Philadelphia police make filing complaints against fellow officers extremely difficult.
The number of complaints against Philadelphia police officers has spiked in the past few years, yet getting a complaint form isn't always as easy as it's supposed to be.
At times, officers at some police-district headquarters pressure complainants for personal information regarding the complaint, and provide misinformation or even deny them the form needed to file a complaint.
In spot checks conducted recently by the Daily News, supervisors at five police districts refused to allow the complainant to remain anonymous - which is against the Police Department's own policy - and wouldn't supply the form to reporters who posed as complainants.
An additional 11 of the city's 21 police districts did not follow department policies for filing complaints. Problems included creating a hostile environment for complainants, and neglecting to inform them of the procedure and locations to file a complaint.
Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey said in an interview with the Daily News that he would address the problems found during the checks, and stressed his commitment to rooting out police misbehavior.
William Johnson, PAC executive director, said he heard that the districts recently began asking for ID and warned that the practice could prevent residents with legitimate complaints from coming forward.
"They have been doing that," Johnson said. "That kind of thing could have a chilling effect with complainants. It goes against their policy.
"There is a need for the department to be community-sensitive and make sure they're following the process. Their only obligation is to give you a complaint form."
Ramsey said that he didn't know where the idea to request ID came from.
"They don't need to show a driver's license and all this other stuff; that is unnecessary and it really dissuades people from filing a complaint," Ramsey said. "It's not a policy within the Philadelphia Police Department."
The problem with filing complaints, however, is nothing new.
Responding to a rash of complaints that districts were withholding complaint forms, PAC and the University of Pennsylvania Law School conducted a survey in 2007 of police districts in West and Southwest Philly. The survey revealed several problems, including that officers demanded an explanation of the incident or required that complainants provide their name and phone number to receive a form.
Link:
http://www.philly.com/philly/news/20110131_In_Philly__filing_complaint_against_a_cop_isn_t_easy.html