Office of Police Oversight releases over 200 protest-related complaints against APD

AUSTIN, Texas - The Office of Police Oversight has published over 200 protest-related complaints against the Austin Police Department and says it was contacted almost 900 times over the last two weeks.

The office says it was contacted 895 times (107 by an online form, 387 by phone and 401 by email) in relation to the recent protests against police brutality that began on May 29. Of those, 227 formal complaints were published and are representative of 606 individuals who filed a complaint.

DOWNLOAD THE FOX 7 AUSTIN NEWS APP FOR YOUR MOBILE DEVICE

The published complaints were received between May 29 and June 10 and range from concerns about the use of force against protesters to specific complaints about injuries to individuals, such as 16-year-old Brad Levi Ayala, who was shot in the head with a less-lethal bean bag round while watching the protests on May 30.

Brother of Brad Levi Ayala speaks at special meeting held by Austin City Council

The brother of the 16-year-old boy who is undergoing neurological testing after an officer with APD shot him in the head Saturday with a “less lethal” bean-bag round gave a heartbreaking speech at Austin City Council's special meeting.

Last week, Director Farah Muscadin reported to Austin City Council that the Office of Police Oversight received an unprecedented number of complaints about interactions between protesters and the Austin Police Department. In previous years, OPO received an average of 50 formal complaints.

SIGN UP FOR FOX 7 AUSTIN EMAIL ALERTS

“This volume of complaints and the pattern of alleged behavior echoes the sentiment expressed at recent City Council meetings,” said Muscadin in a release. “Residents are concerned about the use of force by the Austin Police Department and are calling for transparency and accountability.”

Discussing policing and police reform

There's a big debate on calls for defunding police departments and police reform in communities all over the U.S. Dr. Howard Williams with Texas State University shares his thoughts.

The Office of Police Oversight, which is not a part of APD, is staffed by civilian, non-police employees. Staff review complaints submitted by the public and the office says if a potential policy violation is identified, a formal complaint is drafted and submitted to APD’s Internal Affairs department for investigation. The OPO monitors all Internal Affairs investigations.

The complaints released Friday all bear the Class A designation, which, according to OPO, include but are not limited to:

Criminal conduct
Serious policy violations
Conduct that could damage the Police Department

To learn more about the office's complaint investigation process, click here. To read all the complaints released by the office related to the protests, click here.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE ON THE PROTESTS CONCERNING POLICE VIOLENCE IN THE U.S.