RSA 103:15. Compensation in Case of Death or Permanent Disability.

Any permanent policeman accepting the provisions hereof who shall have become permanently and totally disabled to perform useful service, because of injury received in the actual performance of his duty, may be retired by the board, and shall be entitled to the benefits hereunder and shall receive an annual sum equal to 1/2 of the assessed part of his annual salary at the date of his disability, for the duration of such disability, as determined by the board, but in no case shall such payment be less than $1,200 per year. Any permanent policeman accepting the provisions hereof, who has performed faithful service in his department for at least 20 years and who shall become permanently and totally incapacitated from performing useful service, either mentally or physically, may be retired and shall be entitled to the benefits hereunder, and for the duration of his incapacity he shall receive an annual sum equal to 1/2 of his average annual salary for the 5 years in the last 10 years next preceding the date of such permanent and total incapacity during which his annual salary was the highest, as determined by the board, but in no case shall such payment be less than $1,200 per year; provided, that if at the date of his incapacity he shall not have completed 25 years of service the sum so determined shall be reduced pro rata in the proportion which the actual number of completed years of service bears to 25, but in no case shall the policeman receive less than $1,200 per year; and further provided, that in the case of a policeman employed by a city having a population of more than 34,000 inhabitants, such sum shall not exceed 1/2 of the assessed part of his annual salary at retirement. However, an appropriate adjustment, as determined by the board under rules uniformly applicable to all policemen similarly situated, shall be made in the sum otherwise payable to the policeman disabled because of injury in the actual performance of duty or incapacitated from performing useful service, either mentally or physically, if at any time subsequent to July 1, 1953, or subsequent to the date of his accepting these provisions, if later, the rate of assessment upon the assessable part of his annual salary has been less than 5-3/4 percent or if at any time subsequent to July 1, 1961 or the date of such acceptance, if later, the rate of assessment has been less than 6-85/100 percent of his annual salary. The fact of such disability or such incapacity shall be established from time to time as the board may require by a certificate of a physician designated by the board. In case a permanent policeman, accepting the provisions hereof, shall die as the result of injury received in line of duty, his widow, or if none, his minor child or children shall receive an annual sum equal to 1/2 the assessed part of the annual salary of such deceased policeman at the time of his death, but in no case less than $1,200 per year. This sum shall be payable until, in the case of a widow, she dies, or remarries, or in the case of a minor child or children, they die or reach the age of 18 years, but if there is no wife, child or children under the age of 18 years, surviving such policeman, then to his totally dependent father or mother, or both, or the survivor of them, as the board shall determine, during dependency. In case the widow dies without remarrying and leaves a minor child or children, the payment shall continue until such minor child or children die or reach the age of 18 years or marry before reaching the age of 18 years. Said sums shall be paid in equal monthly installments on the first business day of each calendar month. Should such deceased policeman leave no widow, minor child or children, or totally dependent father or mother, his estate or designated beneficiary shall be entitled to receive from the retirement fund all payments made thereto by him, without interest. In case a permanent policeman, accepting the provisions hereof, shall die not as the result of injury received in line of duty, his widow, or, if none, his living child or children under age 18 shall receive, in addition to the amount payable under RSA 103:16, a lump sum equal to $3,600, except in the case of a policeman employed by a city having a population of more than 34,000 inhabitants, in which case the lump sum shall not exceed the amount of the assessed part of his annual salary at his death. Source: Source. 1941, 166:13. RL 221:13. 1953, 112:4. RSA 103:15. 1957, 189:4. 1961, 191:5. 1963, 238:6, eff. July 1, 1963.