After five months of investigation, the U.S. Department of Justice on Wednesday released a 23-page report on its evaluation of the practices of the Cincinnati Police Division.

Use Of Force

        The Cincinnati Police Division should revise its policies to clarify terms, and to ensure that force is only used in appropriate circumstances.

        Explanation: There is an ambiguity in the policy that may lead officers to believe they are justified in using force in situations in which it would be unreasonable.

        Recommendation: Thorough review of all CPD policies aimed at eliminating undefined terms.

        The CPD should modify its policy regarding the use of chemical irritant to limit its use to appropriate circumstances. The CPD should also track and monitor the amount of chemical irritant officers use, and the ways in which they use it.

        Explanation: The use of chemical irritant is too broadly defined or inappropriately applied.

        Recommendations:

        Define chemical irritant use for “aggressive citizen behavior.”

        Absent exigent circumstances, approval of a supervisor should be required any time chemical irritant is used against a crowd.

        Use of chemical irritant against a restrained individual should be subject to highest level of scrutiny.

        Weigh officers' canisters regularly to ensure appropriate use.

        Provide in-service training on proper amount to use.

        Consider whether to switch to a different type of irritant.

        The CPD should adopt a “find and bark” policy and eliminate undefined terms from its canine policy. It should also provide more guidance to its officers regarding when canines are deployed. Moreover, we recommend that the CPD track and monitor the frequency with which its canines bite civilians when making apprehensions.

        Explanation: The CPD canine policy does not specify whether it has a “find and bite” policy (which allows dogs to bite upon locating the subject) or a “find and bark” policy (requiring a dog to bark, rather than bite).

        Recommendations:

        The policy should require, absent exigent circumstances, a set number of announcements, and a sufficient interval between announcement and deployment to allow for subject surrender.

        Define terms such as “serious misdemeanor.”

        Track apprehensions using canines and how often they bite a subject.

        Standardize training in canine handling procedures.

        The CPD should adopt a use-of-force continuum.

       Explanation: A use-of-force continuum provides a useful tool in training officers to consider lower levels of force first, which protects the safety of both the officer and the civilian.

        Recommendation:

       Adopt a use of force continuum.

        The CPD should create a committee to advise the Planning Section on policy development, and should increase community involvement in this process.

       Explanation: The Planning Section seeks feedback on proposed policy changes by sending copies to every section and district commander.

        Recommendation:

       Create a policy committee which includes a cross section of ranks (both sworn and civilian employees) and a representative of the Office of Municipal Investigation.

        Send policy revisions to community representatives for feedback.

        Every policy change should be evaluated by the City Solicitor's Office.

Use Of Force Reporting

        The CPD should require officers to report all uses and shows of force.

Explanation: The CPD's use of force policy distinguishes between “force” and “restraining force.” Although officers are required to report all uses of “force,” they are not required to report restraining force or other physical contacts with civilians unless those contacts lead to injury. This artificial distinction causes under-reporting of force.

        Recommendations:

       CPD should report all physical and instrumental (i.e., baton or firearm) acts that impose any degree of force on a civilian, including all acts that would currently be regarded as restraining force.

        Use a single, uniform use of force report.

        Provide a narrative of every incident involving the use of chemical irritant.

        Recommend that CPD officers be required to report any instance in which they un-holster their firearm and point it at an individual.

        The CPD should revise its use of force reporting forms to clarify terms and to ensure that force is only used in appropriate circumstances.

       Explanation: Use of force reporting firms have boxes for supervisors to indicate the civilian's conduct which led to the use of force. We found considerable confusion among officers we interviewed about what many of the boxes were intended to convey...

        Recommendations:

       Revise boxes to clearly indicate the conduct that they are designed to measure.

        The boxes should not take the place of requiring the officers who use the force to provide a written narrative explaining the sequence of events and circumstances that prompted each use of force.

Public Accountability

        The CPD should better disseminate information to the public about the citizen complaint process and should solicit feedback regarding public perception of that process.

        Explanation: Self-explanatory.

        Recommendations:

        Each district police station should post information about the complaint process in a visible, public place.

        Consider making the information available on line.

        Re-institute customer satisfaction surveys, including questions about public perception of the complaint process.

        The CPD should change aspects of its citizen complaint process that have the potential to discourage the filing of complaints, and to impair their effective tracking and resolution. Supervisors should also receive appropriate training in handling and adjudicating citizen complaints.

        Explanation: Though police policy requires all personnel to accept citizen complaints, people have been asked to wait, go to a different district to file complaints or to appear in person. This practice deters would-be-complainants. Some complaints are deemed resolved by a sergeant without being put in writing, which impedes effective monitoring. Officers are encouraged to include an analysis of the complainant's mental and physical state, allowing them to make subjective judgments.

        Recommendations:

        Reinforce with staff that failure to accept a citizen complaint is always unacceptable.

        Complete a citizen complaint form every time someone appears to complain at a district station, calls on the phone or mails in a complaint.

        Track complaints by type.

        Eliminate subjective descriptions of complainants.

        Sergeants who accept complaints should get interpersonal skill training.

        The city should clarify the roles of all entities charged with investigating serious allegations of misconduct by the CPD and it should provide adequate resources for such investigations. The city should better educate civilians and CPD officers about the citizen complaint process.

        Explanation: Five different entities — two in-house, three outside CPD — review complaints about police misconduct. Of the outside entities, the independent Office of Municipal Investigation has never had sufficient staff to carry out its mission of investigating serious allegations of misconduct and there is no assurance CPD will address its recommendations. OMI also reports a lack of coordination with the police division. Recommendations made by the Citizens Police Review Panel, which reviews investigations conducted by OMI and the police division, end up at the discretion of the city manager for action.

        Recommendations:

        OMI is not sufficiently staffed.

        Develop formal procedures on timing, notification and interviewing of witnesses between OMI and the police division.

        A non-CPD body should be established to investigate all serious allegations of police misconduct.

        CPD should explain in writing the outcome of all copies.

        The CPD should change aspects of the Citizen Complaint Review Process (CCRP) that may discourage citizens from participating. The CPD should also take measures to prevent inclusion of a complaint in the CCRP from interfering with the effective investigation and appropriate adjudication of that complaint.

        Explanation: This complaint process requires the citizen to attend — alone — a resolution meeting with the offending officer and his supervisor to air concerns. CPD views some complaints — involving restraining force — that are handled in this process as minor, but this is a constitutional violation. Despite the seriousness of some allegations, common punishment is an oral reprimand. Some complaints were considered resolved without a full investigation.

        Recommendations:

        Strengthen disciplines when warranted in these cases.

        Fully investigate and adjudicate complaints before a resolution meeting.

        Don't use this forum for excessive force complaints.

        Change meeting locations and procedures to make complainants more comfortable.

        The CPD should increase and improve its interactions with the community councils.

        Explanation: Meetings between community council leaders and police officers are a primary interaction point. Yet some community leaders have never been invited to resource meetings with officers. And some resource meetings are held infrequently. Neighborhood officers have been abruptly transferred to other districts.

        Recommendations:

        Publicize resource meetings between community leaders and officers and hold them regularly.

        Transfer neighborhood officers only with sufficient lead time to allow a smooth transition to a new officer.

Monitoring And Auditing

        The CPD should centralize all information regarding uses of force by its officers, and take steps to ensure that all of its commanders fully use this information.

        Explanation: While some general summary statistics regarding use of force are reported in an executive summary, specific trend data — such as citizen complaints broken down by type or use of force by shift — is not regularly available to or used by district commanders.

        Recommendations:

        Trend data must be available to supervisors.

        Make clear to supervisors it is their responsibility to monitor this information to ensure officers are using force appropriately.

        The CPD should centralize all of its disciplinary information regarding officers.

        Explanation: Complete disciplinary records of officers are difficult to review because they are kept in several different locations, and are reportedly not organized or automated in ways conducive to retrieval.

        Recommendations:

        All disciplinary information must be centralized and automated.

        The CPD should expand its review of firearm discharges by its officers.

        Explanation: Self explanatory.

        Recommendations:

        Incorporate a cross-section of police division personnel in reviews of firearms discharges, for compliance with policy, tactical and training implications.

        Consider formally designating a board to review in the investigative files and report to the police chief. Could include high ranking command staff, training academy officials and a legal staff member.

        The CPD should institute risk management and audit systems that track a wider variety of conduct over a longer period of time.

        Explanation: The division's risk management system currently flags officers who repeatedly engage in a certain type of conduct over a specific time period. Typically, the time period is one year. The police division is working on a new, more expansive system.

        Recommendations:

        In divising the new system, account for shootings, uses of force, citizen complaints, criminal charges against officers, civil suits alleging officer misconduct and disciplinary action.

        A one-year time frame is too short.

        Track all citizen complaints.

        The CPD should standardize its auditing practices, and increase the scope and frequency of its audits.

        Explanation: The police division's inspections section does not have standardized procedures or checklists for conducting audits, such as tracking citizen complaints. It also does not conduct them regularly.

        Recommendations:

        Standardize procedures.

        Conduct audits on a regular, fixed schedule.

        Increase the scope of audits, monitoring things such as frequency with which officers charge civilians with resisting arrest, assaulting an officer and obstruction of justice.

        Hold regular meetings with local prosecutors to identify problems in officer performance.

        The CPD should increase its crime analysis capabilities.

        Explanation: The police division uses a crime analysis system that tracks calls for service and certain types of crimes.

        Recommendations:

        Track additional types of police activity, such as pursuits and citizen complaints.

        Add personnel to the crime analysis staff.

        The CPD should require its officers to use mobile video cameras in more circumstances, supervisors should increase their review of such tapes, and the tapes should be used by supervisors for more purposes.

        Explanation: Mobile vehicle cameras automatically record when the police vehicle's emergency lights are activated. The cameras are only manually activated when operating in emergency mode for traffic stops and pursuits. Supervisors review tapes at random for general training.

        Recommendations:

        Increase the number of situations in which cameras are required — prisoner transports, for example.

        Use tapes to correct or discipline officers.

        Retain and preserve tapes beyond current 30-day retention.

        The CPD should upgrade its communications technology, ensure that officers responding to calls for service have information about locations to which they respond, and provide more guidance to its telephone operators about the information they should gather from callers.

        Explanation: The police division faces considerable communication technology challenges that affect operations. Telephone operators don't get enough information about on-going special operations, which affects the dispensing of information to officers at a scene.

        Recommendations:

        CPD should have a separate technology budget so that it doesn't come at the expense of other programs.

        Upgrade technology as quickly as possible.

        Better communication with telephone operators.

        Give telephone operators more guidance on questions to ask in particular situations.

Training

        The CPD should provide adequate use-of-force decision-making training, both for recruits and experienced officers, and more in-service training in weapons use. Commended the training academy for recently adding a new class in this area and for its commitment to constant re-evaluation of the curriculum.

        Explanation: Training in this decision-making should include both training to use only reasonable force and in tactics that can eliminate the need for an officer to use force.

        Recommendations:

        Training should focus on discussions with officers about scenarios, preferably real ones that have happened in Cincinnati.

        More in-service training for experienced officers, specifically night and stress training.

        Every training session should include discussions on how to make use-of-force decisions.

        The CPD should institute formal mechanisms for training academy staff to receive information regarding incidents that may raise training issues.

        Explanation: Self-explanatory.

        Recommendations:

        Develop this reporting mechanism so trainers can better prepare officers, and be more likely to prevent future incidents and lawsuits.

        The CPD should provide greater incentives to attract volunteers to be Field Training Officers (FTOs), take additional measures to ensure officers with troubling disciplinary histories are not selected as FTOs, give district commanders greater control over FTOs, and provide the training staff and recruits with a role in the FTO program.

        Explanation: Investigators were concerned that the division has problems getting enough FTOs. Many officers said officers with less-than-stellar reputations were allowed to field-train rookies.

        Recommendations:

        More incentives to attract good FTOS, including more money and priority in extra training.

        Prohibit any officer with significant disciplinary history or a significant number of founded complaints from being an FTO.

        Allow district commanders to remove any FTOs they have concerns about.

        CPD should form additional units to review and audit training.

       Explanation: Self-explanatory.

        Recommendations:

        Institute curriculum review unit within the academy, including officers at all levels and city lawyers.

        Create an academy audit committee to ensure that what's taught at the academy comports with division policy.

        The CPD should have more exposure to the policies, practices and procedures of other police departments.

        Explanation: Greater exposure would give the department more access to new ideas and innovations.

        Recommendations:

        Send more officers to more and different conferences.

        Ask outside agencies to review and evaluate CPD policies.

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