responders to administer
opiate antagonists to overdose patients.

The 2014 League of Minnesota Cities Law Summaries is out and available online. The annual publication highlights the new laws that were passed in the 2014 Minnesota Legislative Session. Here are a few that impact public safety:

• A new statute authorizes public safety responders to administer “opiate antagonists” to overdose patients if authorized by the department’s medical director. It also provides some legal immunities for the patient or an individual who seeks medical help for the patient.
  
  
• The time limit for officers to make a warrantless arrest for misdemeanor domestic assault was expanded from 24 hours to 72 hours.
  
  
• Chapter 201 amends the forfeiture burden of proof by requiring a criminal conviction for judicial forfeiture of property associated with controlled substance offenses and vehicles used in drive-by shootings. 
  





Judges will now be ordering persons to turn
in their firearms to local law enforcement.

• There are new laws requiring the court to order persons subject to an order for protection to surrender their firearms to a
  federally licensed firearms dealer, a law enforcement agency, or a third party. The law also applies to persons convicted of domestic assault and stalking. In all of these cases, the judge may order the firearms to be turned over to the law enforcement agency for storage. The Minnesota Chiefs of Police Association has a committee working on a model policy to assist their departments.
  
  
• State statute 626A.42 now requires that a “tracking warrant” be obtained to acquire the location information of an electronic device. The statute defines the warrant requirements, exceptions, duration of the warrant, and the required reporting. 
  
  
•  In an effort to respond to the retention and recruitment issues for many of the state’s volunteer emergency medical services and fire departments, there are now four regional pilot programs to fund $500 stipends to volunteers in those areas.
  
  

The last part of the document describes the bills that Did Not Become Law (DNBL). The DNBL section is popular, as these bills have a head start and almost certainly will be reintroduced in the next session. Bills that caught my eye in this section were the residential sprinkler requirements, traffic citation diversion programs, and classification of data from license plate readers.

You can find the 2014 LMC Law Summary online at: http://lmc.org/media/document/1/lmclawsummaries14.pdf

Remember:

                                          Responder Safety = Public Safety



Up next…Fire and Police Fall Workshops

In the meantime, stay safe and be careful.



Rob