The Austin Police Department (APD) is facing scrutiny after a recent report revealed that less than 7% of external complaints were investigated in 2022. According to KXAN, the City of Austin’s Office of Police Oversight (OPO) noted that out of 689 external complaints submitted, the APD investigated only 47. This marks a significant drop from previous years, with a 62.2% investigation rate in 2019 that steadily declined to 6.8% in 2022.
The report from OPO suggests that the decline in investigations may present an opportunity for APD to build community trust. "The decrease in the number of external complaints investigated by APD reflects an opportunity for APD to build trust with the community," OPO Director Gail McCant said in a statement obtained by KXAN. According to OPO, complaints are a means for open dialogue, and the agencies can work collaboratively to reverse the downward trend.
Further details from the Austin Chronicle’s coverage highlight that despite receiving three times as many investigable complaints in 2022 compared to 2021, only 2% resulted in any disciplinary action. This accounts for a significant discrepancy in APD’s response to allegations of officer misconduct.
Back in 2021, the OPO referred 220 complaints to APD's Internal Affairs Division, which proceeded to investigate 90 of them. However, in 2022, despite referring 689 complaints, APD chose only to investigate 47, leading to 16 disciplinary actions. Critically, the Austin Police Oversight Act, approved by voters to restore OPO's functions to its 2021 standards, has not been fully implemented, which, as reported by the Austin Chronicle, leaves the OPO unable to effectively carry out its primary functions.
Among all the recommendations in the OPO report, 140 were aimed at improving APD’s body-worn and dashboard camera policies, and 17 were extensive recommendations to change APD’s policy development process. APD has responded to the findings by acknowledging the value of OPO’s role and expressing dedication to making positive community impacts. However, the actual follow-through on complaints and disciplinary action points to a substantial divergence between APD's investigations and the community’s calls for accountability.
