(Washington, DC) – The District of Columbia Office of Police Complaints (OPC) and its governing body, the Police Complaints Board (PCB), today released its Fiscal Year 2022 Annual Report.  This report includes information on OPC investigations, policy recommendations and outreach efforts.  

In FY22, OPC received 796 complaints, reflecting a 4% decrease from FY21. The decrease in the number of complaints this fiscal year and in FY21 is likely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which resulted in fewer interactions between community members and Metropolitan Police Department (MPD) and DC Housing Authority Police Department (DCHAPD) officers.

Of the 796 complaints received there were 1,346 allegations of police misconduct reported, a 7% increase from FY21. As in previous years, harassment and language/conduct were the largest categories of allegations with harassment accounting for 50% of the allegations and 25% for language/conduct.

Additionally, emergency legislation passed by the D.C. Council in July 2020 gave OPC the authority to add allegations to a complaint if during the investigation there is evidence of abuse or misuse of police powers. In FY22, the agency added 12 allegations to 11 different complaints and nine of those allegations were for inappropriate language and conduct.

Further, 719 MPD and DCHAPD officers received complaints this fiscal year with 174 receiving more than one complaint. Black officers accounted for 45% of the complaints; White officers, 37%, Hispanic/Latino officers, 11%; Asian officers, 7%; and Multi-Racial and Native American officers less than 1% of all complaints.

The impact of BWCs continues to enhance OPC’s ability to conduct police misconduct investigations. OPC found BWC video relevant in 79% of its cases, a 4% increase from FY21. In addition, OPC continued to monitor MPD’s compliance with BWC and found that 45% of cases investigated had at least one instance of BWC non-compliance, which is a 29% increase from FY21.

The PCB also issued five policy reports and recommendations in FY22. These reports examine and address large-scale concerns about District law enforcement policies, training, or supervision. Since the agency’s inception in 2002, the PCB has issued 66 reports and set of recommendations for police reform.

OPC continued its outreach efforts, conducting and participating in various events throughout the District of Columbia and beyond. The agency led know your rights sessions, participated in panel discussions, and presented on OPC’s mission and function for several groups and organizations.

“The goal every year through our work is to show the community that civilian oversight is necessary and important,” said Michael G. Tobin, OPC’s executive director. “OPC and the PCB are dedicated to improving community trust in our police departments and promoting police accountability.

To view the full report, visit www.policecomplaints.dc.gov.