Office of Professional Standards

The Office of Professional Standards is made up of several different divisions within the West Point Police Department. Each of these divisions answers directly to the Chief of Police.

The Office of Professional Standards is the department’s gatekeeper of integrity, professionalism, and transparency. OPS performs three main functions to accomplish these tasks: Internal Affairs, Hiring and Background, and Open Records

Internal Affairs

It is the policy of the West Point Police Department to investigate all allegations of employee misconduct in a thorough and impartial manner. All alleged complaints of employee misconduct are documented to ensure that complaints are received and investigated in a consistent and reasonable manner; to identify areas of misunderstanding by the complaining citizen, to identify employees whose attitude, behavior and/or performance is in need of correction and supervisory intervention, to protect the agency employees and the Department from erroneous complaints; and to identify Department policies, training and/or practices in need of reevaluation, clarification and/or correction.

OPS maintains documentation of all complaints received and mainly investigates complaints of employee misconduct of a serious nature. Minor complaints of employee on-duty misconduct are documented by OPS, but is usually investigated by the employee's ranking supervisor. The West Point Police Department will investigate all complaints regardless of the manner in which the complaint is received.

Hiring and Background

The West Point Police Department is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, sex, age, religion, national origin, sexual orientation, physical disability (except where physical requirements constitute a bona fide occupational qualification) or natural origin. OPS is tasked with recruiting and vetting of qualified candidates to fill the ranks of the Police Department's civilian and sworn personnel.

Open Records

The West Point Police Department encourages public access and fosters public transparency and trust by implementing policy and procedure that adhere to laws and guidelines of the Georgia Open Records Act. It is the function of OPS to service the public's request of information regarding the Police Department and its personnel. Citizens should note; all open record requests should first be submitted to the City Clerk's Office.

Public Information Office

The Public Information Officer is the primary point of contact for the dissemination of information from the department to the media and general public. The Public Information Officer reports directly to the Chief of Police or the on-scene commander in his absence.

The duties of the Public Information Officer include, but are not limited to, preparing written news releases on incidents that are of public interest, meeting with media personnel on the scene of high profile incidents, responding to media and public inquiries, and publishing information related to progressive programs established to enhance relations between the community and its police department.