Making a Complaint Against an Individual Police Officer.

If you want to make a complaint about a police officer, you can complain about more things than you could sue them for. This means that you can complain about the way a police officer treated you, even when they were doing something they were legally allowed to, such as carrying out a search. A complaint is normally made by the victim (the person who was mistreated), but you can also make a complaint if you were with the victim, or if you saw what happened. You can make a complaint about a police officer's behavior even though you would be able to sue the police for it. For example, if you would have to pay a solicitor to sue the police, you might want to make a complaint because it would be cheaper.

You can't get compensation as the result of a complaint. But as long as you don't miss the deadline for issuing court proceedings, there is nothing to stop you making a complaint before deciding whether to sue the police. However, you would need to first discuss with your solicitor whether this would be a sensible approach. You have to make a complaint within a year of the incident that you are complaining about.

Many people who make a complaint do so while they are still under arrest at the police station or just after they have been released. It is probably best to wait until after you have been released and have had the chance to get advice and help. If you want to complain about the police injuring you, you may want to see your doctor so that they can make a note of your injuries. You should also get photographs of any injuries that you can see.

When you make a complaint, you should complain about a particular police officer or officers. It is best to make your complaint in writing. You may want to get your solicitor to help you with this. If you make your complaint in writing, you should send it to the:

• Chief Constable of the police force that the officer belongs to; or
• Metropolitan Police Commissioner if the officer is a member of the Metropolitan Police in London.

.: The informal procedure.

A complaint can be dealt with formally or informally. It can only be dealt with informally if you agree to this. If you are not happy with the informal procedure, or the issue turns out to be more serious than you thought, you can then ask for it to be formally investigated instead. Less seriouscomplaints probably wouldn't be upheld under the formal procedure. If the complaint is dealt with informally, generally an officer the rank of inspector (or higher) will be appointed to run the investigation. They may want to interview you and you can have someone with you if they do.

You can insist that this takes place away from the police station. You can also tell the investigating officer about any witnesses they should speak to. You may get an apology from the police, although they can't make the officer you have complained about apologize personally.

If your complaint is upheld, no formal record will be made on the officer's file, although a record will be made of the complaint. You can ask for a copy of this within three months of your complaint being dealt with.

.: The formal procedure.

A superintendent (or higher-ranking officer) will supervise the investigation of a formal complaint. They will appoint an inspector (or higher-ranking officer) to investigate the complaint. They investigating officer should have no connection with the incident or officer you are complaining about. Some investigations are supervised by the Police Complaints Authority. The Police Complaints Authority is independent of the police and its members are not current or former police officers. However, it relies on police officers to conduct its investigations. The Police Complaints Authority supervises investigations if there is a suggestion that something a police officer did led to someone being killed or seriously injured. It may also supervise investigations where it is suggested that a police officer assaulted someone and caused an injury, or did something that would count as a serious arrestable offence.

The officer being investigated will be warned that any statement that they make may be used in disciplinary proceedings against them or a criminal prosecution. You and any witnesses will be asked to make a full statement. If the supervising officer decides that the officer might have committed a criminal offence, the Crown Prosecution Service should be asked to decide whether to prosecute the police officer. In other cases, the supervising officer will send the file to the Police Complaints Authority, which will decide whether to:-

• Bring a disciplinary charge against the officer;
• Give them a warning; or
• Take no action against them.

The Police Complaints Authority will inform the relevant force, and the officer, what they decide to do, and they may say that the officer should face a disciplinary charge. If the officer faces a disciplinary charge, you will be expected to go to the hearing to give evidence. If the charge against the officer is upheld, one of several things can happen. The officer may:

• Be dismissed from the police or made to resign;
• Have their rank or pay reduced;
• Be fined;
• Be given a caution; or
• Be reprimanded.