Only 169 of 4,063 complaints against cops investigated

IN 2003, a total of 4,063 complaints were made against police officers by persons aggrieved with the officers’ conduct. However, only a mere 169 of the 4,063 complaints filed, have been investigated. These figures were revealed in the Police Complaints Authority’s (PCA) seventh annual report (May 2002 to September 2003) which was recently laid in the House of Representatives. This finding has left  PCA chairman Justice James Davis with mixed feelings. On one hand, Justice Davis said, he was happy over cases which were  resolved and expressed optimism that new laws would let the PCA conduct its own independent investigations. But on the other hand, he was saddened by the PCA’s reliance on the Complaints Division of the Police Service to investigate public complaints made to the PCA.

The public’s trust in the PCA, Justice Davis said, seemed to be waning largely due to tardiness of the Police Service to investigate complaints and report back to the PCA. “This constraint negatively affects the efficient operations of the Police Complaints Authority. I have pointed this out on numerous occasions in the past and offered recommendations to remedy the situation, but all to no avail.” He noted that the 169 cases investigated represented a mere four percent of complaints received, dubbing this figure as painting a “dismal picture” of the PCA. Noting that many persons saw no distinction between the PCA and the Complaints Division of the Police Service, Justice Davis said many had tagged the PCA to be a mere “post box” to receive complaints.

He even acknowledged this may indeed be so, since the PCA had to wait four or five years for reports from the Complaints Division. “Another troubling feature of the Division’s performance is the frequent reports of the unavailability of records. This severely thwarts the Authority during its review process, much to the disgust of complainants many of whom air their views in the media,” Justice Davis continued. The Authority, he admitted, was failing to meet the needs of its clients. “All these shortcomings in the system contribute to the public’s demonstration of a lack of confidence in the police and its scepticism about the practice of police investigating police.” In conclusion, Justice Davis looked forward to the impending Police Complaints Authority Bill which he said would empower the PCA to do its own investigations.