Document of Interest Provided By Councilmember Hamann on Civilian Review Boards

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C ITIZEN R EVIEW OF P OLICE: APPROACHES AND I MPLEMENTATION 95 SOME CITIZENS FEAR OFFICERS MAY RETALIATE Some citizens are afraid to report allegations of police misconduct because they fear officers will retaliate against them for complaining. One complainant report- ed,“I was concerned about retaliation—I felt if the officer could find out about this [complaint], I might want to rethink about whether to pursue the case. But the investigator said don’t be concerned—he had had only one case of retaliation.” Another complainant reported that he was waiting for someone in his car when the officer against whom he had filed his com- plaint rode by in a cruiser. After they made eye con- tact, the officer stopped and watched him.When the complainant’s friend arrived, the officer drove off. A complainant in one city expressed concern that, because the oversight office was located next to the police station, he was nervous that officers could see him enter and leave the building. As a result, oversight bodies try to locate their offices away from the police department. The Berkeley ordinance specifies that the board meetings “shall not be held in the building in which the Police Department is located.” However, oversight staff in most jurisdictions believe that actual retaliation is rare. Tucson’s auditor has received only one complaint alleging retaliation, while San Francisco’s Office of Citizen Complaints (OCC) received fewer than 10 complaints during the 3-year period between 1996 and 1999, none involving vio- lence. OCC confirmed only one allegation. Examination of data collected from citizen surveys and debriefings as part of the 1977 Police Services Study in Rochester, New York, St. Louis, Missouri, and Tampa-St. Petersburg, Florida, identified 455 individuals who felt they had a reason to complain about police conduct but took no action. A relatively small proportion of these citizens said they did not complain because they were afraid of the police (3.2 percent) or felt that filing a complaint would make matters worse (4.6 percent). The most common reason for not complaining (42 percent) was the belief that filing would do no good.* Oversight bodies can try to reduce retaliation—or the fear of retaliation—by telling complainants to report immediately any attempts at reprisal to the police department and the oversight board,where the allega- tion will receive prompt attention.San Francisco’s OCC and Berkeley’s Police Review Commission brochures inform potential complainants that retaliation is illegal. OCC staff also advise apprehensive would-be com- plainants to weigh whether they will be safer by com- plaining (and thus becoming known and identified) or by not complaining (and thus remaining vulnerable without any notice to those who could act to protect them).Police and sheriff’s departments can reduce the chances of retaliation by developing and disseminating a clear policy prohibiting reprisals. A bulletin,the “Policy of the Police Commission of the San Francisco Police Department on OCC Cooperation,” advises all mem- bers of the department of the following: 1. Attempts to threaten, intimidate, mislead, or harass potential or actual OCC complainants, witnesses, or staff members will be considered to be serious violations of General Order L–1 deserving of severe forms of discipline including, but not limited to, termination. 2. When the Chief of Police receives a sustained case involving a violation of General Order L–1, such case will be referred to the Police Commission for trial. 3. Members who are the subject of a complaint filed with the OCC shall not contact the complainant or witness regarding the issues of the complaint. * Walker, Samuel, and Nanette Graham,“Citizen Complaints in Response to Police Misconduct: The Results of a Victimization Survey,” Police Quarterly 1 (1) (1998): 65–89.