Complaints

Citizen Complaints

Each year, San Diego Harbor Police Officers make thousands of contacts with citizens. Many of these are made under stressful circumstances, where people are angry, frightened, confused, or are victims of violent crimes. In many of these contacts, someone will be placed under arrest and taken to jail. As you might expect, in some of these situations the person will violently resist arrest, and officers or the arrestees may be injured. Despite the large number of contacts, a relatively small number of complaints are generated against our employees. These usually involve officer demeanor; the attitude an officer displays.

Sometimes the situation is simply informational, where someone does not understand the laws involved, police powers or procedures. In those cases, a follow-up contact is made to give the citizen an explanation of why the officer acted, or did not act, as the citizen thought he or she should. This type of complaint is categorized as an "inquiry." If the complaint involves demeanor or employee action, such as misconduct or use of force, it will be investigated as a Citizen's Complaint.

Complaint Investigation

A Harbor Police Lieutenant or Sergeant will contact the complainant and interview him or her regarding the complaint. All Citizen Complaints are thoroughly investigated.

Complaint Procedures

• RECEIPT OF COMPLAINTS
  Citizen Complaints may be made in person, by telephone, by mail, anonymously or by a third party, and should not be refused due to any perceived procedural defects. Every citizen has an absolute right to make a complaint, and it is a policy of the Harbor Police Department to accept all complaints and proceed responsibly and with discretion after receiving the information. A citizen's complaint form will need to be filled out by the complainant. This form can be obtained in person at Harbor Police Headquarters or you may download the form (pdf) from this website.
• COMPLAINT ASSESSMENT
  When a citizen requests to make a complaint, it is required that a member of the department, Sergeant rank or above, assess the complaint and interview the complainant. This will provide an initial forum for a citizen to resolve what may not necessarily be a complaint, but an inquiry or objection to a policy, procedure or law. If a supervisor is not available, the Harbor Police employee most readily available will obtain contact information from the citizen. This information will be provided as soon as possible to the Watch Commander for assessment and follow-up. COMPLAINT
• DISPOSITION
  Within 30 days of the conclusion of an investigation, a letter will be sent to the complainant advising of the conclusion of the investigation and, providing a general disposition of the complaint.

Confidentiality laws pertaining to personnel records prohibit release of information regarding what, if any, discipline was imposed as a result of a sustained finding.