Short answer: you can. The Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department accepts complaints about its deputies from anyone, in any language, including anonymously and from third parties, and the County's Office of Inspector General takes them as well. But a complaint is a statement to the agency you may later sue. The Department writes it down on a Service Comment Report and keeps it for five years. It does not preserve any legal right, and it does not pause any deadline. For anyone who may bring a claim, whether and when to file is a real decision, and it is generally sensible to talk with a lawyer before giving an account to the other side. This guide explains what a complaint does, why it can matter to a lawsuit, and how the three County channels work.
A complaint and a lawsuit are separate tracks
A complaint asks the Department to examine its own employee. The Department's Manual of Policy and Procedures, section 3-04/010.00, sorts public comments into three categories, and defines a personnel complaint as "an external allegation of misconduct, either a violation of law or Department policy, against any member of the Department." Under section 3-04/010.25, the unit commander decides what happens to it, and the options are internal: a criminal investigation by the Internal Criminal Investigations Bureau, an administrative investigation by the Internal Affairs Bureau, a unit-level administrative investigation, or a service review. No money, no order, and no finding that binds a court.
A lawsuit does not depend on a complaint. In Patsy v. Board of Regents, 457 U.S. 496 (1982), the United States Supreme Court concluded "that exhaustion of state administrative remedies should not be required as a prerequisite to bringing an action pursuant to § 1983." State-law claims for money against the County have their own precondition, a written government claim, and that clock runs from the incident whether or not a complaint is open. See How to File a Government Claim Against the City or County of Los Angeles and What Are the Deadlines to Sue Police in California?
Why the statement matters
The Department's rules turn a complaint into a written, retained account. Section 3-04/010.05 directs the watch commander to "initiate a service review by immediately interviewing any member of the public who, whether in person or by telephone, offers a comment," and to "immediately complete a Watch Commander's Service Comment Report form." The watch commander writes a synopsis that "is transferred verbatim into the data base," and "any written account provided by the member of the public shall be securely attached." For telephone complaints, the watch commander "shall field the call on a taped line if equipment is in place to do so." Section 3-04/010.30 sets the retention period for Service Comment Reports at five years and requires "the attendant documentation (original letter of complaint, reference paperwork, audio/video tapes)" to be filed with the final report at the Professional Standards Division.
In a later lawsuit, that record is within reach. Under Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(1), parties "may obtain discovery regarding any nonprivileged matter that is relevant to any party's claim or defense and proportional to the needs of the case," and information "need not be admissible in evidence to be discoverable." Under Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d)(2)(A), a statement offered against an opposing party that "was made by the party in an individual or representative capacity" is not hearsay. In plain terms, what a complainant tells the Department can be read back to them in a deposition or at trial, and any difference between that early account and later testimony, however innocent, becomes something to explain. An account given the day after an injury, without the incident report, the body-camera footage, or a lawyer, is rarely complete. That is the reason the decision deserves thought, not a reason to stay silent.
A complaint can be filed at any time and anonymously. Nothing in the Department's rules requires it to be filed before a lawsuit, and nothing in the lawsuit rules requires it at all. The question is what a statement to the Department adds to or takes from a case, and that depends on the case.
What a complaint can do
The process has real uses. It creates a numbered record that the Department received an allegation: the Department's FAQ says the unit mails "an acknowledgment letter and the green copy of the Watch Commander Service Comment Receipt (WCSCR) form," and section 3-04/010.05 requires the watch commander to give a telephone caller the Service Comment Report number before the call ends. It starts a review. The FAQ describes it this way: "An investigator is assigned," the investigator "collects statements, evidence, and other relevant information," and "the Unit Commander reviews the investigation findings and determines whether the complaint is substantiated." The FAQ also describes voluntary conflict resolution between the complainant and the employee, which "must be agreed to by both."
What the complainant learns at the end is a letter. The FAQ says the unit "will mail a final outcome letter (via US mail) to the complainant/reporting party summarizing the results of the complaint review." Section 3-04/010.25 requires that letter to tell the complainant whom to contact if dissatisfied. The same section limits when a complaint may be marked "Exonerated": only where "clear and convincing evidence" shows one of three listed things, such as that "the employee was not personally involved," and every Exonerated result is reviewed by the Chief of the Professional Standards Division.
If the outcome is unsatisfying, the Department's FAQ lists two steps: ask "the captain or supervising officer at the unit where the complaint was filed" for "an explanation or a second review," and ask the Office of Inspector General to "review how the complaint was handled."
Timing
Section 3-04/010.05 says Watch Commander Service Comment Reports "shall be completed within 30 calendar days and forwarded to division," and that unit commanders shall ensure the report "is completed and forwarded to the Discovery Unit within 60 days of receipt of the initial complaint." Those are the Department's internal deadlines for its paperwork. The complaint process has its own schedule; it never changes the deadlines for a government claim or a federal lawsuit described in the two guides linked above.
The three places to file
The Sheriff's Department. Use the online form at lasd.org/file-a-complaint, call 1-800-698-TALK (8255), go to any Sheriff's station and ask for the Watch Commander, book a virtual appointment with a supervisor through the same page, or mail the Department's complaint form to LA County Sheriff, Commendations & Complaints, P.O. Box 327, Monterey Park, CA 91754. No form is required, and the Department says a complaint may be submitted "in your native language" and that it "accepts all varieties of complaints, including anonymous and third-party complaints." Under section 3-04/010.05, a watch commander "shall not require anyone who has responded to the unit in person, or made contact by phone, to submit a commendation or complaint in writing at a later time." Keep the Service Comment Report number. Complaints by people in custody about jail incidents follow the Custody Division's separate grievance process.
The Office of Inspector General. The County's Inspector General takes complaints at oig.lacounty.gov/file-a-complaint, and its site lists (213) 974-6100, InspectorGeneral@oig.lacounty.gov, and 500 W. Temple Street, Suite 383, Los Angeles. Filing here does not keep the statement away from the Department. The complaint page says: "Unless you choose to remain anonymous, your name and complaint will be forwarded to the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department for investigation. If you do not allow us to share your complaint, it will not be thoroughly investigated. However, we will evaluate your complaint in order to identify systemic issues within the Sheriff's Department." The Civilian Oversight Commission's site adds that the Inspector General "has the authority to undertake an inquiry and audit or monitor the situation, and they can investigate specific instances only in special circumstances."
The Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission. The Commission, authorized by Chapter 3.79 of the Los Angeles County Code, receives complaints "through e-mail, over the phone, in person, or by mail correspondence," and at its meetings and town halls. It does not investigate them. Its site says: "Since the Commission has no investigative authority, the Commission works closely with the Office of Inspector General (oig) to process these complaints," and "All complaints are forwarded to the OIG. Complaints are then forwarded to the Sheriff's Department for investigation, which can be monitored by Inspector General staff." It also notes that "Anonymous complaints are not usually able to be investigated." What the Commission adds is a public forum: a complaint raised at a meeting is heard by the body that reports on the Department to the Board of Supervisors.
Before you decide
The practical question is not whether a complaint is allowed; it always is. It is whether an account given to the Department now helps or hurts what you may later need to prove. People who are considering a claim often ask a lawyer that question first, then file, file with a lawyer's help, or hold off, depending on the answer. For how to obtain the video of the incident, see How to Get Police Body Camera Footage in California. For complaints about an LAPD officer, see Should You File a Complaint Against an LAPD Officer If You Might Sue? Questions about a specific incident can be sent through the contact form.
Sources
- Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, "File a Complaint" (online form, phone, stations, mail, virtual appointment, Inspector General)
- Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, "FAQ for Filing a Complaint or Submitting a Commendation" (acknowledgment, what happens after filing, outcome letter, conflict resolution, requesting a review)
- Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, "Public Complaint Policy"
- Manual of Policy and Procedures, section 3-04/010.00, Department Service Reviews (the three categories of public comment)
- Manual of Policy and Procedures, section 3-04/010.05, Procedures for Department Service Reviews (interview, Service Comment Report, taped line, 30 and 60 days)
- Manual of Policy and Procedures, section 3-04/010.10, Acknowledgment of Receipt of Public Input
- Manual of Policy and Procedures, section 3-04/010.25, Personnel Complaints (the unit commander's options, the Exonerated result, the letter to the complainant)
- Manual of Policy and Procedures, section 3-04/010.30, Retention of Service Comment Reports (five years; attendant documentation)
- County of Los Angeles Office of Inspector General, "File a Complaint" (forwarding to the Sheriff's Department; anonymous complaints; contact details)
- Los Angeles County Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission, "What We Do" (complaints and commendations; the process; the Inspector General's role)
- Los Angeles County Sheriff Civilian Oversight Commission (authorization under County Code Chapter 3.79; meetings and public comment)
- Patsy v. Board of Regents of Florida, 457 U.S. 496 (1982) (no exhaustion of state administrative remedies before a section 1983 action)
- Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(b)(1) (scope of discovery)
- Federal Rule of Evidence 801(d)(2) (an opposing party's own statement is not hearsay)