Police Internal Affairs

Brian K. ChildressChief of Police

Overview1. Purpose of Internal Affairs

2. Ethics and Integrity

3. Procedures and Rules

4. Complaint Investigation

5. Preparing for and Conducting Interviews

6. Special Investigations – Sexual Harassment

7. Special Investigations – Officer Involved Shootings

8. Administrative Law

9. Internal Affairs Records

10. Special Procedures – Accreditation

11. Are Law Enforcement Out of Control

12. Conclusion

1. Purpose of Internal Affairs

Purpose

Maintain public confidence in the agency’s ability to properly investigate and adjudicate complaints and allegations of misconduct

Maintain departmental standards of conduct and performance

Maintain the rights of employees as well as the public

Identify training needs

Identify areas where policy and procedure needs clarified, modified, and/or updated

Fact finders for the CEO

ACLU Video – “Protecting the Badge”

First Major Police Issue

2. Ethics and Integrity

Ethics

A principle of right or good conduct

A system of moral principles or values set by a certain society

A study of the general nature of morals and of specific choices to be made by the individual in their relationship with others

Rules or standards governing the conduct of the members of a profession

Are Police Officers Members of a Profession?

Yes

Standards of conduct come from: Constitution

Federal Law

State Law

City Law

Agency Policy

State Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST)

Police Corruption

Acts involving the misuse of authority by a police officer in a manner designed to produce personal gain for the officer.

Examples: Bribery Favors or gifts Criminal acts committed by use of official

information or authority Compromise of official duty Perjury Extortion Services received or extended

Corruption Continued”

Examples: Gratuities

Running GCIC/NCIC information for non-official reasons

O.W. Wilson

Orlando Winfield Wilson (May 15, 1900 – October 18, 1972), also known as O.W. Wilson, was an influential leader in policing. having served as Superintendent of Police of the Chicago Police Department. Chief of Police in Fullerton, California, and Wichita, Kansas, and authored several books on policing.

Problems Attacking Corruption

Systemic – part of the system

Individual – individual standards based on each person

Administrative decisions and guidelines defining corrupt practices

Nature of Police work –us against them

Code of silence

The creep of corruption – starts slow and gets bigger

Cost of Corruption

Credibility of agency and employees

Violation of public trust

Community relations

Loss of administrative control

Morale

Police Corruption

Conduct which impairs the operation of the agency

Conduct which causes the public to lose confidence in the agency

Prevention

Looking beyond discipline Being more proactive Better training and supervision Personnel Early Warning System

(PEW) Auditing – property/evidence,

equipment, videos “Getting rid of the bad apples”

In-Car Camera Video

3. Policies & Procedures

Internal Affairs and Operating Procedures

Upholds the mission

Overall action plan for all personnel

Flexible guide for action

Elements intent and philosophy

Not too specific/restrictive

Permits “justifiable diversion”

Answers the question “why”?

“If you protect the officer by policy, you protect the agency by default”

Serves as a control device

Review of Policies

The frontline person or subject matter expert

Person “ignorant” of the issue

Legal advisor

Annual revision/review

“Creekwood Drive Incident” –

understanding policymaking

IA Unit Procedure

Where and who is assigned to the unit? Should have direct access to the CEO

Establishing a process for supervising the investigation Should have some significant rank

Establishing a process and procedure for recording, registering, and controlling complaints against agency employees

The Complaint File

Complaint tracking form

Complaint form – could be a letter, memo, etc.

Statements from witnesses

Photos, videos, audios

Administrative forms

Medical forms (if applicable)

Investigation report

Summary

Complaint Processing Where to file complaints?

Should be advertised and accessible to the public

Don’t make it hard to file a complaint

By phone, internet, by letter, and in person

Anonymous complaints – take them and look at them, regardless if you have a complainant or not

Minor complaints of rudeness, etc., should be treated as an inquiry versus a full internal affairs investigation

The Complainant/Victim

Should if possible be required to sign a complaint from which is notarized and sworn to the statement

Should always be notified throughout the complaint process to include: Initial letter indicating the agency received the

complaint

Status letters for delays in the IA

Conclusion letter with the findings

If you determine a crime has been committed during the IA, the complainant/victim should be advised to complete a report of a crime

Inspections

City owned desks, lockers, offices, equipment (to include cell phones and computers), work areas, uniforms, and vehicles are the sole property of the agency and are subject to inspections by the agency

Separation of Administrative & Criminal Investigations

If the employee is suspected of a criminal act, it is recommended the criminal investigation occur first

Investigators are ALWAYS separate/NEVER DO BOTH

Make sure the employee clearly knows who is doing what type of investigation: Miranda Warning

Admin/Garrity Notice

Investigation Findings

Sustained- Actual Misconduct

Misconduct Not Based on Complaint- Actual misconduct, not alleged in the original complaint, but disclosed during the investigation

Unfounded- The allegation is false or not factual

Not Sustained- There is not enough evidence to prove or disprove the allegation

Exonerated- The incident occurred, but the employee acted lawfully and properly

DISCIPLINE

The completed investigation is reviewed by the involved employee’s chain of command.

The employee’s chain of command determinesthe findings and the discipline, if there is

sustained misconduct.

Internal Affairs makes no recommendations regarding discipline

Types of Discipline

Verbal Counseling

Employee Log Entry

Training

Written Reprimand

Suspension

Demotion

Resignation

Discharge

Discharge w/Criminal Charges

PURGE POLICY

0466-05-017 | Administrative/Internal Investigative Case Files

Description:  Records used to investigate complaints against public safety officers; database. When relevant, polygraph case files containing official polygraph reports and associated documents.

Retention:  50 years

Classification: 

What is discoverable?

• Telephone conversations

• Car-to-car conversations/ messages (MDC)

• Sector logs

• I-Tracker (vehicle speeds, times, locations)

• Internet Use

• Radio traffic

• City owned cell phones (call logs, text messages, etc.)

• Booking/Holding cell video and audio

• Pay entry records

Allegations of Misconduct

Excessive Force

Racial Profiling

False Arrest

Unlawful Search

Violation of Rules

Conduct Unbecoming

Dishonesty*

Discourtesy

Neglect of Duty

Traffic

Slow Response

Civil Rights Violation

* “Brady Notifications” – District Attorney required to notify defendants/attorneys on court related matters when a “dishonesty” or “integrity” violation has been sustained on a law enforcement officer.

Medford Detective Traffic Stop

4. Complaint Investigations

Considerations

Nature of investigation Allegations of minor investigations can be handled

by police supervisors

Serious allegations to include excessive force, bribery, sexual harassment, tampering with evidence, racial/biases based profiling, should be handled by trained IA Investigator

Time – complaints which require an extensive amount of investigation should be handled by IA

Complaint tracking – all complaints should be sent to IA for review before assignment to a supervisor

Training the IA Investigator

Institute of Police Technology and Management (IPTM)

Southern Police Institute

Georgia Public Safety Training Center

Timeliness

Complaints investigations should normally be completed in 30 days

Extensions approved by CEO

Status reports provided to complainant

Fair to the complainant and employee

In-Car Video

5. Preparing for & Conducting Interviews

Getting the Background

Review of complainant criminal history and past complainants

Review of employee personnel file

Talk to employee’s supervisors

Review past employee complaints

Review of incident reports, videos, audios, and photos

Review of employee financial documents, medical records, etc., if applicable

Preparing

Identify a specific outcome in mind

Know what you are going after

Remember you are the fact-finder

Know the difference between: Interview – a conversation with a purpose. The

process of obtaining information which is evaluated from persons having knowledge related to the investigation

Interrogation – the art and mechanics of questioning for the purpose of exploring or resolving issues. The idea is to gain an admission or confession.

Preparing

Develop a list of questions

Be prepared to discuss sexual matters

Schedule the interview

Interview objectives:

1. Identify other witnesses or accused employees

2. Clarify allegations

3. Resolve discrepancies and inconsistencies

4. Obtain information on motive and alibi

5. Obtain information on guilt or innocence

6. Closing loopholes in previous statements

Interviews

Record all interviews

Interview complainant first

Interview witnesses next

Interview employee last

Consider conducting follow-up interviews is necessary

Interviews

Start recording

Identify all persons in the room

Ask witness or employee to state their full name

Read Garrity if applicable

Start by asking what happened

LET THE PERSON EXPLAIN – DON’T INTERUPT

Two Reasons Why Interviews Fail

1. Lack of control over the subject and situation

2. Inability to adjust to subject’s responses and to continue the interview

Remember “POLITE”

P – Planning – background – rapport

O – Opening – rapport

L – Listening

I – Interviewing – questions

T – Truth – norm to stressful

E – Ending - recap

6. Special Investigations – Sexual Harassment

Commonalities

History of Sexual Harassment

1964 – Civil Rights Act

1976 – Court Recognizes Harassment as form of discrimination

1980 – EEOC Guidelines

1982 – Men can be victims

1986 – US Supreme Court – Harassment is a from of Discrimination

1991 – Reasonable Woman Concept – court stated if the victim is offended, the offense must be viewed from a reasonable woman’s view

1993 – Harris v. Tennessee For Lift – Hostile work environment

1997 – Burlington Industries v. Ellerth - , Hostile work environment

1998 – Jones v. Clinton

1998 – Onacle v. Sundower Offshore Services

EEOC

Unwelcome sexual advances

An employer is responsible for the acts of sexual harassment in the workplace

The employer or its agents or supervisors must know or should have known of the conduct

If the conduct was immediately addressed and appropriate corrective action was taken, the employer may have immunity

Types of Sexual Harassment

Quid Pro Quo – employee is confronted with sexual demands to keep job or obtain a position

Hostile Work Environment – sexually offensive conduct that permeates the workplace, making it difficult or unpleasant for an employee to work

Interview the Complainant

This will be kept as confidential as possible

There will be no retaliation against you

How would you like to see this complaint resolved?

Interview the Accused

Have you seen the department and city’s sexual harassment policy?

All employees should be required to sign for agency policy

Confront only after interviewing the complainant, witnesses, and reviewing all evidence

7. Special Investigations- Officer-Involved Shootings

Expect the Media

Media does not understand the law

They will exaggerate the incident

Controversy sells

Types of Shootings

Officer involved – death – IA and Criminal

Officer involved – injury – IA and Criminal

Officer involved – miss – IA and Criminal

Accidental discharge – IA

Unauthorized Use of Weapon – depends on situation

Combined investigation is NOT RECOMMENDED

Reasoning for Outside Agency Conducting Criminal Investigation

Transparency – we have nothing to hide

Public trust

Fairness for the citizen

Fairness for the officer

Scenario

You have an officer-involved shooting where a citizen was seriously injured but not killed. The entire incident is captured on body-worn camera and clearly shows your officer was correct in his decision.

Do you bring in an outside, independent law enforcement agency to investigate anyway?

8. Administrative Law

EMPLOYEE RIGHTSDURING AN INTERNAL AFFAIRS

INVESTIGATION

Garrity v. New Jersey385 U.S. 493 (1967)

An officer may be compelled (ordered) by his/her superiors to answer questions that are related to his/her duties or fitness for duty. Failure to answer such questions may form the basis of his/her dismissal.

The answers may not be used against him/her in a criminal trial. Similarly, an officer may be compelled to testify at a disciplinary board hearing or before a grand jury if the statements are restricted to non-criminal purposes.

The person reading Garrity must have the authority of the agency to administer discipline. If you use an outside agency, ensure the Internal Affairs Investigator reads Garrity or issue a written statement from the CEO giving the outside investigator authority.

Typical Garrity Warning

You are being asked to provide information as part of an internal and/or administrative investigation. This is a voluntary interview and you do not have to answer questions if your answers would tend to implicate you in a crime. No disciplinary action will be taken against you solely for refusing to answer questions. However, the evidentiary value of your silence may be considered in administrative proceedings as part of the facts surrounding your case. Any statement you do choose to provide may be used as evidence in criminal and/or administrative proceedings.

Administrative vs. Criminal Investigation

Formal Advisement vs. Garrity Advisement;

Legal representation not allowed in administrative hearings;

Administrative investigations cannot be shared with the criminal investigation; Criminal investigation details will be included in the

administrative investigation;

During the criminal investigation, you are allowed legal representation and may be read Miranda Rights, if applicable;

Question?

If an employee implicates another employee during an administrative interview under Garrity, can you use it against the other employee in a criminal case?

Question?

Can an employee be charged with anything based on information they provide during an internal affairs investigation after being read Garrity?

Rule of Thumb – “It’s Not a Two Way Street”

The Internal Affairs Investigators gets all information from the criminal investigator but the criminal investigator gets none from IA

9. Internal Affairs Records

Software and Security

Have a system to track the status of investigations

Have a system in-place to look for patterns of problems to include complaints

Have a Personnel Early Warning System

Software systems are also available: IA Track

IA 2000

Etc.

Records should be separate from general agency records

Personnel Early Warning System (PEW)-WHAT IS IT?

Sometimes referred to as “Personnel Activity System”;

A tool to assist supervisors in monitoring employee performance;

A system that tracks and reviews incidents of risk to the involved employee(s)

General Order 100-61

Employee Early Warning System Defined: The Valdosta Police Department has an Early

Warning System (EWS) to provide a systematic review of specific events involving agency employees. The system allows the Department to evaluate, identify, and assist employees whose performance and/or actions indicate specific trends. The EWS tracks the following information:

Personnel Complaints;

Use of Force Reports;

Vehicle Pursuit Reports;

Formal Disciplinary Actions; and

Personnel Evaluations.

Activation of the P.E.W.

The following criteria will result in an employee tracking memorandum being initiated:

• Two (2) sustained complaints within 12 months;

• Three (3) or more complaints, regardless of disposition within 12 months;

• Any Use of Force Report which is found to be Improper Conduct;

• Any Vehicle Pursuit which is found to be in violation of policy;

• Two (2) formal Disciplinary Actions (written reprimand or above) within 12 months;

• A Personnel Evaluation which rates the employee as below a #2 Rating (Unsatisfactory) in two or more categories; or

• Any other situation as determined by the Chief of Police.

10. Special Considerations - Accreditation

Investigating ALL Complaints

Maintaining Records of All Complaints

Reporting to the CEO

Transparency

Transparency

Who Investigates What?

Notifying the CEO

Time Limits

Keeping the Complainant Aware

Fairness to the Employee

Tests to Be Conducted

Relieving the Employee

Concluding the IA

11. Are the Police Out of Control?

Why So Much Police Brutality?

My Experience as a CALEA Team Leader Assessor

Assessed 42 different city, county, and state law enforcement agencies

Use of force is reviewed during each assessment

Basic finding for total use of force versus total arrests: Law enforcement use force less than 1% of the

time when arresting citizens

Sound familiar?

Conclusion & Questions