Investigation or mediation of complaints against a police officer

Investigation

The goals of an investigation are to learn:

• Whether an officer did something wrong
• If we should recommend a change in police policy

We will investigate your report. We may ask you questions and then talk to the officer and any witnesses. You and the officer will not communicate with each other. 

We will let you know the result of our investigation. If we find that the officer did something wrong, this will go on the officer’s record.

Find out more about investigations.

Mediation

The goals of mediation are: 

• For you and the officer to understand each other’s point of view
• To learn whether we should recommend a change in police policy 

A trained mediator will help you and the officer talk about your complaint. You will sit down together in the same room to discuss what happened.

With mediation, your complaint against the officer will not go on their record.

You and the officer both have to agree to mediation instead of investigation. If you or the officer decide that you don’t want mediation, you can change your mind up until mediation starts.

Complaints for mediation

A case can go to mediation only if it’s for:

• Conduct Unbecoming an Officer (like inappropriate behavior or comments)
• Unwarranted Action (like arresting a person without cause)
• Neglect of Duty (like failure to write an Incident Report)

Request mediation

Check the box for mediation on the complaint form. We will let you know if your case qualifies.