Citizen Complaint Commendation Process

A complaint may be made by any citizen. Individuals making complaints may be requested to appear in person; however, even anonymous complaints will receive appropriate investigation.

A complaint may be submitted to any supervisor or Command Officer of the Department. Normal business hours are 8:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Commendation or Complaint Form

Many Complaints can be satisfactorily resolved by a visit or a phone call to the on-duty supervisor, usually a Lieutenant or Captain. Supervisors are expected to resolve complaints at their level, when possible and in a fair and impartial manner. If the complaint concerns an arrest or other court-related matters that have not been adjudicated, the supervisor may be unable to resolve certain legal issues pending the decision of the appropriate court.

Interpreters are in place to assist non-English speaking individuals or disabled person when registering complaints.

Office of Professional Standards

The goal of the Office of Professional Standards is to preserve the integrity of the Marshal's Department. Fairness and justice are assured by utilizing an impartial investigation and review process of all assigned complaints. A relationship between deputies and the public, based on confidence and trust, is essential to effective law enforcement. Deputies must be free to exercise their best judgment and initiate action in a reasonable, lawful, and impartial manner, without fear of reprisal. However, they must at the same time be mindful of the rights of all people even under difficult circumstances.

The Office of Professional Standards reviews supervisory investigations and conducts an independent investigation into more serious allegations. A report is prepared, which includes statements from the complainant, the accused, and all witnesses. The completed report also includes a narrative summary of the events, and a finding of facts, as determined by the statements of those involved.

Complainants will be notified in writing of the disposition of formal complaint by the Office of Professional Standards.

Options and Procedures

A complainant may lodge a complaint in any of the following manners depending upon the nature of the complaint.

• File electronically at the link at the bottom of this page.
• Telephone the deputy's supervisor or any on-duty supervisor at 404-612-4451
• Send in the U.S. Mail.
• Appear in person in the Fulton County Marshal's Department and speak to any on-duty supervisor if the complaint can be resolved at that level.
• Present the complaint in writing, if a formal complaint is being filed.

The complaint may initially be investigated by the employee's supervisor. The supervisor's report of findings will be forwarded to the employee's Division Commander. The Division Commander is responsible for completing the investigation or referring it to the Office of Professional Standards for investigation if the nature of the complaint warrants investigation by the Office of Professional Standards. The completed investigation is reviewed by the Marshal and the complainant is then notified in writing of the outcome of all formal complaints by the Office of Professional Standards.

Bias Based Profiling                                                                                                                                                                       

It is the policy of Fulton County Marshal’s Department to prohibit the practice of enforcement profiling, or any other discriminatory practice, by employees. Therefore, law enforcement actions, including, but not limited to, searches, seizures, stops and frisks of an individual, vehicle stops, arrests, applications of force, field and criminal investigations, citations and the initiation of forfeiture proceedings, will not be based solely upon an individual’s race, color, ethnicity, religion, socioeconomic status, disability, age, gender, or sexual orientation.

Generally, complaints fall into two categories:

INFORMAL

Informal complaints may consist of but are not limited to an allegation of:

• Rudeness
• Unfair or improper application law, policy, and procedures.
• Ineffective, inadequate action or failure to take action by a deputy.
• Minor Violations of rules and regulation.

Basically, informal complaints are received verbally and can be resolved quickly.

FORMAL

Formal complaints are considered more serious and usually consist of allegations of:

• Excessive Force
• Violations of Civil Rights
• Criminal Activity by the Deputy
• Bias Based Profiling
• Person shot/killed by Deputy
• Discharging of Firearm

Dispositions

The dispositions of complaint are classified as follows:

Unfounded:   The investigation indicates that the acts complained did not occur, or did not involve an employee of the Marshal's Department.

Exonerated:   The incident complained of did occur but the actions of the accused were justified, lawful, and proper.

Not Sustained:   The investigation failed to discover sufficient evidence to clearly prove of disprove the allegation(s) made in the complaint.

Sustained:   The investigation disclosed sufficient evidence to clearly prove the allegation(s) made in the complaint.

Any of the following actions can be recommended for a sustained case:

• Training
• Counseling (verbal or written)
• Written Reprimand
• Suspension
• Demotion
• Termination of Employment

Employees may appeal a suspension, demotion or dismissal.

Commendation Process

The Marshal’s Department also gladly accepts commendations for when an employee or the Department, as a whole, provides excellent service.  A commendation can be filed using one of the previously listed methods in the OPTIONS AND PROCEDURES section above.

To File Electronically

Below is the Fulton County Marshal's Department Online Personnel Commendation or Complaint Form. Please fill this form out completely pertaining to the service received from one of our departmental personnel.

Commendation or Complaint Form