Once a report is made pursuant to Section 4 of this Policy, the Ethics Officer will review the report to determine if it implicates this Policy. If it does, the Ethics Officer will take the following steps:
- The Ethics Officer will assess the reported conduct to determine whether the circumstances pose a threat to the health or safety of the ASNE community that warrants issuance of an immediate warning to other participants, a stay-away directive for any persons or any other interim protections, including, but not limited to placing an employee, volunteer or intern on leave, or restricting any individual from other privileges prior to completing an investigation. During the interim action, ASNE reserves the rights to prohibit the accused from entering ASNE offices or attending any ASNE program or event. The failure of an individual to comply with an interim restriction is a separate violation of this Policy and may lead to additional disciplinary action. The decision to impose interim restrictions will typically be communicated by the Ethics Officer to the individual and will be effective immediately.
- In appropriate circumstances, the Ethics Officer will notify the complaining party about the right to report and/or decline to report the matter to the appropriate local law enforcement or child services authorities if the conduct is potentially criminal in nature. (This decision will not impact ASNE’s independent reporting obligations or its decision to independently investigate the matter.)
- Either an accuser or an accused may request an informal resolution of a complaint rather than a formal investigation by contacting the Ethics Officer in writing. The Ethics Officer, in consultation with legal counsel, may determine that an informal resolution is appropriate, and will inform all parties of such decision in writing. If informal resolution is appropriate, the Ethics Officer will typically facilitate a dialogue with the parties in an attempt to reach a resolution. The allegation will be deemed resolved when the parties expressly agree to an outcome that is acceptable to them which is approved by the Ethics Officer. The informal resolution process will be conducted in accordance with procedures specified by the Ethics Officer, as determined in his/her sole discretion. An informal resolution will typically notbe appropriate if the behavior in question is systemic or if it may be criminal in nature.
- Absent an informal resolution, which may be accepted in whole or in part, the Ethics Officer may also initiate a formal investigation at any time that he/she deems appropriate in his or her sole discretion.The Ethics Officer may investigate the allegations independently and/or may designate an external investigator(s) to conduct a prompt, fair and impartial investigation of the reported conduct and report back to the Ethics Officer regarding the investigative findings. The report will include the investigators’determination of whether the conduct likely occurred using the preponderance of evidence
- The parties have the opportunity (and are expected) to provide the investigator(s) with the identification of potential witnesses who have specific information about the reported conduct and with whom they would like the investigator(s) to speak. The parties also have the opportunity (and are expected) to provide the investigator(s) with any documentation or other items they would like to be considered. All information must be presented to the investigator(s) in writing and include a brief description as to how the persons, documents, and/or items are relevant to the reported conduct. The investigator(s) will exercise discretion in their determination of what information to consider and which potential witnesses identified by the parties can provide relevant information to the investigation.
- Upon reviewing the investigators’findings, the Ethics Officer will either affirm the investigators’finding or ask for additional information to be conducted. The Ethics Officer will then provide a written notification to the President and the Board, which will include the determination and any recommended sanctions. The Ethics Officer will then inform the Parties of the (i) outcome of the disciplinary proceeding and (ii) sanctions (if any) within a reasonable time period.
In cases where the Ted Stevens Act applies, ASNE will comply with the Act’s requirements.