ARTICLE XXII.

Charges and Trials 

Section 1.

Each member of this Union shall have the right to fair treatment in the application of union rules and law in accordance with the International Constitution and these By-Laws.  In applying the rules and procedures relating to union discipline, the essential requirements of due process of law (notice, hearing and judgment based upon the evidence) shall be observed, without, however, requiring the technical formality followed in courts of law.  Recognizing that these requirements of fairness and due process of law will be administered by groups of laboring men and women, this Local Union adopts the following procedures which supplement the requirements of Article XIX of the International Constitution.  The following procedural guides are designed to attain justice both to the individual member and the organization, and in instances where deviations from such procedures are not such as to substantially affect the members substantive right, these procedures are not to constitute technically precise requirements of strict pleadings of courts of law.

Section 2.

Charges

Any member or officer of this organization, as well as any suspended member or ex-member who has been issued a Withdrawal Card, may be charged with violating any of the provisions of Article XXI above.  Charges shall be preferred by any member of the organization but must be filed in writing and in duplicate with the Secretary-Treasurer.  While no particular formality shall be required in written charges, they shall contain a statement of the facts upon which the charges are predicated and a statement of the particular section or sections of these By-Laws which are contended to have been violated.  After such charges have been filed, the Secretary-Treasurer shall promptly forward a copy thereof to the member or officer accused and the accused shall thereafter be required to stand trial at a time and place designated by the Secretary-Treasurer which shall not be less than ten days from the date the charges are served upon the accused.  Any charge based upon alleged misconduct, which occurred more than five (5) years prior to the filing of such charge, is barred and shall be rejected by the Secretary-Treasurer.

Section 3.

Trial

Persons so accused shall be tried by the Executive Board of the organization.  If the member charged or preferring the charge is a member of the Executive Board, or if a member of the Executive Board is unable to attend the hearing for any reason, then the principal executive officer of this Local Union shall appoint a disinterested member as a substitute.  If either the President or Secretary-Treasurer is charged or preferring the charge, or is unable to attend the hearing for any reason, the other officer shall appoint the substitute.  If both the President and Secretary-Treasurer are charged or preferring the charges, or for any reason are unable to attend the hearing, the remaining members of the Executive Board shall appoint the substitute.  Charges by, against, or involving a majority of the members of the Executive Board of this organization shall be filed with the Secretary-Treasurer of the Joint Council for trial by the Joint Council Executive Board.  In no event shall any involved officer or member serve on a hearing panel, participate in the selection of a substitute member of a hearing panel, or participate in the decision making process of the trial body.

Section 4.

Rights of the Accused

At the hearing conducted before any trial or appellate body, the accused member may select any other member of this organization to represent him/her in the presentation of his/her defense, but no lawyer shall be permitted to appear either on behalf of the accused member, this organization, the Executive Board, or any other person in this organization. Throughout the proceeding, there shall be a presumption of innocence in favor of the accused.  In order to be sustained the charges must be supported by a preponderance of the reliable evidence and a majority of the members of the panel must vote to find the charged party guilty.

Section 5.

In the conduct of the trial, either verbatim minutes, mechanical recording, or accurate summaries of the evidence shall be kept, preserved and available for use in further proceedings.  Any request by a party that a verbatim record be made must be honored by the Executive Board.  The accused shall have the right to be present at the trial and shall be guaranteed the right to confront and cross-examine witnesses giving testimony against him/her.  The accused shall be given a full opportunity to make his/her defense and to produce testimonial or documentary evidence for that purpose, and shall not be restricted to the rules of evidence and procedure applicable to court trials.

Section 6.

After the trial body has conducted the trial of an accused it shall render its judgment and decision in writing, including a summary of the facts relied upon.  Disciplinary action, including fines, suspensions, expulsions, and removal of officers, if any is to be imposed, shall be clearly stated. The accused shall be given a copy of the decision of the trial body in each case.

Section 7.

Depending upon the seriousness of the offense involved and the decision of the trial body under the facts, accused members and officers may be (1) exonerated and found not guilty of the charges, (2) found guilty in whole or in part without the imposition of any discipline, or (3) found guilty in whole or in part with the imposition of fines, penalties, suspensions, expulsions, removals from office, or other discipline.

Section 8.

Appeals

Any person aggrieved by any decision of the trial body in any such trial shall be guaranteed the rights of appeal and review provided for by the Constitution of our International Union.  No hearing on any appeal shall be held less than ten (10) days from the date on which notice of the hearing has been served on the parties unless all parties agree to waive the requirement.

Section 9.

No member or officer shall be required to stand trial on charges involving the same facts as to which he/she is facing criminal or civil trial until his/her final court appeal has been concluded.

Section 10.

Charges against elective officers of this Local Union shall be limited only to those activities or actions occurring during their current term of office, and only those activities and actions occurring prior to their current term which were not then known generally by the membership of this Local Union.