[PR] Metropolitan Police Department’s Statement on a Use of Force Incident
Chief Robert Contee
August 9, 2021
(Washington, DC) – On Sunday, August 8, 2021, officers report witnessing a hand-to-hand drug transaction. Officers eventually stopped the individual and recovered a firearm. The following statement is attributable to Metropolitan Police Department Chief Robert Contee:
The actions demonstrated in the social media video of Metropolitan Police Department officers seizing a gun from a suspect are inconsistent with the training and the values of the department and this incident will be referred to the United States Attorney’s Office for prosecutorial consideration and subsequently thoroughly investigated by the MPD Internal Affairs Division. Following this incident, three MPD members have been revoked and placed on non-contact status pending criminal and administrative investigations.
MPD prides itself on treating everyone with respect. If anyone has concerns regarding the way they were treated by an MPD officer, we ask that they file a complaint with MPD or the independent Office of Police Complaints. All of our police officers are equipped with body worn cameras so that we have a full account of any interactions they have with the public.
👋🏾 EDITOR’S NOTE: About the Office of Police Complaints
”The Office of Police Complaints (OPC) and its governing body, the Police Complaints Board (PCB), were created by statute in 1999, and OPC opened to the public on January 8, 2001. The agency is independent of the Metropolitan Police Department (MPD), the District of Columbia’s 3,800-member police force, and the DC Housing Authority Police Department (DCHAPD), the District's 40-member housing authority police force. OPC's mission is to increase community trust in the District of Columbia police forces by providing a fair, thorough, and independent system of civilian oversight of law enforcement.
OPC is staffed by civilians and has the authority to receive complaints involving six types of police officer misconduct: harassment, inappropriate language or conduct, retaliation, unnecessary or excessive force, discrimination, and failure to identify. The agency's functions are to conduct fair and thorough investigations of citizen complaints, provide a reliable system of civilian oversight of law enforcement policies, procedures, and training, and promote positive community-police interactions.
Click below for more information about OPC: