Lessons from a Veteran Police Oversight Investigator
By:
Brian Fleming
Being a civilian oversight investigator for over a decade has taught me so many lessons that I can teach investigations in my sleep. However, many of the lessons I did not learn in a book nor in a manual but from the daily demands of the profession itself. I have investigated officer involved shootings, suicides in custody and domestic violence related issues pertaining to police officers. To be honest, no book or amount of training can prepare you to investigate such incidents; but a willingness to get to the truth and to communicate the truth in a clear and concise manner will make you a star pupil in this profession.
This has been a challenging year for everyone, especially those in the criminal justice profession. While our nation constantly reels from police shootings and rioting, and not to mention the Covid 19 pandemic, many have lost hope in this thing we call “the system.” Let me just pause right here and say that many of the feelings of discontentment that people are expressing, and some in not so subtle ways, I have been feeling since I have been in this field. But I have made a deliberate choice to invest my time, energy and gifts into making the world a better place by giving each investigation what it deserves: Respect.
Respect requires that I be progressive in my pursuit of the truth. My former supervisor/mentor taught me that while we may never know everything that happened in an incident, it is my job to get as close to the truth of what occurred as possible. Simply put, I gather evidence and talk with those involved in a case as soon as possible. Here is the lesson: The evidence will speak, even if no one else does.
Respect demands that I know and understand the laws, policies and procedures that govern the police I investigate. While there is no playbook for real life situations, understanding how officers are trained, how that training is carried out and how an officer’s actions are evaluated based on their training is crucial. But another aspect I have to consider during my investigations is how the aforementioned variables affect citizens, especially those involved in the investigation.
Respect demands that I passionately investigate every case thoroughly and objectively. There is no way I can do this without placing myself in the shoes of everyone involved in the investigation. Now, this does not mean I turn off my emotions, I simply control them and seek to get a full understanding of what events transpired before I make a recommendation regarding my investigative findings. Not only am I tasked to be thorough and objective, but I am equally required to communicate my investigation, written and verbally, in a manner that to both professionals and regular citizens can understand.
While these are just a few of the lessons I have learned from my years in this profession, there are many more nuggets that I have picked up along the way that have truly been instrumental in affording me the opportunity to be successful in police oversight. I hope that my sharing these lessons would, at the least, help you understand what it is I do as a civilian police investigator and what you should expect from any investigator at the ACRB.
Brian Fleming is an ACRB Investigator, Senior