John Burris is a lawyer in
Oakland, Calif., specializing in police misconduct cases.He is the author of
"Blue vs. Black: Let's End the Conflict between Cops and Minorities."
UPDATED APRIL 9, 2013, 6:03 PM
After 25 years of taking police
officers to court for misconduct and after reviewing countless internal
affairs' complaints and related investigations, I have concluded there is
little evidence that the public should rely on the integrity of the police
department to police itself.
The results are mixed for
citizen review boards largely because their efforts are often undermined by
inadequate financing, opposition by police unions and the lack of political
will by public officials.
There is little evidence that
the public can rely upon the integrity of the police department to police
itself.
An inspector general within a
department can be useful provided that he or she has the authority to
independently evaluate the chief and command staff, and to assess and audit the
department's compliance with its policies and procedures. Ideally, the
inspector general reports directly to the chief and can assist the chief with
fixing problems and conducting investigations into high visibility matters
before they become a public problem.
But the inspector general will
be ineffective if the chief doesn't respect the position and is unwilling to
accept the findings or follow the recommendations.
I think an inspector general
should be outside the department, reporting directly to the mayor, city
administrator or a police commission that has direct control over the police
department and the chief. Under these conditions, if given the authority, the
inspector general can conduct investigations, review compliance with policies
and address challenging matters of public interest.
To be successful, the inspector
general must report directly to the public official or entity with the
authority to carry out the findings and hold the chief accountable. Otherwise,
the position will be powerless.
If used effectively the
inspector general has the potential to facilitate compliance with departmental
polices, hold the command staff accountable for the actions of the officers and
solve systemic problems. But again the structure and the integrity of the
person will ultimately determine the inspector general's success.