Report 2021-105 Recommendation 38 Responses
Report 2021-105: Law Enforcement Departments Have Not Adequately Guarded Against Biased Conduct (Release Date: April 2022)
Recommendation #38 To: San Bernardino Police Department
To ensure that it adequately investigates possible biased conduct and implements effective corrective actions, San Bernardino Police should ensure it has implemented policies or procedures by January 2023 that require that misconduct investigations formally analyze whether an officer has acted in a biased manner whenever a complainant alleges bias, the facts of the incident indicate bias might have influenced an officer's behavior, or investigators recognize potential indications of bias during other reviews, such as use-of-force reviews.
Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From September 2023
The Department will review for any evidence of bias or lack thereof in every administrative investigation. The Department will document findings in the administrative reports.
- Completion Date: July 2022
California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Fully Implemented
San Bernardino provided excerpts from its Investigations Manual showing that it had added requirements to investigate potential policy violations including explicit and implicit bias regardless of the nature of the allegation, and that this be identified and documented in the findings.
Annual Follow-Up Agency Response From September 2023
The Department will review for any evidence of bias or lack thereof in every administrative investigation. The Department will document findings in the administrative reports.
- Completion Date: July 2022
California State Auditor's Assessment of Annual Follow-Up Status: Fully Implemented
San Bernardino provided excerpts from its Investigations Manual showing that it had added requirements to investigate potential policy violations including explicit and implicit bias regardless of the nature of the allegation, and that this be identified and documented in the findings.
6-Month Agency Response
The Department will review for any evidence of bias or lack thereof in every administrative investigation. The Department will document findings in the administrative reports.
- Completion Date: July 2022
- Response Date: October 2022
California State Auditor's Assessment of 6-Month Status: Pending
San Bernardino Police has not provided documentation showing that it has developed or implemented the policies or procedures that we describe in the recommendation.
- Auditee did not substantiate its claim of full implementation
60-Day Agency Response
In every administrative investigation, the Department will review for any evidence of bias or lack thereof. Findings will be documented in the administrative report.
- Estimated Completion Date: July 2022
- Response Date: June 2022
California State Auditor's Assessment of 60-Day Status: Pending
All Recommendations in 2021-105
Agency responses received are posted verbatim.