Review of Complaints by Agency

(1) Transmittal of Complaint by Agency to Commission. The head of an agency shall, within two days of their receipt of a complaint, which is any credible report, written or oral, evidencing or alleging the misconduct of an officer from a member of the public, personnel at the agency, or any other source, do the following: (a) if the complaint is related to minor matters, a category that includes discourtesy and basic work rule violations such as tardiness, inattention to detail, equipment violations, grooming violations, or comparable infractions and the complaint does not involve evidence or an allegation of: bias on the basis of race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, religion, mental or physical disability, immigration status, or socioeconomic or professional level; excessive, prohibited, or deadly force; or an action which resulted in serious bodily injury or death: 1. refer the complaint for resolution under the agency's internal resolution policy, which shall comply with any minimum requirements established by the commission; 2. if the agency does not have an internal resolution policy, if the agency's internal resolution policy is not in compliance with the minimum requirements established by the commission, or if the matter cannot be resolved under 555 CMR 1.01(1)(a)1. for any other reason, the agency shall maintain any documentation of the complaint, the name and commission certification identification number of the subject officer, a brief summary of the nature of the conduct that is the subject of the complaint, and any other documentation that the agency deems material to an understanding of the complaint and the agency's handling of the complaint or that the commission directs the agency to maintain; and 3. make any such complaint available to the commission upon request, or under any policy that may be established by the commission. (b) if the complaint does not relate to minor matters as described in 555 CMR 1.01(1)(a), transmit a description of the complaint, whether or not the complaint was written, and a copy of anydocumentation of the complaint to the division of standards, and provide the following information, if known, in a form to be prescribed by the commission: 1. the name and commission certification identification number of the subject officer; 2. the date and location of the incident giving rise to the complaint; 3. the identity of the alleged victim of the misconduct described in the complaint; 4. the alleged victim’s race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, religion, mental or physical disability, immigration status, socioeconomic or professional level, and any other relevant demographic information if the victim volunteered such information, provided that nothing herein should be construed to require that such information be elicited from the alleged victim or complainant; and 5. whether the complainant alleges that the officer’s conduct: a. was biased on the basis of race, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, religion, mental or physical disability, immigration status or socioeconomic or professional level; (Mass. Register #1532, 10/11/2024) b. was unprofessional; c. involved excessive, prohibited or deadly force; or d. resulted in serious bodily injury or death. (c) notwithstanding the foregoing: 1. Anonymous complaints that do not provide an adequate basis for investigation need not be forwarded to the commission. 2. An agency need not forward to the commission any investigatory materials that were necessarily compiled out of the public view by law enforcement or other investigatory officials, the disclosure of which materials to the commission would prejudice the possibility of effective law enforcement to the extent that such disclosure would not be in the public interest. 3. An agency shall forward any pattern of complaints alleging the misconduct of an officer to the commission. 4. An agency may forward any complaint other than those set out in 555 CMR 1.01(1)(b) at the agency's discretion. (2) Minimum Standards for Internal Investigation by Agency. (a) The agency shall commence, as soon as practicable, but in any case within 14 days of the receipt of the complaint by the agency, an internal investigation of the subject matter of any complaint forwarded to the division of standards under 555 CMR 1.01(1)(b). If the agency anticipates that the investigation cannot be commenced within 14 days due to investigatory efforts by another governmental body, the agency shall promptly request an extension of time from the division of standards and provide in the request a proposed schedule for commencing the investigation and the reasons for the need for additional time to commence the investigation, prior to the expiration of the 14 days. (b) The internal investigation may, but in the case of a complaint alleging an officer-involved injury or death, improper use of force, or biased behavior shall, be assigned to an investigator employed by the agency or to an outside investigator retained by the agency. The investigator shall be free from conflict of interest, bias, prejudice, or self- interest, and shall report, for the purpose of the investigation, directly to the head of the agency, or to a designated official immediately subordinate to the head of the agency, unless the head of the agency or immediate subordinate is the subject of, or implicated by, the complaint, or is otherwise unable to supervise the investigator due to conflicts of interest, or the potential for bias, prejudice, or self-interest whether apparent or perceived. (c) The investigator shall: 1. begin the investigation by taking all reasonable steps necessary to preserve, and consider, all potentially relevant evidence including, but not limited to, documents, e-mails, text messages, photographs, audio and video recordings, and the like; 2. after takingall reasonable steps necessaryto preserve all potentiallyrelevant evidence as described in 555 CMR 1.01(2)(c)1., as soon as reasonablypossible, to the extent it will not prejudice the internal investigation, notify the officer and the head of their collective bargaining unit that an internal investigation is being conducted; and 3. conduct, to the extent feasible, interviews of relevant witnesses, including but not limited to the complainant, the alleged victim if different from the complainant, the officer implicated by the complaint, and all other officers and individuals who were present at or witnessed the incident. Such interviews should be audio recorded if feasible. Officers and other interviewees shall have the right to be represented by counsel, union representatives, or other representatives, to the same extent they would under their Agency's policies or other applicable authority. The agency shall, at its expense, provide translation services where necessary to conduct an interview. (d) The investigation shall be conducted confidentially to the extent permitted by law. (e) The investigation shall be completed as soon as practicable, but in any case, within 90 days of the agency’s receipt of the complaint. If the agency anticipates that the investigation will take longer than 90 days, the agency shall promptly request an extension of time from the division of standards and provide in the request a proposed schedule for completion of the investigation and the reasons for the need for additional time to complete the investigation, prior to the expiration of the 90 days. (3) Internal Investigation Reports. Upon completion of the internal investigation, the head of the agency shall immediately transmit an investigation report signed by the investigator to the division of standards, in a form to be prescribed bythe division of standards, which shall include: (a) a statement of the evidence or allegation of the complaint; (b) a description of the investigation and disposition of the complaint, including any disciplinary action recommended by the investigator or a supervising officer to the head of the agency and any disciplinary action imposed by the head of the agency; (c) a list of any witnesses interviewed, whether each interview was recorded and if not, the reasons for not recording the interview, and a description of all evidence collected; (d) whether anywitness or evidence was inaccessible and a description of the circumstances evidencing the unavailability of said witness, and whether any relevant evidence was destroyed or lost and a description of the circumstances of such a destruction or loss; (e) the facts found by the investigator; (f) a determination by the investigator of whether the facts sufficiently reflect conduct proscribed by law or standards applicable to officers; (g) the reasons for any delay in completion of the investigation report beyond the 90 days set forth in 555 CMR 1.01(2)(e); (h) if any disciplinary action recommended by the investigator or a supervising officer, or imposed by the head of the agency included retraining, suspension, or termination, a recommendation by the head of the agency as to whether and how the commission should impose the recommended disciplinary action, including but not limited to retraining, suspension, or revocation of the officer's certification; and (i) whether the officer is represented by counsel or other authorized representative. (4) Final Disposition of Internal Investigations by an Agency. Upon determining the final disposition of the complaint and final discipline to be imposed by the agency, if any, the head of the agency shall immediately transmit to the division of standards a final report in a form to be prescribed by the commission, which shall include: (a) a description of the adjudicatory process; (b) any disciplinary action initially recommended by the investigator or a supervising officer; (c) any discipline imposed by the head of the agency; (d) if the disciplinary action recommended by the investigator or a supervising officer, or imposed by the head of the agency included retraining, suspension, or termination, a recommendation by the head of the agency with supporting facts based on the investigation report and other relevant information as to whether and how the commission should impose the recommended disciplinary action, including but not limited to, retraining, suspension, or revocation of the officer's certification; and (e) whether the officer is represented by counsel or other authorized representative. (5) Notice of Officer Resignation Pending Agency Internal Investigation or Discipline. If an officer resigns prior to the conclusion of an internal investigation by the agency or prior to the imposition of agency discipline: (a) The head of the agency shall immediately transmit to the division of standards a report in a form to be prescribed by the commission, which at a minimum shall include: 1. the officer’s full employment history including, dates of hire, resignation, retirement, anypromotions and assignments; a chronologyof anycomplaints, internal investigations, reprimands, discipline imposed, retraining, or other applicable sanctions; and any commendations and awards received by the officer related to his or her duty as an officer. 2. a description of the circumstances, events or complaints surrounding the officer’s resignation; 3. the status or results of any investigation as of the date of the transmission of the report to the commission regarding those events or complaints; and 4. a recommendation by the head of the agency as to whether and how the commission should impose disciplinaryaction bythe commission, including suspension or revocation of the officer’s certification, or the conditions the officer must meet prior to applying for any reinstatement or certification, if such reinstatement or certification is appropriate. (b) The agency shall, nonetheless, complete the investigation regardless of the officer’s resignation, and, once the investigation is completed, transmit a report that conforms to 555 CMR 1.01(3) to the division of standards.