POLICY

The integrity of the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office depends on the personal integrity of each employee and their service to citizens. The Sheriff’s Office relies heavily on the confidence and trust of the citizens we serve. It is the policy of the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office to recognize citizen commendations and to investigate every citizen complaint or allegation of employee misconduct. The Sheriff’s Office shall maintain a quality control system and inspectional process that strives to continually improve the delivery of law enforcement services to the citizens of Laurens County.

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Complaint Processing

1. All complaints regarding Agency members and all complaints that pertain to Agency policies and procedures will be documented and investigated. Complaints from citizens will be documented using a citizen’s complaint form.

2. Complaints may be made in person at the Laurens County Sheriff’s Office. Anonymous complaints or complaints from citizens who wish their names to be held in confidence will be accepted only if authorized by the sheriff. Complaints from third parties will be accepted only if authorized by the sheriff.

3. Personnel in receipt of a complaint against the agency or any of its members are directed to forward the complainant to the applicable supervisor. When the indicated supervisor is not available (e.g. after normal business hours), the complainant will be referred to the appropriate on-duty supervisor.

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4. Should the complainant refuse such referrals, all available information is to be recorded by the receiving member and forwarded to the appropriate on-duty supervisor.
5. The supervisor receiving a complaint will complete appropriate documentation (complaint tracking form) and initiate the forwarding of the information through the chain of command by the next business day.

6. The on-duty supervisor may attempt to resolve minor complaints during the initial contact with the complainant. In such a case, the tracking form should be sent through the Chain-of-Command, along with a Complaint Disposition form showing the status of the complaint. Any associated disciplinary action should also be forwarded.

7. If the complaint is not made in person, the party responsible for investigating the complaint should contact the complainant by telephone, mail or e-mail advising them that the complaint has been received and explaining the investigation process.

8. Allegations that are likely to have an adverse impact upon the Agency (e.g. use of deadly force) will be reported immediately to the Sheriff.

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For additional information regarding filing a complaint, please contact Captain Robert Wilkie at rwilkie@lcsosc.com