Denver just shuffled a big chunk of deputy discipline behind internal walls, shifting many cases away from the city’s independent Public Integrity Division and into a new in-house screening system. The move, laid out in a four-page directive from the Department of Public Safety, hands more responsibility for lower-level complaints to supervisors and a new internal review team. Oversight groups and the independent monitor are already sounding alarms about transparency and legal risk.
What the directive changes
According to The Denver Post, the directive, signed by Executive Director Al Gardner, pulls at least 14 categories of policy violations out of the Public Integrity Division’s default review and authorizes a screening team within the sheriff’s department to decide which complaints still get sent to independent investigators. The order says some sexual-assault allegations against deputies and certain body-worn camera policy violations can be handled inside the department unless they are intentional or amount to a third offense within three years. Repeated misconduct must still be forwarded to the independent unit.
Sheriff's office says it's about morale and staffing
Sheriff Elias Diggins told local reporters the goal is to “unburden” staff from what he described as onerous probes and to boost morale, retention, and hiring at a chronically understaffed agency, according to Denver7. He argued that first-line supervisors and sergeants should be able to resolve performance issues quickly so that minor problems do not automatically turn into lengthy internal-affairs cases.
Oversight and legal concerns
The Denver Post reports that Citizen Oversight Board member Julia Richman called the directive “disheartening,” while the city’s independent monitor, Lisabeth Pérez Castle, warned the change cuts down on transparency and “exposes the city to potential liability.” The Public Integrity Division, created in 2019 to handle internal-affairs complaints and to review high-ranking Department of Public Safety leaders, was designed to serve as a civilian backstop, according to the Citizen Oversight Board annual report.
What to watch next
Denver7 reports the independent monitor had about a week to review the directive before it went into effect, and oversight board members say they are weighing next steps to push for more clarity. For people who deal with Denver’s county jails, the immediate impact is less outside review of lower-level deputy conduct. The longer fight will be over whether these quieter, informal fixes are enough to prevent serious harm and avoid expensive legal fallout.
