General Feedback
Positive or negative, we welcome the community’s feedback and view it as an opportunity to continuously improve. Community members are welcome to provide informal feedback to the on-duty supervisor. Formal commendations and/or complaints may be submitted utilizing the below processes.
Our accrediting body, the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), also accepts direct feedback through the Accreditation Public Comment Portal. See below for more information on submitting feedback to CALEA.
Commendation Process
We are always happy to hear about positive interactions our community members have had with members of our department! Information we receive involving positive contacts/experiences with our staff are forwarded on to the employee, their supervisor, and placed in their personnel file. If you wish to commend an employee, please follow the instructions below for completion of the complaint/commendation form.
Complaint Process
It is the policy of the University of Missouri Police Department to ensure integrity is maintained through an internal system where objectivity, fairness and justice are assured by intensive and impartial investigation. As such, we are committed to thoroughly investigating all complaints brought to our attention.
While complaints may be submitted anonymously, our investigators can complete a more thorough investigation if they can contact the complainant for follow-up questions and to clarify details. Complainants who provide their contact information will be notified by an investigator that their complaint was received within three business days of the complaint submission. When the investigation is complete, the complainant will be contacted with information regarding the findings and conclusion of the investigation. Complainants/witnesses who do not respond to investigators within 7 business days will be presumed to have no further input or information to add in the investigation.
Submitted complaints are assigned for investigation by the Internal Affairs Division. Line supervisors may be assigned to investigate complaints of a less serious nature, such as a misunderstanding between a citizen and an employee, as well as minor breaches of policy (where the outcome will typically produce an action less than suspension, demotion, and/or termination). Allegations of violations of criminal law, reports of corruption, breaches of civil rights, major policy violations (outcomes which would typically produce suspension, demotion, and/or termination), allegations of a sensitive nature, and any investigation determined by the Chief of Police to require investigation by Internal Affairs, will be investigated by the Internal Affairs function or, in their absence, a designee. Complaints involving the Chief of Police will be conducted via an external review.
All complaints are investigated to a conclusion of fact. Findings are as follows:
- Sustained – complaint is determined to be valid and either the agency or its employee(s) are responsible for some causal act or omission.
- Not Sustained – complaint is determined to be valid, however it could not be determined whether or not the agency or its employee(s) are responsible for some causal act or omission.
- Unfounded – complaint is determined to not be valid (i.e., the situation described did not occur).
- Exonerated – complaint is determined to be valid, however the agency or its employee(s) acted appropriately.
All completed Internal Affairs investigations are reviewed by the Chief of Police, a Division Commander, and the Internal Affairs function. The Support Services Commander, Major Scott Richardson, is the department’s designated contact for Internal Affairs investigations. If you have any questions about the process or results of a complaint investigation, please contact him directly.
Commendation and Complaint Submission
Commendations and Complaints may be submitted twenty-four hours a day/seven days a week online, in person, by phone, mail, or electronic mail. Please be as detailed as possible when you complete the narrative section of the submission.
NOTE: Do not use this form to file a police report. NON-EMERGENCY POLICE REPORTS and DELAYED ACCIDENTS may be filed online or via telephone (573-882-7201). Emergencies or active incidents should be reported by calling 573-882-7201.
Online:
Complete our Complaint/Commendation web form.
In Person:
Stop by MUPD and ask for the on-duty supervisor or Major Scott Richardson. We are located in the southeast corner of the Virginia Avenue Garage on the MU Campus.
Phone:
Contact our dispatch center at (573) 882-7201 and ask to speak with the on-duty supervisor or Major Scott Richardson.
E-mail and U.S. Mail:
You will need to download (instructions below) the Microsoft Word version of our Complaint/Commendation form. Once downloaded, the form can be filled out electronically or by hand. The completed form can either be emailed to Major Scott Richardson at RichardsonKS@missouri.edu OR mailed via U.S. Mail to:
Major Scott Richardson
901 Virginia Avenue
Columbia, MO 65211
Complaint/Commendation Download Instructions
1. On most computers clicking on the below link will open the form in Microsoft Word.
2. If this does not happen, right click and select “Save Target As”.
3. Save the file to your desktop so you can easily find it.
4. Find the file named ComplaintForm.doc and double click it.
5. Complete the form and return it to us via the email or U.S. Mail address above.
Commendation-Complaint Form
Complaint Summary
Detailed information on internal affairs investigations is provided in our Fiscal 2023 Complaint Summary.
Accreditation Public Comment Portal
The purpose of the Accreditation Public Comment Portal is to gather comments regarding MUPD’s compliance with CALEA standards, engagement in community service, delivery of public safety services, and overall candidacy for accredited status. Comments submitted through the Public Comment Portal, can be either commendations or complaints and are strictly to evaluate our agency’s compliance with the standards and tenets of CALEA Accreditation.