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STATE OF OKLAHOMA
1st Session of the 58th Legislature (2021)
HOUSE BILL 2420 By: Nichols
AS INTRODUCED
An Act relating to law enforcement; amending 74 O.S.
2011, Section 18b, as last amended by Section 1,
Chapter 444, O.S.L. 2019 (74 O.S. Supp. 2020, Section
18b), which relates to duties of the Attorney
General; expanding duties of the Attorney General;
directing the Attorney General to conduct certain
investigations; requiring submission of written
report; specifying contents of report; authorizing
the Attorney General to initiate and prosecute
criminal actions against certain persons; directing
the Attorney General to publish certain report on the
website of the Attorney General; creating a Police
Practices Unit within the Office of the At torney
General; stating duties of the Unit; providing for
codification; and providing an effective date .
BE IT ENACTED BY THE PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF OKLAHOMA:
SECTION 1. AMENDATORY 74 O.S. 2011, Section 18b, as last
amended by Section 1, Chapter 444, O.S.L. 2019 (74 O.S. Supp. 2020,
Section 18b), is amended to read as follows:
Section 18b. A. The duties of the Attorney General as the
chief law officer of the state shall be:
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1. To appear for the state and prosecute an d defend all actions
and proceedings, civil or criminal, in the Supreme Court and Court
of Criminal Appeals in which the state is interested as a party;
2. To appear for the state and prosecute and defend all actions
and proceedings in any of the federal courts in which the state is
interested as a party;
3. To initiate or appear in any action in which the interests
of the state or the people of the state are at issue, or to appear
at the request of the Governor, the Legislature, or either branch
thereof, and prosecute and defend in any court or before any
commission, board or officers any cause or proceeding, civil or
criminal, in which the state may be a party or interested; and when
so appearing in any such cause or proceeding, the Attorney General
may, if the Attorney General deems it advisable and to the best
interest of the state, take and assume control of the prosecution or
defense of the state 's interest therein;
4. To consult with and advise district attorneys, when
requested by them, in all matt ers pertaining to the duties of their
offices, when the district attorneys shall furnish the Attorney
General with a written opinion supported by citation of authorities
upon the matter submitted;
5. To give an opinion in writing upon all questions of law
submitted to the Attorney General by the Legislature or either
branch thereof, or by any state officer, board, commission or
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department, provided, that the Attorney General shall not furnish
opinions to any but district attorneys, the Legislature or eithe r
branch thereof, or any other state official, board, commission or
department, and to them only upon matters in which they are
officially interested;
6. At the request of the Governor, State Auditor and Inspector,
State Treasurer, or either branch of the Legislature, to prosecute
any official bond or any contract in which the state is interested,
upon a breach thereof, and to prosecute or defend for the state all
actions, civil or criminal, relating to any matter connected with
either of their Departments ;
7. Whenever requested by any state officer, board or
commission, to prepare proper drafts for contracts, forms and other
writing which may be wanted for the use of the state;
8. To prepare drafts of bills and resolutions for individual
members of the Legislature upon their written request stating the
gist of the bill or resolution desired;
9. To enforce the proper application of monies appropriated by
the Legislature and to prosecute breaches of trust in the
administration of such funds;
10. To institute actions to recover state monies illegally
expended, to recover state property and to prevent the illegal use
of any state property, upon the request of the Governor or the
Legislature;
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11. To pay into the State Treasury, immediately upon its
receipt, all monies received by the Attorney General belonging to
the state;
12. To settle, compromise and dispose of an action in which the
Attorney General represents the interests of the state, so long as
the consideration negotiated for such settlement, compro mise or
disposition is payable to the state or one of its agencies which is
a named party of the action and any monies, any property or other
item of value is paid first to the State Treasury;
13. To keep and file copies of all opinions, contracts, forms
and letters of the office, and to keep an index of all opinions,
contracts and forms according to subject and section of the law
construed or applied;
14. To keep a register or docket of all actions, demands and
investigations prosecuted, defended or cond ucted by the Attorney
General in behalf of the state. The register or docket shall give
the style of the case or investigation, where pending, court number,
office number, the gist of the matter, result and the names of the
assistants who handled the matt er;
15. To keep a complete office file of all cases and
investigations handled by the Attorney General on behalf of the
state;
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16. To report to the Legislature or either branch thereof
whenever requested upon any business relating to the duties of the
Attorney General's office;
17. To institute civil actions against members of any state
board or commission for failure of such members to perform their
duties as prescribed by the statutes and the Constitution and to
prosecute members of any state board or commission for violation of
the criminal laws of this state where such violations have occurred
in connection with the performance of such members ' official duties;
18. To respond to any request for an opinion of the Attorney
General's office, submitted b y a member of the Legislature,
regardless of subject matter, by written opinion determinative of
the law regarding such subject matter;
19. To convene multicounty grand juries in such manner and for
such purposes as provided by law; provided, such grand j uries are
composed of citizens from each of the counties on a pro rata basis
by county;
20. To investigate any report by the State Auditor and
Inspector filed with the Attorney General pursuant to Section 223 of
this title and prosecute all actions, civil or criminal, relating to
such reports or any irregularities or derelictions in the management
of public funds or property which are violations of the laws of this
state;
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21. To represent and protect the collective interests of all
utility consumers of th is state in rate-related proceedings before
the Corporation Commission or in any other state or federal judicial
or administrative proceeding;
22. To represent and protect the collective interests of
insurance consumers of this state in rate -related proceedings before
the Insurance Commissioner or in any other state or federal judicial
or administrative proceeding; and
23. To investigate and prosecute any criminal action relating
to insurance fraud, if in the opinion of the Attorney General a
criminal prosecution is warranted, or to refer such matters to the
appropriate district attorney ; and
24. To investigate and prosecute any criminal action relating
to incidents involving a shooting by a peace officer that results in
the death of an unarmed citizen , if in the opinion of the Attorney
General a criminal prosecution is warranted .
B. Nothing in this section shall be construed as requiring the
Attorney General to appear and defend or prosecute in any court any
cause or proceeding for or on behalf of the Ok lahoma Tax Commission,
the Board of Managers of the State Insurance Fund, or the
Commissioners of the Land Office.
C. In all appeals from the Corporation Commission to the
Supreme Court of Oklahoma in which the state is a party, the
Attorney General shall have the right to designate counsel of the
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Corporation Commission as the Attorney General 's legally appointed
representative in such appeals, and it shall be the duty of the
Corporation Commission counsel to act when so designated and to
consult and advise with the Attorney General regarding such appeals
prior to taking action therein.
SECTION 2. NEW LAW A new section of law to be codified
in the Oklahoma Statutes as Section 20m of Title 74, unless there is
created a duplication in numbering, reads as follows:
A. The Attorney General s hall investigate each incident
involving a shooting by a peace officer that results in the death of
an unarmed citizen. The Attorney General shall be authorized to do
all of the following:
1. Investigate and gather facts in an incident involving a
shooting by a peace officer that results in the death of an unarmed
citizen;
2. For every investigation conducted, prepare and submit a
written report. The written report shall include, at a minimu m, the
following information:
a. a statement of the facts,
b. a detailed analysis and conclusion for each
investigatory issue, and
c. recommendations to modify the policies and practices
of the law enforcement agency, as applicable ; and
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3. If criminal charges aga inst the peace officer involved in
the incident are found to be warranted, initiate and prosecute a
criminal action against the peace officer.
B. The Attorney General shall post and maintain on the website
of the Attorney General each writ ten report prepared by the Attorney
General pursuant to subsection A of this section, appropriately
redacting any information in the report that is required to be kept
confidential according to the provisions of the Oklahoma Open
Records Act.
C. Upon the effective date o f this act, there is hereby created
within the Office of the Attorney General a Police Practices Unit.
The duty of the Unit shall be to review the use of deadly force
policies of law enforcement agencies in this state.
D. Upon the request of any law enforcement agency in this
state, the Police Practices Unit shall review the policies of the
agency relating to the use of deadly force. The Unit shall be
authorized to make specific and customized recommendatio ns to the
law enforcement agency that requests a review based on policies
identified as recommended best practices.
SECTION 3. This act shall become effective November 1, 2021.
58-1-6578 GRS 01/12/21