Quarterly Newsletter
Peace Officer Standards & Accountability Division
Q4 2024
The Peace Officer Standards Accountability Division (POSAD) Quarterly Newsletter is a quarterly status report that informs the California law enforcement community of recent updates, projects, and trainings related to certification and decertification.
Video: Law Enforcement Consultants Dave Peletta, Gerald Fernandez, and Kevin Sherburne answer the top ten frequently asked questions about the decertification process.
Visit the POST YouTube Channel for a direct link to each question.
00:47 - How does a subject officer know if they have an SB 2 case pending with POST?
03:06 - How do agencies or background investigators get information on a case that is being investigated by POST?
04:16 - How long does it take for POST to complete an investigation once it has begun?
05:28 - Can a subject officer review POST's investigate summary and findings once POST’s review is complete?
06:35 - How long does POST retain records for officers who have been the subject of an SB 2 investigation?
07:10 - At what point does and officer's name go on the Peace Officer Certification Actions list on the POST website?
07:57 - What types of communication and notifications can a subject officer expect from POST related to serious misconduct investigations?
11:57 - Does POST just follow what the agency's administrative findings are?
13:08 - If an allegation is frivolous, why should an agency report it to POST?
14:30 - If POST wants to interview several agency employees, does POBR apply? Can a representative attend the interviews?
16:08 - Contact us
ADDRESS OF RECORD STATISTICS
Total Active, Separated, or Retired Peace Officers
- Total Addresses of Records: 29,655
- Personal Address or PO Box Designations: 11,653
- Agency Address Designations: 18,002
Active Peace Officers
- Total Addresses of Records: 27,685
- Personal Address or P.O. Box Designations: 10,404
- Agency Address Designations: 17,281
CURRENT PEACE OFFICER CERTIFICATION AND DECERTIFICATION STATISTICS
The below statistics include a brief summary of total agency misconduct reports (AMR), case volume, and the top three allegations as of December 10, 2024. For further statistics, please visit the POST Data Warehouse.
- Total Approved AMRs: 31,408
- Total Assigned Cases: 21,308
- Total Open Cases: 12,081
- Open Cases w/Agency: 2,516
- Open Cases w/POST: 9,565
- Total Closed Cases: 9,227
- 1205(a)(3) – Physical Abuse/Excessive or Unreasonable Use of Force: 13,406 allegations
- 1205(a)(5) – Demonstrating Bias: 9,797 allegations
- 1205(a)(2) – Abuse of Power: 4,955 allegations
CURRENT CERTIFICATION ACTION STATISTICS
From January 1, 2024 to December 6, 2024, POST has:
- Issued 61 Immediate Temporary Suspensions
- Revoked 82 peace officer certifications
- 20 out of these were default revocations, which occur when peace officers who have received revocation proceedings from POST fail to submit an appeal
- Deemed 72 peace officers ineligible due to a felony or misdemeanor conviction identified in Government Code (GC) section 1029
- Received 58 Voluntary Surrenders
- Two additional Voluntary Surrenders were received. However, those peace officers did not possess a Proof of Eligibility or Basic Certificate to surrender
PEACE OFFICER CERTIFICATION ACTIONS PAGE UPDATES - CORRECTION
Over the course of the next few months, POSAD will be updating the Peace Officer Certification Actions page on the POST Website to include hyperlinks to pleading documents or orders, when appropriate. As a peace officer’s case moves through the Peace Officer Standards Accountability Advisory Board and Commission hearing processes, older documents may be replaced by newer documents. Peace officers who have been served with a notice of disciplinary action will have pleading documents and final orders hyperlinked. Those peace officers who have had their certifications revoked by default due to failure to respond to a Notice of Intent to Revoke will include a Statement of Findings. Listings for peace officers who have had their certifications revoked after moving through the hearing and administrative processes will include an Accusation and Final Order of Revocation. If a peace officer has been deemed ineligible due to a felony or misdemeanor conviction identified in GC § 1029, there will be an update to the “Basis” column to include the specific charges and date of conviction. Peace officers who surrendered their certifications may have their voluntary surrender forms hyperlinked, depending on the circumstances of their surrender. Immediate Temporary Suspensions will not be hyperlinked as these are not final actions against a peace officer’s certification. No documents will be uploaded that are not already considered a matter of public record and all personal identifying information will be redacted.
Questions regarding the updates to the Peace Officer Certification Actions page may be directed to the Certification Bureau.
AFFIDAVIT OF SEPARATION - REMINDER
The Notice of Separation (NOS) process was updated in the Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) on August 20, 2024, to mirror that of the Notice of Appointment. Since the Certification Bureau began reviewing the NOS in EDI, staff have observed that many Affidavit of Separation, POST 2-357 forms are being submitted as incomplete. As a reminder, Box 14 is required to be completed, regardless of how the peace officer separated from employment. If this box is left blank, Certification Bureau staff will return the NOS to your agency for correction. This is your agency’s opportunity to provide pertinent details about a peace officer’s separation.
For example:
- “The peace officer resigned to move to another state.”
- “The peace officer resigned to lateral to another agency.”
- “The peace officer retired in good standing after 25 years of service.”
- “The peace officer was released on probation.”
- “The peace officer was terminated due to repeated policy violations not related to serious misconduct.”
Questions regarding the separation of service and/or Affidavit of Separation, POST 2-357 may be directed to the Certification Bureau.
INTAKE AND DISPOSITION BUREAU UPDATE
The following is a list of recommendations to help agency Mark43 reporters manage and submit their Mark43 reports.
- Agency Response When Receiving Agency Notification of a Public Complaint If the allegation(s) meets the definition of serious misconduct pursuant to Penal Code section 13510.8, please respond by submitting a linked Agency Misconduct Report in Mark43. If the allegation(s) does NOT include serious misconduct pursuant to Penal Code section 13510.8, please respond to the POST Public Complaint by submitting an Agency Supplemental Report in Mark43.
- Updated Mark43 Agency Guides Two agency guides are available to help agency reporters submit their Mark43 reports – Agency Guide for Agency Misconduct Reports and Agency Guide for Agency Supplementals. The most current versions are dated October 2024. Please email the Intake and Disposition Bureau to request the updated guides.
- Managing Permissions If you need to provide additional access to your report in Mark43 (i.e., another reporter from your agency needs to be added to view/edit your report), you can adjust permissions to grant agency or individual user access via the Manage Permissions (Padlock) icon in Mark43. As you continue to add more reports and new users into Mark43, be sure that with each submission, you are changing the permissions on the Agency Misconduct Reports and any Agency Supplemental Reports to include your agency as a role. If the primary reporter is on vacation or no longer a Mark43 user, changing the permissions ensures that others from your agency can still find and update the case as needed.
- Updated Mark43 Video The Mark43 Serious Misconduct Reporting Training Video is updated and available via the POST Learning Portal. This instructional video demonstrates how to submit an Agency Misconduct Report or an Agency Supplemental Report, how to view and respond to an assigned POST Task, how to apply labels, how to manage permissions, and how to respond to a POST Public Complaint.
- Mark43 Draft Reports Reminder Review all Mark43 reports in Draft status. If the Draft report was created in error, state “Created in error” in the Narrative Card and submit the report to intake for approval.
- Mark43 Rejected Reports Reminder Review all Mark43 reports in rejected status. Complete assigned tasks or corrections and re-submit the report.
Should you have any questions about responding to a POST Public Complaint, submitting an Agency Misconduct Report, or submitting an Agency Supplemental, please contact the Intake and Disposition Bureau at (916) 227-2822
UPCOMING TRAINING OPPORTUNITIES
- Serious Misconduct Allegations and Investigations: An Overview of the Decertification Process (pdf) – On January 29, 2025, the Professional Conduct Central Bureau will be presenting an overview of the decertification process. This presentation will be from 8:00-11:00 a.m. at the Shafter Police Department. The presentation will cover practical information about serious misconduct allegations, the investigative steps and process by which POST investigators analyze the allegations, and what you can expect from POST throughout the decertification process. This training is available to all active law enforcement personnel. If you are interested in attending this presentation, please register through Eventbrite. For more information, please see flyer.
- Tentative upcoming Mark43 Role Agency User Training dates:
Dates: February 5, 2025; May 7, 2025; August 6, 2025; November 5, 2025
Locations: February – in-person; May – virtual; August – in-person; November – virtual
Be on the lookout for more information regarding these Mark43 training opportunities on the POST website.
FREQUENTLY USED FORMS
UPCOMING PEACE OFFICER STANDARDS ACCOUNTABILITY ADVISORY BOARD HEARING DATES
January 15-16, 2025
9:00 AM - 5:00 PM
POST Headquarters
860 Stillwater Road, Ste 100
West Sacramento, CA 95605
DISTRICT CONTACTS
The Peace Officer Standards Accountability Division identified and separated the State of California into districts. Cases will be handled regionally. Below are the Law Enforcement Consultant contacts listed for each district.
View Map
Professional Conduct Northern Bureau
Professional Conduct Central Bureau
Professional Conduct Los Angeles County Bureau
Professional Conduct Southern Bureau