When police investigate police: A view from complainants

Civilian involvement in the handling of public complaints against the police has emerged as an important dimension in the debate over police accountability, control, and improving police-community relations. The Police Complaints Commissioner, established as a civilian review agency first in Toronto and expanded across Ontario in 1990, has received widespread support from academics, police critics, and police managers alike. The extent to which the Commissioner's powers to monitor and review the internal police investigation of complaints can counter perceptions of bias when the police investigate themselves is the focus of this paper. The data are derived from interviews with 104 individuals who had made formal complaints against the Metropolitan Toronto Police Force and indicate that the internal handling of complaints is perceived to be inherently unfair and prejudicial to complainants, The existence of the Police Complaints Commissioner did not appear to alleviate the concerns of complainants, due to its limited role in the investigation and adjudication of complaints. Overall, complainants were highly dissatisfied with their experience of making a formal complaint against the police.