How the Internal Affairs Investigations Maintains Police Department's Integrity

This blog dives into the challenges internal affairs investigations face in managing vast volumes of digital evidence and how solutions like VIDIZMO DEMS can streamline covert investigations.
Explore how video, audio, and AI-powered tools support fair, transparent, and efficient police oversight.

When it comes to internal affairs investigations, lack of sufficient and properly managed evidence can make fair investigations difficult as there are two sides to it: the public side and the police officer’s side.

Modern equipment and gadgets like body-worn cameras and in-car cameras (dashcams) have helped internal affairs investigators to monitor police conduct more effectively, encouraging transparency to all operations.

But with so much video evidence coming from multiple sources and personnel on duty, not to mention multiple cases going on, how can they effectively store, manage, and examine all the evidence? Without a reliable system, it can be a major barrier to help deal with the substantial amounts of digital evidence or conduct quick and fair investigations.

Internal Affairs Investigation: Policing the Police

Lack of evidence creates problems on two sides. From the police side, disciplinary action may not be done appropriately, or over-policing may lead to wrongfully accusing the officer, straining the trust between the employee and the agency.

From the community side, there may be fraudulent and baseless accusations against the officers, leading to wasted time and efforts investigating misdemeanors that did not happen in the first place.

When citizens or police departments file a complaint against an officer, the internal affairs unit responds to the complaint by initiating one of the two investigations: administrative or criminal internal affairs investigations. 

• Administrative investigations: involve officers engaging in noncriminal work-related misconduct.  
• Criminal investigations: focus on whether an officer has committed a crime that will result in criminal prosecution and prison time. 

Depending on state laws, criminal penalties can be imposed for police misconduct who violate the law, violate an individual’s rights, or abuse legal authority. If convicted, the accused officer could face incarceration, fines, and even revocation of their police license.  

Investigating and Collecting Evidence

Not all allegations arising from the public against the employee of the police department hold substance. The internal affairs unit develops a clear action plan to ensure the police investigation is done completely, objectively, and thoroughly.  

After all, the department’s reputation is at stake. The action plan also includes efficient digital evidence management from proper collection, organization, and analysis to the storage of digital evidence. 

Concrete evidence in the form of audio recordings, video footage, or photos will separate truth from rumors to acquit or incriminate the officer in question. While not an exhaustive list, digital evidence can come from: 

• Photos of the incident location. 
• Calling information from Computer Aided Dispatch system (CAD) that led to the allegation. 
• Photos of any physical injuries to the complainant and/or accused officer.
• Videos captured of the incident nearby businesses or residences, such as from cell phones, drone cameras, dashboard cams (in-vehicle), social media, or body-worn cameras (BWCs). 

Civil rights advocates claim that the release of body-worn camera recordings and keeping privacy considerations is the way to hold law enforcement officers accountable. By doing so, transparency can be established to clear officers of violent and racist acts. 

Speaking of body-worn cameras (BWCs), out of the USA’s 15,328 law enforcement agencies, 47% had acquired BWC technology in 2016 as per the findings from the Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS). Reasons cited for doing so were to increase evidence quality, improve officer safety, reduce civilian complaints, and reduce agency liability.

Keeping Up with the Digital Evidence Tide

We have seen the potential benefits of video, photo, and audio evidence. But keeping in view the numerous complaints from the public (possibly containing video or photo of the incident) and multiple police officers on duty recording footage, it seems like internal affairs investigators have got their hands full, like finding a needle in a digital evidence haystack!  

What is painstaking is the fact of storing large digital files in multiple storage devices like USBs, hard drives, or worse, keeping them in third-party storage spaces. Saving data in the latter neither allows ownership of the content nor does it guarantee sensitive information from getting recklessly shared.  

Aside from storage and retrieval concerns are the issues of redacting and transcribing recordings for legal purposes in internal affairs investigations. Is there a way for one platform to support multiple file formats, perform redactions, and generate transcriptions right away?  

Is there a platform (or portal, perhaps) that can aid the internal affairs unit in managing investigations covertly, maintaining the police department’s integrity, and assuring citizens that their complaints are swiftly resolved?

Covert Police Investigations with the Internal Affairs Portal

VIDIZMO Digital Evidence Management System (DEMS) offers a dedicated internal affairs evidence portal where investigators have complete access to all evidence. They can also access portals of other police department users and other specialized operations which fall within their jurisdiction and standard operating procedures.  

All evidence uploaded is instantly labeled and searchable, overcoming the challenge of finding the needle of proof in a digital haystack. 

Activities of internal affairs users within the portal are not visible to other users in the department. A unique digital chain of custody, designed for departments having classified-level permissions, is available to prevent covert investigations and compliance audits from getting compromised. 

To have seamless collaboration and avoid other users (not part of the investigation) from viewing, you can leave comments and annotations only visible to internal affair users on a particular evidence file. Also, this feature aids in analyzing recordings and testimonies later.

In addition to these core capabilities, VIDIZMO DEMS leverages powerful AI to accelerate investigation workflows. AI-based transcription and translation convert audio and video recordings into searchable text, making it easier to find critical spoken words or statements.

Advanced AI search allows investigators to quickly retrieve relevant content from vast volumes of evidence using keywords, timestamps, or facial recognition.

Additionally, when it comes to public disclosures or court submissions, the built-in redaction tool helps mask faces, license plates, voices, or any sensitive identifiers—ensuring compliance with privacy laws like FOIA while protecting both citizens and officers.

About VIDIZMO DEMS

VIDIZMO DEMS is specifically designed for managing and processing large video and other multimedia files containing confidential data.  

It offers advanced sharing and role-based permissions to ensure digital files do not fall into the wrong hands. With a robust AI, videos and audio are transcribed and translated into multiple languages in a matter of minutes. 

When it comes to hiding compromising information in audiovisual files like faces, tattoos, symbols, names and more for FOIA (Freedom of Information Act) public disclosure requests, AI helps to speed up your review and redaction processes by detecting and tracking faces, bodies, spoken words, and other custom objects.    

VIDIZMO DEMS has wide support of 255+ file formats, including videos coming from a myriad of capturing sources like body-worn cameras, CCTV surveillance, dashboard cameras, smartphones and others allowing users to view and manage evidence from a single and secure location. 

People Also Ask

What is the role of the Internal Affairs Unit in a police department?

The Internal Affairs Unit investigates allegations of misconduct within the police force, ensuring officers uphold the law and maintain public trust by addressing complaints and overseeing fair investigations.

What types of investigations does Internal Affairs handle?

Internal Affairs conducts two types of investigations: administrative investigations, addressing non-criminal misconduct, and criminal investigations, focusing on potential crimes committed by officers.

How does the Internal Affairs Unit collect evidence during investigations?

The Internal Affairs Unit collects digital evidence such as body camera footage, photos, dispatch records, and video from various sources to investigate complaints thoroughly and impartially.

Why is digital evidence important in Internal Affairs investigations?

Digital evidence like video, audio, and photos plays a crucial role in verifying or refuting allegations, helping to ensure fairness in investigations and maintain police integrity.

How does the Internal Affairs Unit maintain transparency?

The use of body-worn cameras and other video tools increases transparency, ensuring that investigations are conducted fairly and holding officers accountable for their actions.

What challenges do internal affairs investigations face in managing evidence?

Internal affairs investigations often deal with large volumes of digital evidence from various sources. Without proper systems in place, managing, organizing, and retrieving this evidence becomes a major challenge that can delay outcomes and impact the integrity of investigations.

What is the role of AI in Internal Affairs investigations?

AI plays a vital role in internal affairs investigations by enabling faster transcription, translation, redaction, and smart searches within digital evidence—making it easier to uncover relevant information and reach unbiased conclusions.

How can a Digital Evidence Management System (DEMS) improve investigations?

A DEMS like VIDIZMO provides a secure platform for storing, organizing, and analyzing evidence, with features like role-based permissions, AI redaction, and chain of custody tracking, enhancing efficiency and confidentiality.

How does VIDIZMO help in the investigation process for Internal Affairs?

VIDIZMO offers a dedicated evidence portal that enables secure and efficient handling of large multimedia files, such as videos from body-worn cameras or surveillance, improving access to evidence for investigators.

Why is video evidence management important for maintaining police department integrity?

Effective management of video evidence ensures accurate documentation, promotes transparency, and helps prevent wrongful accusations, strengthening the integrity and trust in the police department.