How
the process works
What is the complaint process?
Once a complaint is initiated, it is forwarded to Internal Affairs Group, which is responsible for the receipt, coordination, assignment, and tracking of investigations. Internal Affairs Group will provide you with written acknowledgment that your complaint has been received. They also forward a copy of the complaint to the Office of the Inspector General.
The assigned investigating supervisor will contact you to conduct an interview. Interviews will then be conducted with identified witnesses and officers. Department policy allows complaint investigators up to one year to complete an investigation; however, all investigations do not require that amount of time.Once the investigation is completed, a commanding officer prepares a written report, which includes a recommended adjudication for each allegation. The Chief of Police reviews and approves the findings and adjudications of sustained investigations. The Inspector General also reviews all completed investigations. This review process assists in ensuring a thorough and accurate investigation and equity in discipline for all personnel. At the end of the process, you will receive written notification of the adjudication. If you have, at any time during the process, contacted the Office of the Inspector General for a review, you will also be notified of their findings.
Confidentiality
The question frequently arises whether complaints to the Office of the Inspector General are kept confidential. Ordinarily, when we receive a report or complaint of misconduct, that complaint, including the identity of the complainant, is forwarded to the LAPD's Internal Affairs Department for investigation. The OIG reviews the completed Internal Affairs investigation and analyzes it for thoroughness, objectivity, and the appropriateness of the findings and punishment, if any.
Complainants who are concerned that their complaints be kept confidential should note that the policy of the Police Commission is as follows:
"The Inspector General shall not disclose the identity of a complainant or witness without the individual's consent, unless such disclosure is unavoidable in order to investigate an allegation effectively or is otherwise required by law or the City Attorney's Office, provided, however, that the Inspector General shall disclose the identity of such individual to the Board of Police Commissioners, upon request. The Office of the Inspector General is not afforded an absolute privilege protecting conversations with complaining persons or witnesses, as a matter of law. Accordingly, any individual who requests anonymity from the Inspector General shall be accurately informed of the inability to guarantee anonymity."
In other words, complainants who seek confidentiality must understand that their identity or other information regarding their complaint might be disclosed in certain circumstances, such as where it is essential in order to investigate the allegation, or where disclosure is compelled by the City Attorney, the Police Commission, or by other legal authority. The Inspector General's Office will strive to maintain the confidentiality of complainants subject to these provisions, and will at all times be vigilant in protecting complainants from retaliation and reprisal.