Inspector General reports 80 citizen complaints in February, promises complaints dashboard and peer review update

The Civilian Police Review Board heard an update from the Office of the Inspector General on the office's February caseload and progress on an online complaints dashboard.

"So the month of February, we received 80 citizen complaints," the Inspector General told the board, reporting that 58 complaints were closed at intake, 23 were opened to full investigation and 22 investigations were closed in the month. Of 76 allegations reviewed in those closed cases, two were substantiated, 13 were exonerated and 49 were unfounded.

Board members asked whether complaint intake channels were shifting. The IG said about 70% of complaints arrive via a 24‑hour hotline and that intake follow‑up with complainants is standard practice to determine jurisdiction and collect necessary details. The IG also described routine investigator follow‑up and the office's policy to contact complainants when a case is opened.

The Inspector General said staff are working with the city's IT team to build a public dashboard that will display complaint and investigation information. "We are meeting with them bi‑weekly ... we are anticipating based on the timeline that the city gave us that the dashboard ... we should have something ... by the end of June," the IG said.

The IG also previewed an upcoming peer review by the Association of Inspector General, an external evaluation of the office's compliance with professional standards covering reports, policies and procedures for 2024 and 2025. The IG said the peer team will deliver a preliminary onsite briefing and then a written report within about two weeks after the review.

Why it matters: the board uses IG statistics and third‑party peer reviews to assess whether investigatory processes and publication practices meet expectations for transparency, timeliness and compliance with internal standards. Members said the dashboard and peer review findings will help the board and the public track systemic issues and ensure investigatory timelines are met.

Next steps: the IG expects to share the peer review findings with the board when available and to present a test or early version of the public dashboard by late June.