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As we recognize the rights of all citizens, citizens should recognize
that Florida Highway Patrol employees must be free to exercise
their best judgment in taking necessary and reasonable action
in the performance of their duties without fear of reprisal.
Specific complaint procedures have been adopted by the Patrol
to ensure that fair and proper action is taken when an employee
is accused of misconduct. This also protects employees from unwarranted
or false accusations. Additionally, this system provides a means
of identifying and correcting deficiencies in policies, procedures,
supervision, or training.
Upon receipt of a complaint, the troop or appropriate district
commander will send a letter to the complainant acknowledging
receipt of the complaint. The troop or district commander will
assign an investigator who may conduct a preliminary inquiry by
telephone, by mail, or in person to clarify specific issues.
Complaints of a routine nature will generally be assigned to the
employee's supervisor or commander. More serious or complex matters
will normally be investigated by the FHP Bureau of Investigations.
The investigators will attempt to contact the complainant, the
accused employee, and witnesses; examine physical evidence; review
reports and records; and thoroughly document the facts surrounding
the incident.
The investigator's report will be submitted to the troop or district
commander upon completion.
Disciplinary action will be initiated when deemed appropriate.
If you have any questions concerning these procedures you may
contact the local Florida Highway Patrol Station in your area, Monday through Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
Society has a right to expect that those who are vested with the
responsibility of enforcing the laws of this State, as well as
other employees, will adhere to an appropriate standard of professional
and individual conduct necessary to maintain the respect, confidence
and cooperation of its citizens.
Any citizen or any Patrol employee may make a complaint. Normally,
the person most directly affected by the alleged conduct should
be the person to complain. As an example, a complaint of rudeness
to a driver should be made by the driver, not a passenger in the
vehicle. Exceptions would include a parent filing a complaint
for a minor child or other similar situations.
Complaints may be made in person, in writing, or by telephone.
Complaints should concisely and specifically describe the conduct
of the employee that was found to be improper. Rather than say
the employee was rude, explain how the employee was rude by providing
the specific words or phrases, describing the employee's tone
of voice, or citing particular acts of rudeness. Identify the
employee as much as possible. This can be accomplished by providing
the employee's name, badge number, patrol vehicle license number,
and the date, time, and location of the incident. If available,
include the names, addresses, and telephone numbers of all witnesses.
All Patrol employees are required to accept complaints if no supervisor
is immediately available to do so. Most complaints are directed
to a local supervisor, local troop, district or subdistrict headquarters, or to Florida Highway Patrol General Headquarters in Tallahassee, Florida.
Complaints may be made at any time at any FHP station in Florida. Additionally, complaints should be made within a reasonable time after the alleged misconduct occurred to help ensure evidence is still available and recollections of the incident are fresh.
The complaint resolution process was established to identify alleged
misconduct by Patrol employees. This encompasses violations of
laws or Patrol rules and regulations. A disagreement with a policy
or law or the application of a policy or law is not considered
a "complaint", and will normally be referred to
the commander most directly involved with the policy or law in
question for response.
Any charges or legal issues must be decided by the appropriate
court. The investigation of your complaint will focus on the
conduct of the employee, not the charges against you. Therefore,
the charges against you are a separate issue which you will have
to resolve in court. Employees are prohibited from retaliating
against you, either in the present case or in the future, for
lodging a complaint against them.
Supervisors are assigned to conduct an inquiry when an anonymous
complaint is received to determine if any basis exists for the
complaint; however, inquiries are less likely to reveal all the
facts surrounding an alleged incident when the investigator is
deprived of the opportunity to contact the complainant. We strongly
encourage persons having legitimate concerns to sign the complaint
form and fully cooperate with the investigating officer.
Other than those complaints which are immediately resolved, every
complaint of misconduct by an employee will be investigated.
Some complaints may be resolved at the time they are made. For
example, an explanation that the law requires (or allows) an employee
to perform certain acts may satisfy the complainant. Such complaints
may be marked resolved and require no further investigation; however,
the complaint form will still be forwarded to the troop or district
commander to be maintained on file.