HomeMy WebLinkAboutOrdinances Book 7, Page 51, Ordinance Number 17Ordinance No. 17
AN ORDINANCE PRESCRIBING POSITIONS OF EMPLOY1.1ENT IN THE
POLICE AND FIRE DEPARTMENTS OF THE CITY OF PADUCAH IIID PRESCRIBING THEIR
DUTIES AND THE METHOD OF PROP,ICTION AND REDUCTION.
BE IT ORDhINED BY THE BOARD OF COI.III.ISSIONERS OF THE CITY OF
PADUCAH, KENTUCKY: -
SECTION 1. The positions of employment in the Police Department of the
City of Paducah, the number of employees thereof and their respective
salaries, shall be and remain as heretofore fixed by Ordinance of the
City of Paducah, except as changed and regulated by this Ordinance, until
changed by Ordinance of the City of Paducah.
SECTION 2. In order to secure efficiency in the performance of duties
by patrolmen, and to provide incentive and reward for faithful and
efficient service by them, they are classified and graded as follows:
1. Patrolmen of Grade A, consisting of men who are at the time
of the passage of this Ordinance regular patrolmen of the City of Paducah.
2. Patrolmen of Grade B, consisting of men who have served three
years and less than five years with a good record.
3. Patrolmen of Grade C, consisting of men who have served one
year and less than three years, of good record. Substitutes shall draw
the same salary while serving as the patrolman being substituted for.
4. Patrolmen of Grade D, consisting of patrolmen not included
in Grades A, B and C.
SECTION 3. Said patrolmen shall receive salaries as follows, to -wit:
Grade a ...................675.00 per month
Grade B ................... 70.00 per month
Grade C ................... 65.00 per month
Grade D ............... 60.00 per month
SECTION 4. In order to establish more fully the Merit System there shall
be kept by the Commissioner of Public Safety, or the Assistant Chief of
Police, a record upon which patrolmen shall be credited with merits and
charged with demerits, in the manner hereinafter prescribed. And upon a
demerit or merit being entered against any patrolman or officer, then such
officer or patrolman shall be notified thereof.
SECTION 5. When any patrolman is hereafter placed upon the Police force
of the City who has had past experience as patrolman in the City of
Paducah, he shall - for the purpose of grading said patrolman - he
credited with one half of the time he served as patrolman of the City of
Paducah. But all patrolmen hereafter placed upon the Police force of the
City of Paducah who have not had past experience as patrolmen shall be
classed in Grade C.
SECTION 6. The Commissioner of Public Safety shall have the right to
suspend, without pay, any patrolman against whom charges have been brought
Vo-� 1
Ordinance No. __LZcontinued.
which would subject him to discharge, until such charges have been heard
and finally determined by the Board of Commissioners, and upon the hear-
ing of said charges by the Board of Commissioners said Board shall have .
the right to discharge said patrolman in accordance with the terms of
this Ordinance, or to p unish him by a suspension_, without pay, or with
a diminution of pay, for such time as it may determine - and such action
on the part of said Board of Commissioners shall be final.
SECTION 7. When any patrolman is discharged, either by reason of re-
ceiving sufficient demerits to automatically discharge him or upon
charges heard before the Board of Commissioners, then his application
for reinstatement on the police force shall not be considered and he
shall not be placed upon the police force, in any capacity, until
after one year has elapsed from the date of his discharge.
SECTION 8. The Board of Commissioners may, by a majority vote, &.11017
any number of merits to a patrolman in cases of exceptional and
meritorious conduct in the performance of his duty.
SECTION 9. Demerits shall be determined by the Commissioner of Public
Safety upon report of the Assistant Chief of Police, or upon other
information, and shall be charged against each patrolman as follows,
for any of the following causes existing or occurring after the
passage`of this Ordinance:
For drinking intoxicating liquor while
in uniform ............................ 3 Demerits
For being intoxicated while on duty ... 5 Demerits
For being intoxicated while off duty .. 3 Demerits
Insubordination or disrespect towards
superior officer ...................... 2 Demerits
Oppression or tyranny ................. 1 Demerit
Neglect of duty - Within the discretion
of the Commissioner of Public Safety - 1 to 3 Demerits
Violation of an;T rule of the Department 2 Demerits
Disobedience of orders ................ 3 Demerits
Offense against the law, except upon
conviction of a felony ................ 3 Demerits
Conviction of any felony .............. 5 Demerits
Absence from duty without leave ....... 2 Demerits
Immoral conduct ....................... 3 Demerits
Conduct unbecoming an officer ......... 3 Demerits
Conduct injurious to public peace or
welfare ............................... 3 Demerits
Unnecessary absence from his route
during patrol duty .................... 3 Demerits
Incapacity - mental, physical or
educational, such as within the discre-
tion of the Commissioner of Public
Safety makes him unfit for service .... 5 Demerits
Breach of discipline .................. 2 Demerits
Ol'Qr117ance No. __17—continued.
Neglecting or refusing to pay a debt
for uniform clothing or for rent, or the
necessaries of life, contracted during
service ................................ 2 Demerits
Failure to promptly answer signal
light .................................. 1 Demerit
Contracting a debt under false or
fraudulent pretenses ................... 3 Demerits
Neglecting or refusing to pay a just
debt contracted during service ......... 2 Demerits
Entering house of prostitution or
assignation, saloons or sporting houses
of any description, unless in the
discharge of his duty 3 Demerits
Communicating information relating to
police work_ without permission ......... 4 Demerits
Conversing unnecessarily during hours
of duty with others without cause
therefor 1 Demerit
Not properly patroling route during
his tDur of patrol duty ................ 3 Demerits
Patrolmen in Grade a shall be considered as patrolmen who
have served for a period of five years or more.
Patrolmen in Grade B shall be considered as patrolmen who
have served for a period of three years and less than five years.
Patrolmen in Grade C shall be considered as patrolmen who
have served for a period of one year and less than three years.
Patrolmen in Gracie D shall be considered as patrolmen who
have served for a period of less than one year.
Each demerit shall be equivalent to taking off one year of
service in determining the grade of patrolmen, and each merit shall be
equivalent to one demerit. V,henever a patrolman has served for a
period of six months without any demerit being marked against him, then
such continuous service shall be considered as one merit mark. V,henever
a patrolman is credited with merits and charged with demerits, as pro-
vided in this ordinance, his grade as patrolman shall be thereupon
automatically advanced or reduced, in accordance with the scale provided
in this Ordinance, and whenever a patrolman receives sufficient demerits
to drop him below the grade of D he shall be dismissed from service -
and if any patrolman of any grade shall have five demerits against him
he shall thereupon be dismissed from service.
SECTION 10. Promotions to and reductions from positions of higher grade
than a patrolman shall be made upon the consideration of merit and
efficiency by the Board of COmmissioners, upon recomr.endation of the
Commissioner of Public Safety. Promotions of patrolmen to higher grades
will be made from patrolmen of Grade a, except that the assistant Chief
of Police shall be selecteck by the Board of Commissioners irrespective
of merits or demerits. No member of the Police Department, except
Assistant Chief, shall be discharged except as herein provided, and except
upon specific charges brought for offenses not enumerated herein, to be
No.
Ordinance No. 17 a_ontinued.
heard before and decided upon by the Board of Commissioners of the City
of Paducah, at which hearing and trial the said patrolman shall have the
right to be represented in person and by counsel, after due notice
thereof of not less than five days, and after a copy of the charges
preferred against him have been served upon him, but the action of the
Board of Commissioners in determining whether he shall be retained or
discharged shall be final.
F I R E D E P A R T It E PI T.
SECTION 11. The positions of employment in the Fire Department and the
number of employees thereof shall be as now fixed by Ordinance of the
City of Paducah, except as changed and regulated by this Ordinance,
until changed by Ordinance of the City of Paducah.
SECTION 12. In order to secure efficiency in the performance of duty
by firemen, and to provide incentive and reward for faithful and
efficient service by them, they are classified and graded as follows:
1. Firemen of Grade A.
2. Firemen of Grade B.
3. Firemen of Grade C.
4. Firemen of Grade D.
SECTION 13. rill officers of the Fire Department at the time of the
passage of this Ordinance, e_{cert the Chief of the Fire Department,
shall be classified as Grade.
All firemen, not officers, now in the employ of the Fire
Department shall be classified as Grade B.
All firemen who have served for a period of three years
but who have not been promoted to Grade B shall be classified as Grade
C.
All firemen who have served for one year and less than
three years shall be classified as Grade D.
All substitutes shall draw the same salary while serving
as the fireman being substituted for.
SECTION 14. The officers and firemen_ of the respective Grades shall
receive salaries as follows:
Grade X ...........H80.00 per month
Grade B ........... 75.00 per month
Grade C ........... 70.00 per month
Grade D ............ 65.00 per month
SECTION 15. The Board of Commissioners may, by a majority vote, allow
any number of merits to any fireman in cases of exceptional or meri-
torious conduct in the performance of his duties, and in order to
establish more fully the Merit System there shall be kept by the
No.-,
Ordinance No. 17 Continued.
Commissioner of Public Safety, or the Chief of 'the Fire Department, a
record upon which firemen and officers shall be credited with merits and-
charged
nd
charged with demerits, in the manner hereinafter prescribed - and upon a
merit or demerit being entered against any officer or fireman, then such
officer or fireman shall be notified thereof.
SECTION 16. All firemen hereafter added to the Fire Department force, and
who have had past experience as firemen in the City of Paducah, shall -
for the purpose of grading said firemen - be credited with one half of
the time of service as such firemen in the City of Paducah, but all new
firemen who have not had past experience and are added to the force
shall be classified as Grade D.
SECTION 17. Upon any charges being brought against any officer or
fireman of the City of Paducah, which would subject said officer or
fireman to discharge, then the Commissioner of Public Safety shall have
the power to suspend said fireman or officer, without pay, pending and
until the final determination of said charges by the Board of Commission-
ers, and said Board of Commissioners, upon the hearing, shall have the
right to discharge such fireman or officer, as hereinafter set out, or
to suspend such officer or fireman without pay, or with a diminution of
his pay for such period of time as may be proper, in their discretion,
and the action of said Board of Commissioners shall be final.
SECTION 18. When any officer or fireman has been discharged by receiving
demerits sufficient to automatically discharge him, or upon charges
heard before the Board of Commissioners, no application for reinstate-
ment shall be received, nor shall he be reinstated by the Board of
Commissioners, or in any other way, until after one year has elapsed from
the date of his discharge.
SECTION 19. All demerits to be determined by the Commissioner of Public
Safety upon report by the Chief of the Fire Department,or upon other
information, and shall be charged against each fireman or officer as
follows, for any of the following causes existing after the passage of
this Ordinance, and in order to more fully establish the Merit System
there shall be kept by the Chief of the Fire Department a record upon
which firemen shall be charged with demerits and credited with merits, to
be determined by the Commissioner of Public Safety, to -wit:
For drinking intoxicating liquor
while in uniform ................... 3 Demerits
For being intoxicated while on
duty ....................... 5 Demerits
For being intoxicated while off
duty .............................. 3 Demerits
Insubordination or disrespect
towards superior officer ........... 3 Demerits
Oppression or tyranny 1 Demerit
Neglect of duty - to be determined
by the Commissioner of Public
Safety 1 to 3 Demerits
�;m
NOA
Ordinance No. 17 Gntinued,
Violation of any rule of the
Department ...................... 2 Demerits
Disobedience of orders .......... 3 Demerits
Any offcrnse against the law other
than a conviction of a felony ... 3 Demerits
Conviction for any felony ....... 5 Demerits
Absence from duty without leave 2 Demerits
Immoral conduct ................. 3 Demerits
Conduct unbecoming an officer ... 3 Demerits
Conduct injurious to public peace
or welfare 3 Demerits
Unnecessary absence from his sta-
tion during hours of duty ....... 3 Demerits
Incapacity - mental,physical or
educational, such as within the
discretion of the Commissioner of
Public Safety makes him unfit for
service ......................... 5 Demerits
Breach of discipline ............. 2 Demerits
neglecting or refusing to pay a
debt for uniform clothing or for
rent, or the necessaries of life
contracted while in service ..... 2 Demerits
Contracting a debt under false or
fraudulent pretenses while in
service ......................... 3 Demerits
neglecting or refusing to pay a
just debt contracted while in
service ......................... 2 Demerits
Entering houses of prostitution
and assignation, saloons or
sporting houses of any description,
unless in the discharge of his
duty ............................ 3 Demerits
Communicating information relative
to the origin or cause of any fire,
or any other information of a
secret nature relative to the Fire
Department, without permission .. 4 Demerits
SECTION 20. Every mei.iber of the Department in Grade A or B shall
be considered as having been in the employ of the City for a period
of five years.
SECTION 21. Each merit shall be equivalent to one demerit, and
each demerit shall be equivalent to taking off one year of service in
determining the grade of any fireman. C;henever a fireman is credited
with merits or charged with demerits, as provided in this Ordinance,
his grade as fireman shall thefeupon be automatically advanced or
reduced, in accordance with the scale provided in this Ordinance, and
whenever a fireman receives sufficient demerits to drop him below the
grade of D he shall be dismissed from the service, and if any fireman
or officer of any grade shall have five demerits against him he shall -
be dismissed from the service automatically.
SECTION 22. Continuous and uninterrupted service without a demerit
for a period of six months shall be considered as one merit.
No.
Ordinance No. 17 Continued.
SECTION 23. Promotions to and reductions from positions in the Fire
Department - except for Chief - will be made upon consideration of
merit and efficiency by the Board of Commissioners upon their record
and report of the Commissioner of Public Safety.
SECTION 24. No employee of the Fire Department shall be dismissed from
service, except the Chief of the Fire Department, except -in accordance
with the terms of this Ordinance or upon specific charges brouLaht
against hire, and upon such charges being brought the,. shall be reduced
to writing, and copy thereof served upon said fireman, and same shall be
tried after not less than five days notice by the Board of Commissioners,
and said .fireman shall have the right to be represented in person and by
counsel at said trial - but the action of the Board of Commissioners
upon said charges shall be final.
SECTION 25. All Ordinances or parts of Ordinances in conflict herewith,
to the extent of such conflict, are hereby repealed.
SECTION 26, This Ordinance shall take effect and be in force from and
after its passage.
PASSED BY THE BOARD OF COb:MISSIONE_RS FEBRUARY 23rd, 1915.
RECORDED BY MAURICE I':IcINTYRE, CITY CLERK, FEBRUARY 25th, 1915.