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Informational Report: Police Oversight Models <br />September 15, 2020 <br />Page 2 <br />To that end, a Citizen's Complaint Form is available on the City of Santa Ana's official website <br />(https://www.santa-ana.orq/pd/location-hours-information/forms). If citizens cannot access the <br />internet, complaint forms are mailed out or hand delivered to the individual wishing to file a <br />complaint. Below is the process by which individuals submit complaints of police misconduct: <br />• Complainant prepares and submits SAPID Citizen Complaint Form or communicates <br />alleged misconduct to any staff member <br />• Complaint is reviewed by supervisor to determine if the nature of the complaint describes <br />alleged police misconduct <br />• Complaint is assigned for investigation and inspector reviews all facts, policies and <br />procedures pertaining to the complaint <br />• An investigation is conducted within the one-year statute of limitations (may be extended <br />due to exceptional circumstances) <br />• A determination is made as follows: (1) Sustained; (2) Not Sustained; (3) Unfounded; (4) <br />Exonerated <br />• Complainant is notified within 30 days of finalizing the determination <br />• If complaint is sustained, discipline is recommended to the Chief of Police, who makes the <br />final determination <br />• Due process rights are available to the involved officer(s) to appeal any findings and/or <br />imposition of discipline <br />• Personnel Board reviews the findings and imposition of discipline on appeal <br />• Involved officer(s) may appeal the Personnel Board findings to the Superior Court. <br />The Citizen's Complaint Form procedure is an example of an internal police misconduct <br />investigation, where the individuals who investigate the complaint are composed of internal law <br />enforcement and/or other individuals from within the local government agency. This differs from <br />the external investigative component conducted within a police oversight model where the <br />individuals who investigate the complaint are civilians who do not work for the law enforcement <br />agency or local government agency. <br />Overview of Police Oversight Commissions <br />While the definition varies by source, a police oversight commission is a form of oversight of law <br />enforcement officer conduct. The purpose of these oversight systems is to improve law <br />enforcement performance and accountability. A leading scholar, Samuel Walker, distilled best <br />practices into a concise and practical list designed to facilitate police reform (Walker, 2005)1. <br />These strategies are based on the 2001 Department of Justice report, Principles for Promoting <br />Police Integrity. These include (a) use of force and other critical incident reporting; (b) open and <br />accessible citizen complaint procedures; (c) early intervention systems; and (d) external citizen <br />oversight. <br />r Walker, Samuel. The New World of Police Accountability. Thousand Oaks: Sage Publications, 2005. <br />65A-2 <br />