SAN DIEGO – The U.S. Department of Justice released a critical report today regarding the San Diego Police Department’s practices for preventing, detecting and investigating misconduct, official said today.
The San Diego Police Department volunteered to undergo the review by the Department of Justice’s Community Oriented Policing Services or COPS following a series of misconduct incidents over the course of five years.
“Our goal with this report began with identifying deficiencies in policies, practices, or organizational culture that allowed misconduct to occur and to go undetected for years in San Diego,” said COPS Office Director Ronald Davis.
Adding, “We see this report as a blueprint for reforms, and for building on the reform efforts already undertaken by former Chief William Lansdowne and Chief Shelley Zimmerman.”
The review began in March 2014, officials said.
“We requested and welcomed this assessment from the Department of Justice COPS Office,” said San Diego Police Chief Shelley Zimmerman. “The numerous recommendations they have made will only help us improve our department and the proud service we provide to our community.”
The report, Critical Response Technical Assistance Review—Police Accountability: Findings and National Implications of an Assessment of the San Diego Police Department is online.
The report titled focuses on 17 cases of misconduct over five years and includes a review of how the cases were handled, and of the department’s policies and accountability system
During the assessment, the COPS Office’s training and technical assistance provider for the assessment, the Police Executive Research Forum, conducted focus groups and interviews with city and department stakeholders, community outreach and observed operations.
The report identifies a number of issues: Deficiencies in recruiting practices, supervision and training of officers, accountability systems, and mechanisms for reviewing citizen complaints and leadership.
The assessment recommends a comprehensive approach to all aspects of policing that can help prevent misconduct.
This includes the training and supervision of officers, the recruitment and selection of new officers, accountability mechanisms, internal investigations and disciplinary practices.
Since 1995, COPS has awarded over $14 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of more than 126,000 officers and provide a variety of knowledge resource products including publications, training, and technical assistance.