Internal Affairs/ Commendation

CALEA ACCREDITATION PUBLIC COMMENT PORTAL

We invite you to take a moment to click this link Accreditation Public Comment Portal and provide comments regarding Trotwood Police Department's compliance with CALEA standards, community engagement, delivery of public safety services, and overall candidacy for accredited status. These comments can be in the form of commendations or concerns. The overall intent of the accreditation process is to provide our agency with information to support continuous improvement, as well as foster the pursuit of professional excellence. 

Comments will be reviewed as necessary by CALEA staff during annual reviews and site-based assessments. Each comment will also be delivered to the Chief of Police for awareness purposes.

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The mission of the Internal Affairs Division is to accept, register and investigate complaints of alleged misconduct by an employee of the Department in an objective and impartial manner to ensure justice and fairness toward Department employees and the citizens of Trotwood. The purpose of Internal Affairs is to ensure professional conduct by all Department employees and to maintain a high level of overall integrity for the Department. The Trotwood Police Department is concerned about the level of Police Service provided to the community by our members. There will be times when citizens observe police conduct that they feel needs further explanation. Citizens must be able to bring legitimate concerns regarding police actions to the attention of the department for review. Our supervisors are happy to discuss your concerns and explain a member’s actions in a given situation. The Trotwood Police Department will investigate all complaints, alleged or suspected, either signed or anonymous, that are made against the department or its members.

COMMITMENT TO SERVICE

The Trotwood Police Department is committed to providing the people in our community with quality law enforcement and to treat citizens in a manner that has integrity, professionalism, fairness and compassion. We believe integrity is the basis for community trust and we set high standards for the personal and professional conduct of all our employees. The Department recognizes that occasionally citizens may not be pleased with the police service provided. The nature of the job means that some people will be unhappy: traffic citations are issued; arrests are made; public peace and safety must be maintained. Other times, a misunderstanding causes dissatisfaction; citizens may not always be fully aware of how laws are interpreted and enforced, the authority and discretion granted police officers, or of Department policies and procedures concerning officer conduct. Finally, since police officers are human beings, they can make mistakes, exercise poor judgment, or act in an unprofessional manner. At the Trotwood Police Department, we hold ourselves to high standards of moral, ethical, and professional conduct. Your cooperation helps guarantee that we consistently meet those standards. Any citizen having a question or complaint about police service in our community is invited to contact the Department to bring those concerns to our attention. The following instructions will ensure that your concerns are handled promptly and professionally.

COMMENDING SUPERIOR PERFORMANCE

If you wish to commend the actions of any employee of the Trotwood Police Department, you may ask to speak to the employee’s supervisor to verbally communicate your praise; or write a letter to the Chief of Police explaining your praise. Commendations received by the Chief of Police for any Trotwood Police Department employee will be forwarded to the employee and may be included in their permanent personnel record. Letters of commendation should be mailed to the following address: Chief Erik L. Wilson, Trotwood Police Department, 3035 Olive Rd., Trotwood, OH 45426

HOW TO OFFICIALLY COMMENT OR FILE A COMPLAINT ABOUT A POLICE DEPARTMENT EMPLOYEE OR POLICY: 

Citizens can file a complaint by reporting them either orally or in writing, by telephone or correspondence, either signed or anonymous to any member of the Trotwood Police Department, Office of the City Manager or Other law enforcement agency. Complaints of a more serious nature are forwarded to the Chief of Police to initiate a formal Internal Affairs investigation. Upon completion of the Investigation, the complainant will be notified by Internal Affairs, via registered mail, of the final disposition of the allegation.(No disciplinary action will be imposed against a member of the Trotwood Police Department without a signed, written complaint, from a complainant or witness in accordance with the collective bargaining agreements in Article IX section 6). For more information on the Internal Affairs process, please contact Sergeant Joseph McCrary at 937-854-7218 or email jmccrary@trotwood.org. As part of the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA)  requirements, the Trotwood Police Department must post Internal Affairs Investigation Statistics as part of public information. Listed below is the data from the last five years: 

2023

There were 5 internal investigations for 2023

• 6 police officers were involved
• 2 officers were involved in 2 different investigations
• 2 investigations involved more than 1 officer
• 5 investigations were initiated by citizens
• Of the 5 investigations, 0 were formal, and 5 were informal
• There were no allegations of racial harassment or mistreatment
• 3 investigations were unfounded, 1 investigation was withdrawn, 1 investigation was sustained

2022

There were 7 Internal Investigations for 2022

• 12 police officers were involved
• 2 officers were involved in 2 different investigations
• 8 investigations involved more than 1 officer
• 1 investigation was initiated by the Trotwood Police Department
• 5 investigations were initiated by citizens
• 2 formal investigations and 5 informal investigations
• There were no allegations of racial harassment or mistreatment
• 1 investigation was found to be Improper Conduct, 4 were unfounded, and 2 were not sustained

2021

There were 7 Internal Investigations for 2021

• 8 police officers were involved
• 2 officers were involved in 2 different investigations
• 2 investigations involved more than 1 officer
• 4 investigations were initiated by the Trotwood Police Department
• 3 investigations were initiated by citizens
• 5 formal investigations and 2 informal investigations
• 3 officers were involved in 1 allegation of misconduct
• There were no allegations of racial or sexual harassment or mistreatment
• 2 investigations resulted in 2 resignations, 2 were found to be cleared and justified shootings by police officers, 1 was canceled after being rescinded, by the complainant, 1 was dismissed by the court, and 1 was unfounded after being reviewed by BWC.