Police Misconduct in California: Filing a Citizen’s Complaint

Citizens of California trust that law enforcement officers use their authority to serve and protect the community. However, police misconduct is still an all-too-common occurrence. When officers abuse their power, it can lead to catastrophic results, including wrongful death by restraint asphyxia or police shooting.

You have the power to report incidents of police misconduct in California and pursue legal representation if you have been personally wronged. Continue reading below for how best to report police misconduct and next steps in your pursuit of justice.

Record Circumstances of Police Misconduct

Reporting police misconduct can be a difficult and frightening task. That’s why you must intentionally and carefully gather all the facts you can for the greatest chance of success. As with any other claim or legal action, it’s essential that you present valid proof, whether you’re planning to sue or not, even if you weren’t arrested. A video or audio recording of the police misconduct incident is a great way to present proof. Witnesses are another way. Photographs of your injuries also help. So does medical documentation.

California is a two-party consent state for video recording. When filming the police, you must be open and honest about the act of recording audio or video (no hidden cameras or audio-recordings from an obscured device). In return, it is your legal right to film a police officer in the state of California, and against the law for an officer to ask, persuade, or intimidate you into ending the video or audio recording.

As soon as you are able, write down everything you can remember about the incident in question to provide to your attorney later. If you write a summary of the incident specifically to provide to an attorney, then your written statement can be protected by attorney-client privilege.  A thorough and accurate report will assist in your complaint and be valuable to your lawyer should you decide to pursue legal action. Describe the event as clearly as possible with as many details as you can remember.

Some important details to note:

• A physical description of the police officer;
• The officer’s name, badge number, and identifying information from their vehicle;
• A description, location, and time of day of the incident;
• Names and contact information for any witnesses;
• Any medical treatment and diagnoses of injuries.

Filing Your Police Misconduct Complaint

A complaint for police misconduct can be filed with the involved law enforcement agency.  Under California law, all law enforcement agencies are required to accept citizen complaints.  Upon receipt of a complaint, it is required that an investigation is opened into the officer’s conduct. Although it is not required, many law enforcement agencies encourage community members to make these reports in person so a supervisor has an opportunity to do a thorough initial assessment of the complaint.

If you do not wish to report your complaint in person, generally you may obtain a “Complaint of Employee Misconduct” form from any police facility or City Council field office. Complaints generally also may be filed online or by phone.

Anonymous and third-party complaints are accepted and should be investigated to the extent that sufficient information is provided. However, if you choose to not provide your contact information, the investigators will be unable to ask you follow-up questions that might be needed for a thorough, complete investigation.

Pursue Representation with a California Police Misconduct Attorney

As with any potential legal dispute, contact an attorney to learn about your rights, any claims you may have, and to ensure you are represented and fully compensated. California police misconduct attorneys can represent you in civil rights cases against the police.

Haddad & Sherwin LLP have a long track record of winning civil rights cases with results that include large settlements and verdicts for their clients, groundbreaking legal rulings, and important reforms to prevent future harms.  Haddad & Sherwin LLP handle only a unique subset of Section 1983 cases: cases where a person was killed or permanently, catastrophically injured in California by law enforcement or county jail misconduct.  If you would like to consult with experienced civil rights lawyers because your loved one was killed by police or died in a California county jail, then contact the attorneys at Haddad & Sherwin LLP.  If your civil rights were seriously violated, but without death and without permanent, catastrophic injury, you could try the list of civil rights attorneys here.