Your feedback is important to us.

Most complaints against employees will be resolved by the employee’s supervisor. This is considered an informal complaint/investigation. In an informal investigation, the employee’s Shift Supervisor meets with the complainant, meets with the employee, then decides the appropriate action to take to best resolve the complaint.

It is normally the responsibility of that employee’s Shift Supervisor to meet with you to discuss your complaint. If the employee’s Shift Supervisor is not readily available or you can not meet with him/her because of scheduling, you may ask to speak with the on duty Shift Supervisor. You will meet privately with the Shift Supervisor to discuss your complaint. Your complaint will be received politely and professionally and you will be expected to conduct yourself in a similar manner. If your conduct is considered inappropriate, the Shift Supervisor may insist that you return at another time to discuss your complaint.

If appropriate, the Shift Supervisor will resolve the matter directly. If warranted, the Shift Supervisor will begin an initial Formal Complaint Investigation. You will be asked to provide a written sworn statement detailing your complaint. You will sign a complaint form saying that you understand that any false or untrue statement by you during this complaint may be subject to criminal or civil liability. You will be provided with a copy of your complaint. Your complaint will be forwarded to the Investigations Division for initiation of a Formal Complaint Investigation.

While the Walton County Sheriff’s Office does encourage citizens to file complaints, the complaints must be made in good faith. Should the Sheriff’s Office discover that the person or persons acting as complainants or witnesses issued statements known or believed to be false, the Sheriff’s Office may pursue criminal action against that person. Civil action against an untruthful complainant can be initiated by the employee who is the subject of a false complaint.

---

---

If a complaint can not be resolved with the Shift Supervisor and especially involving more serious complaints of misconduct, the Shift Supervisor will take an initial statement from the complainant and begin a Formal Investigation. The complainant will complete a complainant form. The complainant will sign the form saying that you understand that any false or untrue statement made during this complaint may be subject to criminal or civil liability. The complainant will be provided with a copy of the complaint. The incident will then be referred to the Investigation Division Commander for a formal investigation. An investigator, assigned to investigate the formal complaint, will contact you to schedule an interview to review your complaint.

The Investigations Division, under direct authority of Sheriff Johnson, investigates all formal complaints of misconduct by all department personnel. The goal and function of the Investigation Division is to ensure that the integrity of the department is maintained and that objectivity, fairness, and justice are ensured. An impartial investigation and review of each complaint brought to the Sheriff’s Office attention is vital.

All formal investigations derived from complaints are reported to Sheriff Johnson. A thorough and impartial investigation is conducted by, or under the direction of Investigations Division Commander. After the allegations are fully investigated, the Sheriff’s Office will decide what action should be taken to resolve the complaint. The Sheriff’s Office will, based on a preponderance of the facts, decide whether the employee violated any rules and regulations of the Walton County Sheriff’s Office, or The State of Florida. If the Sheriff’s Office learns that an employee did violate rules and regulations, of this Office, the employee will be disciplined according to those rules and regulations. If the Sheriff’s Office learns that the employee violated the Law of the State of Florida, the appropriate court action will be initiated through the Office of the State Attorney.

The complainant is notified in writing of the results of the investigation, regardless of the outcome.

---

Please complete this form with as much detailed information as possible. Once completed, have the form notarized. These forms are accepted by mail or in person at either the DeFuniak Springs Main Administration Building or the Santa Rosa Substation.
Please mail to: