Making a complaint about police conduct or services

Making a Complaint about Police Conduct or Services(Excerpts from the Ontario Civilian Commission on Police Services Website)There are two kinds of complaints. They relate to:1. Policies of or services provided by a police service.2. Conduct of a police officer.Making a ComplaintOnly the person directly affected by the incident may make a complaint.A complaint must be in writing and must be signed by the person making the complaint. Youmay write your complaint in a letter or you may use a standard form, which you can obtain fromany police station or from the office of the Ontario Civilian Commission on Police Services(OCCPS) in Toronto.Delivering Your ComplaintA complaint must be mailed, faxed or delivered to any municipal police station or detachment,officer of the police service named in the complaint, or to the Commission office.Informal ResolutionLess serious complaints about an officer's conduct may be resolved by way of an informalresolution. This involves bringing the complainant and subject officer together to hear eachother's concerns. Such a resolution requires the mutual consent of the complainant and subjectofficer, and the approval of the Chief of Police. An informal resolution of a complaint is an optionthat is available at any time during the process; i.e., before, during or after an investigation.Dealing with the ComplaintInitially, a Chief of Police or the Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police must determine ifthe complaint concerns the policies of or services provided by the police service or the conductof an officer. The Chief/Commissioner may decide not to deal with the complaint for one of threereasons:• Complaint was filed six months after the incident which led to the complaint.• Frivolous, vexatious or made in bad faith.• Complainant is not directly affected by the incident.The Chief of Police or Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police must determine within 30days how a complaint is to proceed.Review of the DecisionA complainant may request that OCCPS review the Chief's or OPP Commissioner's decision ifthey decide not to deal with the complaint.

Making a complaint about Police Conduct or Services/February 13, 2009 Page 2You must write or fax the OCCPS to request a review within 30 days of being informed of thedecision of the Chief of Police or Commissioner of the Ontario Provincial Police. You shouldprovide as much information as possible, including reasons for requesting the review and anybackground documents or records.The Commission may uphold the decision of the local Chief of Police or Commissioner of theOntario Provincial Police, refer it back to the Chief of Police or Commissioner for investigation,or assign the investigation of the complaint to another police service. There is no appeal of theOCCPS' decision.Complaints about Policies or ServicesComplaints about the policies of or services provided by a municipal police service will bereferred to the Chief of Police, who must report to the local police services board what action, ifany, was taken. In the case of the Ontario Provincial Police, complaints about local policies aredealt with by the local detachments, while complaints relating to province-wide policies arereferred to the OPP Commissioner.If you disagree with the initial classification of your complaint as being about "policies orservices" rather than "conduct," you may request that OCCPS review the decision. You mustmake your request in writing or by fax within 30 days of being notified. Following aninvestigation of the complaint relating to "policies or services," if you are not satisfied with thedecision of the Chief or OPP detachment commander, you may request a review by the localpolice services board.Complaints about ConductA Chief of Police must ensure that every conduct complaint is investigated (unless, as notedearlier, the Chief has decided not to deal with it).After the investigative report is completed, a Chief of Police may:• Settle the matter by way of informal resolution if the misconduct or unsatisfactory workperformance was not of a serious nature.• Find the complaint is unsubstantiated.• Find the officer guilty of misconduct and impose a penalty without a formal hearingwhere the misconduct is not serious. If the officer does not accept the proposed penalty,a police disciplinary hearing is held.• Decide the complaint should be heard by a police disciplinary hearing.A Chief of Police must hold a hearing if the officer's actions are believed to constitute seriousmisconduct or unsatisfactory work performance of a serious nature.Dissatisfied with Hearing DecisionA complainant or the police officer named in the complaint may appeal to the Ontario CivilianCommission on Police Services within 30 days of the decision at a disciplinary hearing. Acomplainant can appeal if the officer's misconduct or unsatisfactory work performance was notestablished. However, consent is required from the OCCPS if a complainant wishes to appealthe "penalty" imposed by a hearing.

Making a complaint about Police Conduct or Services/February 13, 2009 Page 3The OCCPS will hold a hearing and may confirm, vary, or revoke the decision and substitute itsown decision. The complainant or the police officer may appeal the Commission's decision toDivisional Court within 30 days.