Civilian panel reviews investigations of police misconduct

The Fairfax County Police Civilian Review Panel offers another layer of oversight over controversial actions of the county’s police department. It doesn’t have the authority to investigate complaints, however, only to review investigations by the Fairfax County Police Department’s Bureau of Internal Affairs (BIA).

The independent police auditor can initiate investigations for certain issues, including the use of force, but has no authority to take any disciplinary actions.

The roles of both groups are more about persuading the BIA and chief of police to ensure that investigations of improper conduct are done in a thorough, accurate, and impartial manner, the auditor and members of the civilian review panel explained at a community forum in Annandale Nov. 16.

The panel and auditor were established by the Board of Supervisors last December in response to the recommendations from the Ad Hoc Police Practices Review Commission, which was created by the BoS following a police-involved shooting and other accusations of police misconduct.

The panel is “an independent body that will make sure when a complaint is made, it will be followed up on,” BoS Chair Sharon Bulova told the audience of about a dozen people. “This group doesn’t investigate complaints; it looks at whether complaints are done properly.”

Members of the panel include attorneys; advocates for immigrants, minorities, and the mentally ill; and people with experience in law enforcement.

The panel’s main responsibility is reviewing investigations on “the misuse of authority and serious misconduct” by FCPD officers, said the panel’s chair, Adrian Steel, who had been a member of the Ad Hoc Commission. The panel will look at such issues as harassment, discrimination, inappropriate language, and rude or threatening behavior.

While the panel isn’t authorized to address issues unless it receives a request from a member of the public, Richard Schott, the independent police auditor, is charged with initiating reviews of FCPD incidents and monitoring investigations that deal with an officer-involved shooting, in-custody death, or use of force that results in serious injury or death.

Schott, a retired FBI agent who spent 17 years training other agents at the FBI headquarters in Quantico, reports directly to the Board of Supervisors. He told the audience he is currently monitoring an investigation of a police officer who shot a “domesticated animal.”

A complaint by a citizen would be investigated by the FCPD’s Bureau of Internal Affairs (BIA), Steel said. If the citizen isn’t satisfied with how the BIA dealt with the incident, he or she could file a complaint with the auditor’s office. The same form is also used to request a review of an investigation by the panel.

The panel would speak with the complainant, and possibly other involved parties, in a public meeting and then could ask the BIA to carry out a more thorough review of the matter. The panel cannot take testimony or receive evidence.  It can, however ask the BIA to interview witnesses.

“Our deliberations will be done in a public way,” said panel member Doug Kay, an attorney. “There will be full transparency.”

After meeting with the individual who filed a complaint, the panel would issue a report within 90 days. It could either concur with the BIA’s finding, determine the BIA report is incomplete and request further study, or advise the BoS that the BIA findings are not compatible with its review and request a review by the chief of police.

The panel “can disagree with a finding but we don’t have authority to act on it,” Steel said.

If the auditor finds an investigation by the BIA is not complete, accurate, or impartial, Schott said, he would report that disagreement to the chief of police, who would be expected to continue with the investigation.

If a conflict with the chief cannot be resolved, the matter would go to the BoS. If the BoS sees that “the panel and auditor we created have reports saying they are not happy with the way things are handled, we would have issues with the chief,” Bulova said. “We hire the chief. If he or she is not serving the community the way we want, we can dismiss the police chief.”

A member of the audience expressed frustration with the process, noting that complaints will bounce around among the panel, the BIA, the auditor, and BoS, and might never get resolved.

Those comments are valid, said panel member Kathleen Davis-Siudut, who works on human rights issues and wants to bring “a lens of cultural sensitivity” to the FCPD. She urged citizens to invite the panel to their communities. “I want to build that trust. I want to hear your concerns,” she said.

Steve Descano, a former federal prosecutor who serves on the panel, told the audience he has been concerned about the “improper and tragic police interactions” with the public around the country and “realized good policing is what the community says it is; it’s when police actions reflect the values of the community they serve.”

Panelist Hansel Aguilar, an immigrant from Honduras who investigates police misconduct in Washington, D.C., said he wants to improve trust among immigrants who come from places where the police are viewed with suspicion.

Randy Sayles, a retired patrol officer who had also been a special agent with the federal Drug Enforcement Agency, said he’s had “several unfortunate situations” with the police – he had to go court to fight unfair tickets – and hopes “average citizens should not have to jump through these sorts of hoops.”

Sayles hopes people not comfortable with reporting an incident to the BIA will be more comfortable going to the panel.

“We’re not going to let anything go that we think is wrong,” Steel said. “You’re going to have to trust us.”