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Filing Complaints or Commendations
It is a well known fact that a law enforcement agency cannot be successful without the support of the community it serves.
The Highland Park Department of Public Safety is committed to providing the best services possible to its citizens. Public Safety Officers are carefully selected and given extensive training to provide quality service. It is important that citizens inform us so that we know how we are doing. If you want to commend or make a complaint about an employee, simply call, write, or use our online web form.
Even if you don't know the name of the Department employee, tell us when and where an event happened and we will determine who it was and begin the appropriate procedure to address your concerns or comments.
To establish mutual trust, both citizens and HPDPS employees must be assured that a fair and impartial system exists to thoroughly investigate and properly resolve allegations and complaints of misconduct.
The Highland Park DPS believes that a fair and impartial complaint review process is necessary to ensure that the community receives the highest degree of professional law enforcement. If it becomes necessary to make a complaint, a citizen can be assured of a fair and thorough investigation.
When a complaint investigation reveals misconduct or violation of State or Federal law, or Department General Orders, the employee may be reprimanded, suspended without pay, demoted, or discharged, depending on the nature of the violation. The following steps are taken in the investigation of your complaint:
 | Any citizen who believes a HPDPS employee has acted improperly may make a complaint to any supervisor, HPDPS employee, or directly to the Director of Public Safety, either by letter, by phone, in person, or electronically. |
| The complaint is received and transcribed onto a complaint form. This form may be obtained from the HPDPS building, or by requesting to have the form mailed to you. These forms are available 24 hours a day. You may also submit a complaint through the Feedback page on this web site. It is not necessary to use the paper complaint form if submitting a complaint electronically. |
| Complaints of a serious nature are assigned to the Internal Affairs Unit. A lesser complaint is referred to the employee's supervisor. |
| The report is forwarded to the affected employee's supervisor for review and disciplinary and corrective recommendations. The Director of Public Safety makes the final determination on the findings. |
| The employee is informed of the findings and determination of discipline. |
| The results of the investigation are reported as follows: Unfounded; Exonerated; Not Sustained; or Sustained. |
| These results are shared with the complainant, usually in the form of a letter. |
FALSE COMPLAINTS
Occasionally, the HPDPS will receive false complaints against its employees. Citizens should be aware that knowingly making a false statement or written statement is a violation of Texas State Statutes. A person who provides false or misleading information may subject themselves to possible criminal prosecution.