The Complaint Goes In. Nothing Comes Out.
Officer Raymond Hollis had been the subject of fourteen use-of-force complaints over a six-year period when he broke the jaw of a handcuffed suspect in an interrogation room. The incident was captured on facility surveillance cameras. Four witnesses corroborated the victim's account.
The internal affairs investigation concluded that Hollis had acted "within department policy." He received no discipline. He was promoted to sergeant eight months later.
This is not an unusual story. It is, according to GripeNation's analysis of more than 40,000 misconduct records obtained from six major U.S. cities, a statistically representative one.
The Numbers Tell the Story
GripeNation analyzed internal affairs disposition records spanning 2014 to 2024 from the police departments of six cities with populations exceeding 500,000. We requested the records under state and local freedom of information laws; four of the six cities required legal challenges before producing complete data.
The findings:
- 92.3% of civilian complaints resulted in a finding of "exonerated," "unfounded," or "not sustained"
- In fewer than 2% of cases involving video evidence of alleged misconduct did the officer receive any formal discipline
- Officers with 10 or more prior complaints were sustained at roughly the same rate as officers with no complaint history
- Terminations for misconduct represented 0.4% of all complaint dispositions — and of those, more than half were later reversed through union grievance processes
"The system is not broken," said one attorney who has handled dozens of police misconduct civil cases. "It is working exactly as designed. It is designed to produce exonerations."
How Internal Investigations Work — and Why They Don't
In most U.S. police departments, misconduct allegations are investigated by the department's own internal affairs division. Investigators are fellow officers. The standard of evidence required for a sustained finding is typically higher than for a criminal conviction. The officer under investigation has the right to review the complaint and all witness statements before being interviewed.
In some jurisdictions, officers are not required to be interviewed by internal affairs investigators at all — and when they are, statements made during compelled interviews cannot be used in criminal proceedings.
Union contracts in several cities we examined include provisions that require complaints older than six months to be automatically dismissed, that limit the hours during which an officer can be compelled to submit to questioning, and that mandate the destruction of sustained disciplinary records after specified time periods.
"You've built a system where the accused reviews the evidence before giving a statement, where their colleagues conduct the investigation, where the records disappear even when something is sustained, and where the union can appeal every outcome," said a former civilian oversight board member who resigned after concluding the board had no real authority. "What result would you expect from that system?"
The Cost to Residents
The six cities in our analysis collectively paid out more than $380 million in civil lawsuit settlements related to police misconduct between 2014 and 2024 — roughly $38 million per year. In not a single case that resulted in a settlement of over $1 million did the involved officer face any internal discipline.
The money comes from city general funds — the same budgets that fund schools, libraries, and road repairs. In no case was an officer required to contribute to the settlement.
What Reform Has Looked Like
Some cities have moved toward independent civilian oversight. The results are mixed. Several oversight bodies have found themselves with investigative authority but no subpoena power, no ability to compel officer testimony, and no enforcement mechanism for their recommendations.
In one city we studied, the civilian oversight board sustained a finding against an officer that the department's own internal affairs division had exonerated. The department declined to impose discipline. The board had no recourse.
"Oversight without authority is theater," said the board's former executive director. "It makes everyone feel better without changing anything."
True accountability, researchers and advocates say, requires: independent investigators with subpoena power; elimination of contract provisions that shield officer records; and removal of statutes of limitations on misconduct complaints. None of the six cities we analyzed have enacted all three.
Do you have internal documents, records, or firsthand accounts of police misconduct investigations that didn't add up? Contact GripeNation through our encrypted tip portal.