What is DOI's Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD (OIG-NYPD)?
The Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD (OIG-NYPD) is part of the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) and charged with investigating, reviewing, studying, auditing and making recommendations relating to the operations, policies, programs and practices of the New York City Police Department (NYPD). The goals of OIG-NYPD are to enhance the effectiveness of the police department, increase public safety, protect civil liberties and civil rights, and increase the public’s confidence in the police force, thus building stronger police-community relations. The Inspector General for the OIG-NYPD reports to the DOI Commissioner.

DOI’s OIG-NYPD consists of approximately 40 investigators, attorneys, analysts, auditors, and support staff. OIG-NYPD conducts outreach to New York City's communities, sophisticated data analysis to identify trends, and on-the-ground investigations to compile evidence that will gather facts for OIG-NYPD's reports and recommendations. DOI’s OIG-NYPD largely focuses on systemic issues relating to the operations, policies, programs, and practices of the NYPD.

A cornerstone of OIG-NYPD is transparency. In addition to furnishing reports to the Mayor, the City Council, and the Police Commissioner, OIG-NYPD posts its reports, as well as NYPD’s statutorily-mandated responses to these reports, on its website for public access with the objective of ensuring that the public has a full understanding of policing in New York City.

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Is the Office of the Inspector General for the NYPD (OIG-NYPD) part of the New York City Police Department?
No, OIG-NYPD is not part of the New York City Police Department (NYPD). It is a police oversight office that is part of the Department of Investigation (DOI). OIG-NYPD operates independently from NYPD. The DOI Commissioner established OIG-NYPD for the purpose of providing an independent and apolitical voice to identify systemic issues and make recommendations leading to reforms that will enhance the effectiveness of the NYPD, increase public safety, protect civil liberties and civil rights, and help strengthen ties between the NYPD and the community. The Inspector General for the NYPD reports to the Commissioner of DOI.

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Who is the Inspector General for the NYPD?
The Inspector General for the NYPD is Philip K. Eure, who was appointed by DOI Commissioner Mark G. Peters on March 28, 2014 and assumed his duties on May 27, 2014. Mr. Eure was previously Executive Director of the District of Columbia's Office of Police Complaints, a police accountability agency that he developed and led from 2000 through 2014. Prior to that, Mr. Eure served for more than a decade in the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division. He has also served as President of the National Association for Civilian Oversight of Law Enforcement (NACOLE), a non-profit organization of law enforcement oversight agencies and practitioners that works to enhance accountability and transparency in policing and build community trust through police oversight.

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What types of issues does OIG-NYPD review and investigate?
Through the DOI Commissioner, OIG-NYPD has a broad mandate to investigate, review, study, audit, and make recommendations relating to the "operations, policies, programs and practices" of the NYPD, "including ongoing partnerships with other law enforcement agencies." Local Law 70 of 2013 at §1(c)(1). at §1(c)(1). Thus, OIG-NYPD is empowered to look at a wide variety of policing issues, including, for example: use of force; surveillance and intelligence activities; instances of alleged bias; officer training; technology; response to political protests; and interactions with people with mental illness. DOI’s OIG-NYPD largely focuses on systemic issues relating to the operations, policies, programs, and practices of the NYPD. OIG-NYPD sets its priorities based on a review and analysis of the facts — including data received from NYPD and the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) and concerns raised by members of the community, including through OIG-NYPD's complaint intake — to detect patterns and identify issues where a deep-dive investigation and big-picture thinking are likely to lead to workable real-world policing solutions.

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Does OIG-NYPD investigate individual allegations of police misconduct?
Local Law 70 authorizes DOI’s OIG-NYPD to investigate allegations of police misconduct. Moreover, OIG-NYPD is authorized to refer matters of potential criminal conduct to relevant prosecutors' offices and instances of potential conflicts of interest or unethical conduct to New York City's Conflicts of Interest Board (COIB). However, OIG-NYPD is not intended to replicate the investigative functions of the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) or NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau. Instead, DOI’s OIG-NYPD  largely focuses on systemic issues relating to the operations, policies, programs, and practices of the NYPD.

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How is OIG-NYPD different from the Civilian Complaint Review Board?
The Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) is a City agency, in existence since 1993, where members of the public can file complaints alleging police misconduct against individual officers. The CCRB is independent from NYPD and handles complaints about four types of alleged police misconduct:

1. Excessive or Unnecessary Use of Force
2. Abuse of Authority
3. Discourtesy
4. Offensive Language

The CCRB is charged with receiving, investigating, mediating, hearing, making findings and recommending action on such misconduct complaints. The CCRB forwards its findings to the Police Commissioner. CCRB is comprised of a 13-member board composed of members of the public, an executive director who manages the agency's daily operations, and a staff of more than 160 investigators, attorneys and support staff.

By contrast, DOI’s OIG-NYPD focuses on investigating, reviewing, studying, auditing and making recommendations relating more broadly to the operations, policies, programs and practices of NYPD. While OIG-NYPD can receive and investigate complaints from members of the public alleging individual instances of police misconduct, OIG-NYPD was not designed to replicate the CCRB. Instead, OIG-NYPD has discretion to review individual complaints to consider whether any action by OIG-NYPD is warranted, and if not, to refer complaints to other agencies, including CCRB, for appropriate action. OIG-NYPD is also tasked with reviewing complaints in the aggregate to identify trends. OIG-NYPD's primary objective is to identify, investigate, analyze and make recommendations on systemic issues and policies in order to enhance the effectiveness of the NYPD, increase public safety, protect civil liberties and civil rights and increase the public's confidence in the police force. In addition, OIG-NYPD is structurally different from CCRB. OIG-NYPD, which is part of DOI, is led by a single Inspector General, who reports to the Commissioner of DOI, and a staff of approximately 40 investigators, attorneys, analysts, auditors, outreach personnel, and support staff.

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Can I file a complaint with OIG-NYPD?
Yes, members of the public may report any complaints or concerns regarding the New York City Police Department's (NYPD) operations, policies, programs and practices to DOI’s OIG-NYPD. OIG-NYPD accepts complaints via letter, telephone, walk-in, and online complaint forms.

OIG-NYPD can be contacted at:

Office of the Inspector General for the New York City Police Department
New York City Department of Investigation
80 Maiden Lane
New York, NY 10038
Telephone: (212) 806-5200

Members of the public are not required to provide personally identifying information when communicating with OIG-NYPD and may submit a complaint anonymously. However, it will be harder to investigate and clarify the concerns addressed in the complaint without having a way to reach the complainant. Individuals who are concerned about retaliation for filing complaints may be protected by law. For more information about the New York City whistleblower law, please click here to read about Whistleblower Protection.

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How can I learn about the findings and recommendations issued by DOI's OIG-NYPD?
DOI’s OIG-NYPD is required by statute to furnish its reports to the Mayor, the City Council and the Police Commissioner. In addition, OIG-NYPD posts its reports and NYPD’s statutorily-mandated responses to these reports for the public on the OIG-NYPD website here.

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Is OIG-NYPD part of the Floyd case dealing with the issue of stop and frisk?
No. OIG-NYPD was created by the New York City Department of Investigation (DOI) as a result of Local Law 70, which was passed by the City Council in August 2013, and mandates that the DOI Commissioner establish oversight of NYPD. OIG-NYPD was established in 2014 as a new Inspector General office within DOI. Furthermore, OIG-NYPD is authorized to conduct independent, outside review of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) activities regarding a more sweeping range of issues than merely stop-and-frisk. Indeed, OIG-NYPD's responsibilities require that it broadly "investigate, review, study, audit and make recommendations relating to the operations, policies, programs and practices, including ongoing partnerships with other law enforcement agencies," of NYPD "with the goal of enhancing the effectiveness of the department, increasing public safety, protecting civil liberties and civil rights and increasing the public's confidence in the police force, thus building stronger police-community relations."

By contrast, in the legal case of Floyd et al. v. City of New York et al., No. 08 Civ. 1034, and the companion case of Ligon v. City of New York, No. 12 Civ. 2274, both pending in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, the Court appointed an independent monitor to ensure that NYPD carries out certain reforms recommended by the Court with respect to the stop and frisk policies and practices at issue in the Floyd case. The Floyd monitor serves at the direction of the Court and for a limited term, conditioned upon the City's substantial compliance with Court-ordered injunctive relief in connection with the two cases.

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I would like to work for DOI's OIG-NYPD. How do I apply for a position?
For information on current career opportunities with OIG-NYPD, please see the Career Opportunities page.

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