Internal Affairs
The Garfield Police Department is committed to providing law enforcement services that are fair, effective and impartially applied. Toward that end, officers are held to the highest standards of official conduct and are expected to respect the rights of all citizens.
Officers' adherence to these standards, motivated by a moral and professional obligation to perform their job to the best of their ability, is the ultimate objective of this agency.
The Internal Affairs process shall also be used to identify and correct unclear or inappropriate agency procedures. In addition, it will highlight organizational conditions that may contribute to any misconduct, such as poor selection and recruitment procedures or inadequate training and supervision of officers.
It is the policy of the Garfield Police Department to accept and investigate all complaints of alleged officer misconduct or wrongdoing from any internal agency, external agency, citizen and/or anonymous source(s). Following a thorough and impartial examination of the available factual information, the investigation against the officer shall receive one of the following dispositions: administratively closed, exonerated, sustained, not sustained, or unfounded. Discipline shall be administered according to the degree of misconduct and any prior disciplinary action.
Dispositions may include:
- Exonerated: The alleged incident did occur but the actions of the officer were justified, legal, and proper.
- Sustained: The investigation disclosed sufficient evidence to prove the allegation, and the actions of the officer violated a provision of the agency's rules and regulations or procedures.
- Not Sustained: The investigation failed to disclose sufficient evidence to clearly prove or disprove the allegation.
- Unfounded: The alleged incident did not occur.
Internal Affairs accepts third party and anonymous complaints.
Any person who believes that a police officer has violated the law, his/her rights, or the rights of another, may file a complaint. Please click Internal Affairs Complaint Forms listed below if you wish to file a complaint.
All complainants will be notified of the outcome at the conclusion of the investigation.
Internal Affairs Policy and Procedure