How to File a Complaint

Anyone can file a complaint of misconduct by employees of correctional agencies by calling the Office of the Inspector General toll-free at (800) 700-5952, by sending a fax to (916) 928-5974, or by writing to:

Office of the Inspector General
P.O. Box 348780
Sacramento, California 95834-8780

Contact the Office of the Inspector General by e-mail.

Note that e-mail is intended to help you contact the Office of the Inspector General, but e-mail messages are not secure or confidential. Therefore, please limit e-mail messages to non-confidential information.

Before You Make a Complaint
Before making a complaint to the Office of the Inspector General concerning misconduct by employees of correctional agencies, you should attempt to complete the agency's standard investigative, appeals, or grievance procedure. If you think an investigation has been improperly conducted, however, you may call the Office of the Inspector General.

You should provide as much evidence as you can to support your complaint, including letters, memos, copies of complaint forms and responses, notes from conversations, names of witnesses, a journal describing the history of the situation, and any other information you may have that could validate your claim.

By law, all complaints must be submitted in writing. If you make your complaint by telephone, you will eventually be asked to send a written complaint. Additional supporting materials or other information also may be requested. Any information you provide to the Office of the Inspector General will be kept confidential.

The Office of the Inspector General is not authorized to provide legal advice. If you need legal advice, you should contact a private attorney or your local Legal Aid office.

How the Office of the Inspector General will Handle Your Complaint.
The Office of the Inspector General will review your complaint and take one of the following actions:

• Refer the complaint to the internal affairs office of the agency in question for an initial investigation. In most cases an initial investigation will be required before the Inspector General can take action.
• Refer the complaint to the internal affairs office of the agency in question for further investigation. If an initial investigation has been done, the Office of the Inspector General will review the case to determine whether the investigation was done properly. If the Inspector General finds that the investigation was not done properly, we will note the problems and instruct the agency to re-investigate the case.
• Investigate the case. If the complaint falls outside of the agency's jurisdiction, there is a conflict of interest involving the agency, or if the Office of the Inspector General determines that an independent review is necessary, the Office of the Inspector General will investigate the case.
• Refer criminal misconduct to law enforcement authorities. At any point in the investigation, the Office of the Inspector General can refer cases of criminal misconduct to the proper law enforcement authorities.
• Close the inquiry. If the Office of the Inspector General finds after a preliminary review that there is insufficient evidence to support your claim, your inquiry may be closed without further action.