Major Albert Guerra

The Internal Affairs Division has the primary responsibility of preserving the integrity of the City of Miami and the Miami Police Department, as well as ensuring the rights of all citizens within its jurisdiction. It also safeguards departmental members from false misconduct allegations. The Internal Affairs Section consists of five units: Administration, Anti-Corruption, General Investigations, Body Worn Cameras (BWC), and Professional Compliance, each with distinct roles and responsibilities.

A citizen can file a formal complaint by letter, telephone, or in person at any of the listed locations. The complaint can be taken by any police supervisor or made directly to the Internal Affairs Section. All complaints against employees of the Miami Police Department are investigated and/or documented. An annual statistical summary of all Internal Affairs investigations is available to the public in the Internal Affairs office.

Once the complaint is received, it will be forwarded to the Internal Affairs Section where it will be processed and classified. Once classified, the complaint will be forwarded to the appropriated division for investigation. The Internal Affairs Section will monitor all investigations. If a crime has been alleged, the Miami-Dade State Attorney’s Office will be contacted to determine if criminal charges should be filed. You will be notified via certified letter who will be responsible for the investigation.

During the investigation, statements will be taken from you, the witness(es), and the subject employee(s). All reasonable leads will be investigated. Employee investigations remain confidential until finalized. No participant including complainants, investigated employees, investigators, or witnesses will disclose any information regarding the investigation until conclusion of the investigation. The complexity of the case will determine the amount of time needed to complete the investigation (days, weeks, or months).

Once the investigation is completed, you will be notified via certified letter as to the result of the investigation. There are five possible findings:

Exonerated - The investigation clearly and factually shows that the alleged complaint(s) did not occur;
or the investigation clearly and factually shows that the alleged complaint(s) did not constitute any violation of policy, orders, or laws and the employee(s) are exonerated;
or the investigation clearly and factually shows that the employee(s) used necessary force in accordance with policy, orders, and law and their action(s) are justified.

Not Sustained - The investigation cannot clearly and factually show that the alleged complaint(s) occurred, and the investigation cannot clearly and factually show that the alleged complaint(s) did not occur.

Sustained - The investigation clearly and factually shows that the alleged complaint(s) constitute violations of policy, orders, and/or law.

Unsupported - A complaint has been filed. An investigation cannot proceed due to insufficient information, and/or the complainant cannot be contacted. The case may be reopened at a future date, when new or additional information is received.

Withdrawn - Complainant voluntarily elected to withdraw his/her complaint.

If an employee is found to have acted improperly, the appropriate disciplinary action will be taken. Although we cannot guarantee that you will be satisfied with the outcome, we do guarantee that your inquiry/complaint will be thoroughly investigated. Should you have any questions, please contact the lnternal Investigations Division at (305) 835-2000.