[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors
of Northumberland County as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 12-8-1982]
It shall be lawful for law enforcement officers
of Northumberland County to engage in off-duty employment which may
occasionally require use of their police powers in the performance
of such off-duty employment.
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
A full-time or part-time Deputy Sheriff and correctional
officer employed by the Northumberland County Sheriff's Department.
A law enforcement officer is considered "off-duty"
for purposes of this article when so designated by the Sheriff of
Northumberland County.
Law enforcement officers engaged in off-duty
employment shall not use county cars, county equipment or uniforms
while engaged in such off-duty employment except when authorized by
the Sheriff.
This article delegates to the Sheriff of Northumberland
County the authority to promulgate such reasonable rules and regulations
for the implementation and enforcement of this article as the Sheriff
may deem appropriate for the effective operation of his or her department.
[Amended 8-13-1998]
This article is adopted pursuant to § 15.2-1712
of the Code of Virginia 1950, as amended, and shall be effective on
the date of its adoption by the Board of Supervisors of Northumberland
County.
[Adopted 7-9-2015]
This article is enacted pursuant to Code of Virginia, § 32.1-111.5;
Code of Virginia, § 15.2-1503.1 and in accordance with Code
of Virginia, § 19.2-389 to regulate the employment of persons
seeking to engage or newly engaged in employment with the County of
Northumberland, Virginia, and to require certain applicants, new employees,
and volunteers to submit to fingerprinting for the purpose of obtaining
the person's state and national criminal history record.
A.
On and after the effective date of this article, an applicant or
new employee seeking to engage in any type of employment with the
County of Northumberland, or a volunteer seeking to engage in certain
volunteer activities involving the public safety, shall submit, if
required, two sets of his/her fingerprints taken by the Northumberland
County Sheriff's Office, along with personal descriptive information,
to the Sheriff of Northumberland County, along with appropriate fees.
Such applicant, new employee, or volunteer may be required to pay
the cost of the fingerprinting or a criminal records check or both.
B.
Upon receipt of the fingerprints and the appropriate fees, the Sheriff
of Northumberland County will transmit both sets of fingerprints,
along with the subject's personal descriptive information, and
appropriate fees (unless a satisfactory billing arrangement has been
entered into between the County of Northumberland and the Virginia
Department of State Police/Central Criminal Records Exchange) via
the Virginia Department of State Police to the Central Criminal Records
Exchange for the purpose of obtaining criminal history record information
regarding such applicant, new employee, or volunteer. The Central
Criminal Records Exchange will compare the subject's fingerprints
against its criminal file and, if no disqualifying conduct is found
therein, or if necessary, will submit the fingerprints to the Federal
Bureau of Investigation for a comparison with nationwide records.
The results of the Federal Bureau of Investigation check will be returned
to the Central Criminal Records Exchange, which will disseminate the
state and national results to the Sheriff of Northumberland County.
C.
The Sheriff of Northumberland County shall disseminate the results
of the criminal background check to the County Administrator of the
County of Northumberland or his designee for a fitness determination.
D.
In rendering a fitness determination, the County of Northumberland
will decide whether the record subject has been convicted of, or is
under pending indictment for, a crime which bears upon his/her ability
or fitness to serve in the desired capacity; any felony or a misdemeanor
which involved force or threat of force, controlled substances, or
was a sex-related offense; or other disqualifying conduct or pattern
of behavior that would render him/her unable or unlikely to serve
effectively in the desired position.
E.
If an applicant or new employee is denied employment because of the
information appearing in his/her criminal history record, the County
of Northumberland shall notify the applicant or new employee that
information obtained from the Central Criminal Records Exchange contributed
to such denial.
F.
The information obtained under the article shall not be disseminated
except as provided for in Code of Virginia, § 15.2-1503.1.
G.
A record subject may request and receive a copy of his/her criminal
history record information from the Northumberland County Sheriff's
Office. Should the record subject seek to amend or correct his/her
record, he/she must contact the Virginia Department of State Police/Central
Criminal Records Exchange for a Virginia state record or the Federal
Bureau of Investigation for records from other jurisdictions maintained
in its file.
