IPA MISSION

The mission of the Office of the Independent Police Auditor (IPA) is to provide independent oversight of and instill confidence in the complaint process through objective review of police misconduct investigations. By providing outreach to the San Jose community and making thoughtful policy recommendations to the City Council, the IPA works to promote accountability and to strengthen the relationship between the San Jose Police Department and the community it serves.

Click here for an interview about the Office of the Independent Police Auditor and an interview about the IPA Student's Guide to Police Practices.

Click here to watch video about the history of the Office of the Independent Police Auditor.

IPA GUIDING PRINCIPLES

1. The IPA strives to ensure that all concerns reported by members of the public are classified and investigated at the appropriate level based upon the premise that any case brought forward containing misconduct issues will be classified as a complaint with associated allegations, findings and officer names tracked.
2. The IPA reaches out to inform the community about the complaint process and to listen and respond to broader community concerns.
3. The IPA carefully considers aggregate data from complaints, community concerns and public policy in crafting recommendations aimed toward improving the quality services of the San Jose Police Department.

IPA STATEMENT OF VALUES AND NO-GIFT POLICY

1. Statement of Values
2. No-Gift Policy

NEWS, NEWS, NEWS ...

1. Opinion: Who will guard the guards? San Jose's independent police auditor
By LaDoris Cordell
Ind_Pol_Aud@sanjoseca.gov
Special to the Mercury News
Posted: 07/20/2010 12:01:00 AM PDT

Quis custodiet ipsos custodes? This question, posed by the Roman poet Juvenal, translated literally, means, "Who will guard the guards themselves?" This same question was pondered by the Greek philosopher Plato, who concluded that the guards should guard themselves.

Fast forward to modern day, when his daughter Lisa asked Homer Simpson, "If you're the police, who will police the police?" Homer's response was, "I don't know — the Coast Guard?" Not really. But in the wake of events such as the videotaped beating of Rodney King in 1991, Plato's answer is also lacking, for two reasons.
Click here to read the full article.

2. San Jose police auditor proposes new way to handle public complaints
By Sean Webby
swebby@mercurynews.com
Posted: 06/29/2010 10:22:38 PM PDT
Updated: 06/30/2010 11:09:52 AM PDT

Say a San Jose cop scolds you for jaywalking or berates you outside of a bar. You feel disrespected.
What do you do?
Independent Police Auditor LaDoris Cordell is proposing a plan that would offer a face-to-face meeting – handshakes, apologies all around and perhaps a greater understanding between police and the public.
Click here to read the full article.

3. Investigation of Alleged Inappropriate Disclosures Concluded – San Jose Independent Police Auditor to Make Findings Public
A June 10, 2010 San Jose Mercury News article reported that the former president of San Jose’s police officers union alleged that he had received information from an unnamed employee of the IPA office concerning complaints about police officers. The matter, which had been revealed to Judge Cordell on May 20, 2010 was immediately referred to San Jose’s City Attorney by Judge Cordell for investigation. Judge Cordell has decided to release the investigator’s report to the public. The report and supporting exhibits are available here: Outside Investigator’s Report of IPA Office and Exhibits to Outside Investigator’s Report.

4. Commencing Thursday, May 27, 2010, San Jose’s newly-appointed Independent Police Auditor, Judge LaDoris Cordell (retired), will publish her weekly calendar on the IPA website: www.sanjoseca.gov/ipa.
The calendar will be published prospectively in order to enable the public to view the IPA’s upcoming community outreach activities and city events. In order to preserve the confidentiality of the police misconduct complaint process, only non-complaint related matters will be posted on the calendar. Meetings with representatives of public and private organizations will be included unless they are complaint-related.

5. A Students’ Guide to Police Practices (Guide) has been revised and is available now. The goal of the Guide is to provide youth with information to help them make smart decisions if they are stopped by the police. Parents and teachers also find the Guide helpful. It contains basic information about legal rights, common crimes that sometimes involve youth, and how to avoid becoming the victim of a crime. The revised Guide contains new sections that discuss serious social issues facing youth today, such as: gangs, hate crimes, internet safety, and dating abuse. A copy may be obtained by calling the IPA office or by downloading it from our website. See “Youth Guide” (English, Spanish, Vietnamese).

6. We have not moved but our address has changed! Same offices, same building, but the official address is now: 75 East Santa Clara Street, Suite P-93 (lower level), San José, CA 95113.