Delaware · Through 2026-08-27 (85 Del. Laws, c. 453, 455-458, 460)

29 Del. C. § 2553: Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust; powers and duties [Effective July 1, 2027].

(a) The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust shall do all of the following:
(1) Investigate and prosecute hate crimes under § 1304 of Title 11.
(2) Investigate and prosecute civil or criminal misconduct committed under color of Delaware law or in the course of a public official’s or state employee’s duties.
(3) a. Investigate all use of deadly force incidents by law enforcement and use of force incidents by law enforcement that result in serious physical injury, as defined in § 222 of Title 11, for the purpose of determining whether such use of force was justified as a matter of law.
b. For informational purposes and to facilitate data-tracking, if a public report is issued by the Division on law enforcement’s use of deadly force or use of force which results in serious physical injury, as defined in § 222 of Title 11, the public report must include all of the following:
1. The race of the law-enforcement officer who used force.
2. The race of the individual on whom force was used.
3. Whether race was found to be a relevant or motivating factor in the use of force.
(4) Enforce pattern and practice violations under Chapters 45 and 46 of Title 6.
(5) a. Investigate and prosecute violations of Chapter 80 of Title 15.
b. Submit an annual report to the General Assembly with a list of all prosecutions that are initiated or ongoing under paragraph (a)(5)a. of this section. The annual report must be submitted to the Governor, The Secretary of the Senate, the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives, and the Director and Librarian of the Division of Legislative Services no later than December 31 of each year. The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust is not required to submit any confidential information that would interfere with an ongoing investigation or prosecution.
(b) The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust may investigate, prosecute, and remediate a pattern or practice which violates any of the civil rights secured by the U.S. Constitution or Constitution of the State or Delaware law regarding any of the following:
(1) Public accommodations.
(2) Housing discrimination.
(3) Employment discrimination.
(4) Educational rights.
(5) Rights of individuals with disabilities.

Where this section sits in the code

Title 29. State Government
Part III. State Offices Created by Constitution
Chapter 25. State Department of Justice
Subchapter V. Civil Rights and Public Trust

(a) The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust shall do all of the following:

(1) Investigate and prosecute hate crimes under § 1304 of Title 11.

(2) Investigate and prosecute civil or criminal misconduct committed under color of Delaware law or in the course of a public official’s or state employee’s duties.

(3) a. Investigate all use of deadly force incidents by law enforcement and use of force incidents by law enforcement that result in serious physical injury, as defined in § 222 of Title 11, for the purpose of determining whether such use of force was justified as a matter of law.

b. For informational purposes and to facilitate data-tracking, if a public report is issued by the Division on law enforcement’s use of deadly force or use of force which results in serious physical injury, as defined in § 222 of Title 11, the public report must include all of the following:

1. The race of the law-enforcement officer who used force.

2. The race of the individual on whom force was used.

3. Whether race was found to be a relevant or motivating factor in the use of force.

(4) Enforce pattern and practice violations under Chapters 45 and 46 of Title 6.

(5) a. Investigate and prosecute violations of Chapter 80 of Title 15.

b. Submit an annual report to the General Assembly with a list of all prosecutions that are initiated or ongoing under paragraph (a)(5)a. of this section. The annual report must be submitted to the Governor, The Secretary of the Senate, the Chief Clerk of the House of Representatives, and the Director and Librarian of the Division of Legislative Services no later than December 31 of each year. The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust is not required to submit any confidential information that would interfere with an ongoing investigation or prosecution.

(b) The Division of Civil Rights and Public Trust may investigate, prosecute, and remediate a pattern or practice which violates any of the civil rights secured by the U.S. Constitution or Constitution of the State or Delaware law regarding any of the following:

(1) Public accommodations.

(2) Housing discrimination.

(3) Employment discrimination.

(4) Educational rights.

(5) Rights of individuals with disabilities.

Collected 2026-09-19T02:15:36Z. Source file · JSON

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