General Services Formal Citizen Complaint

Please complete all information as thoroughly and accurately as possible, providing as much detail you remember.

It is the policy of the Clinton County Sheriff’s Office that allegations of employee misconduct or criticism of its services, initiated by a citizen or a member of the Office, be thoroughly investigated and promptly adjudicated. Members of the Office and the public they serve should expect no more, and the Office offers no less.

Complaints are received in a number of different manners. They may be written, by telephone, or verbally in person. Complaints made in person are reduced to writing and signed by the complainant. Complaints made by telephone are also reduced to writing, and the complainant advised that the complaint must be signed before an investigation will be conducted except under certain circumstances. Third party complaints and complaints that have not been formalized (signed) are not investigated except in rare instances. This decision is made by the Sheriff, based on the seriousness of the allegation. Anonymous complaints are only investigated at the specific direction of the Sheriff.

Any employee having knowledge of a complaint shall refer the complaining party to a Supervisor as soon as possible. Should a supervisor not be available, the officer with knowledge of a complaint shall provide the complainant with a Citizen Complaint Form and instruct them to return it the next business day to the Sheriff. A Record of Complaint form and a written statement by the complainant will be completed on all complaints, and forwarded immediately in a sealed envelope directly to either the Sheriff or Chief Deputy.

Upon receipt of a complaint, the complainant, the officer, the concerned employee’s supervisor, and the Sheriff are notified in writing that the complaint has been received. The only exception to this notification is when the allegation is deemed CONFIDENTIAL by the Sheriff or Chief Deputy and such notification would compromise the investigation.

All complaints are reviewed to ensure that the various allegations have been properly and adequately addressed, and that the investigation was fair and equitable. A letter summarizing the investigation and stating the results is prepared by the Sheriff or his designee. The completed investigation is referred to the Sheriff for final review. The Sheriff ensures the integrity of the Office through intensive and impartial review of each investigation. Upon final review of the completed investigation, letters of final classification are sent to the complainant, the officer involved, and the supervisor of the concerned employee.

Personnel assigned to the investigation utilizes recognized and accepted investigative, interview, and interrogation techniques. They conduct a completely impartial and professional investigation to create and maintain an image of fairness and objectivity with the complainant, accused officer, and all persons involved whether they be the protagonist or antagonist.

Instructions

1. Click the button below to fill our our online complaint form. Please fill out the form in detail and provide as much information as you can; however, anything that you do not know, please leave blank. The area of the form for you narrative description of the events should be as detailed as possible.
    
2. All allegations must be in writing or filled out through the online form and signed by the complainant, as unsigned complaints are normally not investigated.
    
3. Your statement will need to be detailed and specific, especially when dealing with the allegations of verbal abuse, harassment, or conduct and behavior (rude, what was said, etc.)
    
4. Normally the concerned employee(s) will be given a copy of the complainant(s) statement in order to answer the allegations(s).
    
5. You may be asked to take a polygraph examination in the course of the investigation.
    
6. You will receive a letter of receipt of your complaint, and it will contain a control number and the purpose of the control number.
    
7. The investigation may be conducted by the Sheriff, the person designated by the Sheriff or the supervisor of the concerned employee(s), depending on the seriousness of the allegation(s).
    
8. Complaints which allege physical injury, or where there is a possibility that the complainant may seek medical treatment due to alleged injury inflected on them by an officer will require a medical release form to be signed by the complainant to provide evidence for a thorough investigation.
    
9. You will receive a letter advising you of the results of the investigation. If the complaint is sustained, you will not be advised what disciplinary action was taken, but rather just that it was sustained.

Complaint Form

We will investigate your complaint in the most efficient and expeditious way possible with the utmost integrity. Please do not hesitate to contact the Sheriff at 563-242-9211 should you have any questions or concerns.