It is the policy of the Camden County Sheriff’s Office Internal Affairs Bureau to accept and investigate all complaints of alleged officer misconduct or wrongdoing from any citizen or agency employee.
The Internal Affairs Unit can be reached at (856)225-5480
Citizens Complaint Information Sheet
To file an internal affairs complaint with the Camden County Sheriff’s Office, e-mail the Citizens Report Form to Internal Affairs at ia@sheriffcc.com.
Citizens Report Form – Spanish
It is not required that you provide your full name.
Policy Links:
Reports:
The 4 A’s of Internal Affairs
- ANYONE – Any individual must be permitted to file an Internal Affairs complaint. It can be a victim, a friend of the victim, a parent, a juvenile (with or without parents), an illegal alien (we are not permitted to ask about immigration status) or it can be anonymous. ANYONE means ANYONE.
- ANY WAY – An Internal Affairs complaint can be filed in ANY WAY. It could be filed by phone, by letter, written on a napkin, in person… Whatever is best for the person filing. We cannot make someone show up in person or swear the statement to initiate the complaint process.
- ANY TIME – A complaint must be taken regardless of the hour or day of the week. At no time should a complaint be told to return later, even if the IA officer is unavailable. ANY law enforcement officer or civilian employee must take a complaint.
- ANYTHING – As long as a complaint has sufficient factual information, the complaint must be investigated. It is predicated upon the victim’s view of the situation.
Civilian Complaint Information
(For additional languages please use the following link:
The Camden County Sheriff’s Office is committed to providing law enforcement services that are fair, effective, and impartially applied. It is in the best interests of everyone that your complaint about the performance of an individual officer is resolved fairly and promptly. The Camden County Sheriff’s Office has formal procedures for investigating your complaint. These procedures are designed to ensure fairness and protect the rights of both citizens and law enforcement officers:
- Reports or Complaints of officer/employee misconduct must be accepted from any person, including anonymous sources, at any time.
- Complaints shall be accepted regardless of age, race, ethnicity, religion, gender, sexual orientation, disability, or immigration status of the complaining party.
- Your complaint will be sent to an internal affairs detective who will conduct a thorough and objective investigation.
- You might be asked to help in the investigation by giving a detailed statement about what happened or providing other important information or documents.
- All complaints against law enforcement officers are thoroughly investigated. You will be kept informed of the status of the investigation and its ultimate outcome, if requested, and you provide contact information. The exact discipline imposed is confidential, but you will be advised of the ultimate finding, namely:a. Sustained: A preponderance of the evidence shows an officer violated any law; regulation; directive, guideline, policy, or procedure issued by the Camden County Sheriff’s Office; agency protocol; standing operating procedure; rule; or training.b. Unfounded: A preponderance of the evidence shows that the alleged misconduct did not occur.c. Exonerated: A preponderance of the evidence shows the alleged conduct did occur but did not violate any law; regulation; directive, guideline, policy, or procedure issued by the Camden County Sheriff’s Office; agency protocol; standing operating procedure; rule; or training.d. Not Sustained: The investigation failed to disclose sufficient evidence to clearly prove or disprove the allegation.
- If our investigation shows that a crime might have been committed, the Camden County Prosecutor’s Office will be notified. You might be asked to testify in court.
- If our investigation results in an officer being charged with a violation of Sheriff’s Office rules, you might be asked to testify in an office hearing.
- If our investigation shows that the complaint is unfounded or that the officer acted properly, the matter will be closed.
- Internal affairs investigations are confidential, and all disciplinary hearings shall be closed to the public unless the defendant officer requests an open hearing.
- You may call Camden County Sheriff’s Internal Affairs Office of Accountability and Compliance at (856)225-5508 or emailia@sheriffcc.com with any additional information or any questions about the case.
* * * LAW ENFORCEMENT MUST AVOID ANY LANGUAGE THAT IS DESIGNED TO DISSUADE SOMEONE FROM FILING A COMPLAINT.