2013 Six Month Update 512-974-9090 2013 Six Month Update January 1—June 30 The Office of the Police Monitor is pleased to present the Six Month Update for 2013. This update covers the first six months of the 2013 calendar year and includes data and statistics relating to the number and types of complaints, geographic area of the incidents, as well as a breakdown by the race/ethnicity of complainants. In the first half of 2013, 674 people contacted the OPM with the intent of filing a complaint. As of this writing, it looks like calendar year 2013 will see more complaints than were received in 2012. If so, this will be the first time in three years, the OPM has seen an increase in the number of complaints. In the first half of 2013, the very first mediation session between members of the APD and a member of the public occurred at the Dispute Resolution Center. Functions of the Police Monitor’s Office  Assess citizens’ complaints POLICE MONITOR City of Austin  Monitor Internal Affairs’ investigations  Monitor APD policies and practices  Publish Reports on Activities of the Office  Conduct community outreach programs and educational forums The OPM was created and developed to promote mutual respect between the Austin Police Department (APD) and the community it serves. Through the OPM’s outreach efforts, we will educate the community and law enforcement to promote the highest degree ofh mutual respect between police officers and the public. By engaging in honest dialogue over issues and incidents that impact the community and law enforcement, the Office of the Police Monitor will enhance public confidence, trust, and support in the fairness and integrity of the Austin Police Department. Inside this issue: Number & Types of Complaints 2 Number of Allegations by Area Command 2 Number of Allegations by Type & Subcategory 3 Complainant Demographic Information 4 Special points of interest:  External Formal complaints as well as Supervisory Inquiries are up over this time last year  Code of Conduct issues are again the most frequently reported allegations  The number of complaints stemming from Hispanics/Latinos has increased significantly over this time last year http://www.austintexas.gov/department/police-monitor Number/Types of Contacts—External & Internal During the first half of 2013, the OPM was contacted by 674 people wishing to make some sort of complaint against a member of the APD. In this graph, there are three categories of complaint types. The first is “contacts.” This category includes persons that reached out to the OPM with the intention of filing a complaint but, for whatever reason, did not do so or it was discovered that the complaint involved an agency other than the APD. Supervisory Inquiries are a complaint type reserved for less severe policy violations or to clarify the APD’s rules and regulations. Formal complaints are typically reserved for cases alleging a more severe policy violation. If, as in the past four years, the OPM takes in fewer complaints in the second half of the year, the number of External Formal complaints will be up slightly from 2012 when the year ended with 76 External Formal complaints. It is anticipated that the number in Internal Formal complaints will be on par with 2012 or very slightly higher. At the current pace, there will likely be more Supervisory Inquires for the full 2013 year than there were in 2012. If so, that would leave last year, 2012, at a 5 year low with regard to the overall number of complaints. Number/Types of Contacts January 1, 2013 - June 30, 2013 N = 674 350 328 External 300 Internal 250 200 144 126 150 100 45 31 50 0 0 Contacts Supervisory Inquiries Formal Complaints Number of Allegations by Area Command—External & Internal In the first six months of 2013, there were 430 allegations listed against the APD. This number includes all Formal complaints as well as all allegations associated with Supervisory Inquiries. There are 20 cases where allegations have not yet been assigned. Even without the unassigned allegations, this is up from last year by 104 allegations. N = 430 The Downtown area command had the greatest number of allegations asserted during the first half of 2013 with 82. The second and third highest number of allegations were in the Southeast and Central East area commands with 66 and 56 allegations, respectively. Seventy-three percent of these allegations have to do with Chapter 3, Field Operation, Custody & Traffic Enforcement. Page 2 O FF IC E O F T H E P O L IC E M O N IT O R Number/Types of Allegations—External Complaints Code of Conduct-related issues again stand alone as the single most-reported allegation in the first half of 2013 at 127. With the switch in 2011 from the old General Orders to the new policies entitled “Lexipol,” the language used in the table below may appear slightly different than what has been reported in the past. For example, note that there are three allegations, 1) Responsibility to the Community, 2) General Conduct and Responsibility, and, 3) Bias-Based Profiling that, when summed, total the 127 Code of Conduct allegations. Under the General Orders, these would have been listed as one allegation, i.e., Code of Conduct. The vast majority of Code of Conduct complaints revolved around “Responsibility to the Community.” This allegation includes, but is not limited to, impartial attitude, courtesy, duty to identify as a police officer, and neutrality in civil actions. After Code of Conduct issues, the next highest reported allegation for External complaints is Search & Seizure (formerly captured under Interviews, Stops & Arrests) followed by Response to Resistance (formerly captured as Use of Force). Last year at this time, there were no reported Search & Seizure allegations. The 26 reported in the first half of 2013 is more in line with the norm. Both 2010 and 2011 appear to be anomalies with their extreme high (110) and low (0). However, the OPM will be looking at these complaints closely to see if there is a pattern that needs to be addressed. N = 226 Code of Conduct = 127 Note: 1. The graph on this page includes external complaint allegations only, specifically, External Formal complaints and Supervisory Inquiries. 20 1 3 S IX M O NT H U P D A T E Page 3 Complainant Demographic Information The members of the public that classify themselves as Caucasian filed more complaints overall than any other group in the first half of 2013 (1H2013). The filing rate of every racial/ethnic group was lower than their representation within the voting age population of the City except for the Black/African American community. Overall, Blacks/African Americans filed at a rate that is 9% greater than their representation within the voting age population of the City. City of Austin Voting Age Population - 2010 Asian 6% Hispanic/ Latino 35% Other/ Unknown 2% N = 191 When looking at Supervisory Inquiries and External Formal complaints combined, the percentage of complaints Black/ from Caucasians in the first half of 2013 is up from calenAfrican American dar year end 2012 (YE2012) (37%). The percentage of 8% Hispanic/Latino complainants is also up in the first half of 2013 (26%) over year end 2012 (20%). The percentage of complaints from Black/African Americans took a marked decrease in the first half of 2013 (17%) compared to year end 2012 (27%). Caucasian 54% When looking at these numbers by type of complaint and focusing on External Formal complaints only, in the first half of 2013, the number of Formal complaints filed by Hispanic/Latinos (13) already exceeds the 2012 year end total (10). Both Caucasians and Blacks/African Americans are on par in the first half of 2013 (16 and 10, respectively) to finish the year at around the same number of External Formal complaints as last calendar year (31 and 21, respectively). For Supervisory Inquiries in the first half of 2013, the percentage of Caucasians filing this type of complaint is up 8% from year end 2012 (43% 1H2013 vs. 35% YE2012). Hispanics/Latinos are filing at about the same rate (25% 1H2013 vs. 23% YE2012). The percentage of Blacks/African Americans filing this type of complaint is down in the first half of 2013 (15%) from year end 2012 when this group comprised 27% of the Supervisory Inquiry complaints. N = 46 Page 4 N = 145 O FF IC E O F T H E P O L IC E M O N IT O R PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK Page5 OFFICE OF THE POLICE MONITOR The Police Monitor’s Office is the main location for accepting complaints filed by members of the public against police officers. To file a complaint with the Office of the Police Monitor, the public OFFICE OF THE POLICE MONITOR can contact our office by telephone, facsimile, mail, email, or in person. The Police Monitor or a member of the Police’s Monitor’s 1520 Rutherford Lane Bldg. 1, Suite 2.200 A Austin, TX 78754 Phone: 512-974-9090 Fax: 512-974-6306 E-mail: police.monitor@austintexas.gov office will conduct an initial interview with the complainant and will explain the oversight and investigative processes. The Internal Affairs Division of the Austin Police Department or the subject officer’s chain of command will conduct an investigation. The Office www.austintexas.gov/ department/police-monitor of the Police Monitor will participate in the APD investigation. The Office of Police Monitor will make policy recommendations to APD. Upon conclusion of the investigation, the complainant will be notified in writing of the outcome.