To anyone who has been so lucky as to be the subject of a Police Internal Affairs Investigation, this comes as no suprise. There are many things that Internal Affairs Investigators can and will do to accomplish a set goal.
Keep in mind that Internal Affairs does not have to prove anything. They merely need to raise enough question to support their assumputions. This is not a court of law. The investigators are internal, therefore, being paid to accomplish the goals of the Chief; not necessarily to serve justice. Sometimes, there is no justice when an agency is investigating themselves. Are you kidding me? Let's have an agency investigate an officer involved shooting when if they rule that the officer is at fault, the agency will have to pay out tons of money to a citizen; perhaps even a criminal? Please.
Internal Affairs - BE AWARE.
Many of you, who have never been the subject of an investigation, do not realize that ALL documents, tape recordings, interview recordings, interview transcripts, and any other form of evidence used to make their outcome determination MUST be released to the individual who was under investigation. This means, when co-workers are being interviewd and want to embellish on the opportunity to be a tattle-tail or to vent about issues that are probably not related to the ultimate goal of the investigation, everything they said and did during the interview - can and will be released to the person being spoken about. Often, this aspect is not being taken into consideration during interviews. Co-workers being interviewed believe their conversations are private, simply because Internal Affairs swears THEM to secrecy. This vow does not go both ways. The officials must release the statements and evidence to the accused, at the conclusion of the investigation.
Win, Lose, or Draw, there is nothing confidential about an Internal Affairs Investigation. Keep this in mind when you are called into an interview. There may be a time when YOU are the accused. There may be a time when YOU hope that your co-workers do not use your misery to benefit themselves and their own objectives. There may be a time when you are WRONGLY accused. Picture that.
Imagine that YOU are being accused of something that is not accurate. However, when your co-workers are interviewed, they make a mockery out of your work ethics, your dedication, and your stability as an employee for no other reason than because it is entertaining.
Think twice about what you say in Internal Affairs. It is not confidential. It can come back to bite you. Choose your words and what you are willing to risk for the sake of entertainment. There will be a time when your job or performance is being questioned. You will hope that your investigation does not turn into a circus of assumptions and weak allegations.
One thing about Internal Affairs - After all, being an internal mechanism, they do not have to play fair. As with other interrogations with actual criminals, Internal Affairs does not have to tell the truth to you while they are trying to conduct their investigation. BE-AWARE. Do not fall for any false sense of security. The investigators are trained to observe your reactions and body language. They may even toy with you out of SHEAR SPORT. Don't kid yourself.
If you do ever encounter an Internal Affairs interview, be very careful about what you say and who you accuse of what, because every statement you make can and will be exposed in a courtroom. You can very certainly be implicated in a wrongful termination law suit. If the information you provided Internal Affairs in part or in full, had anything at all to do with the ultimate decision made on the accused, you can be professionally and personally liable.
Where will the Internal Affairs investigators be when YOU are on the stand in a courtroom appeal? They certainly won't be holding your hand. They will say that they made their decision based on the information YOU provided them. The Internal Affairs Investigators will be off the hook, and YOU may be left holding ALL of the agency's liability on your shoulders. This, ultimately, could cost YOU your job.
Cops
15 years ago
