It is with regret that we share that members of our Indiana University Bloomington Police Department (IUPD) failed to apply Indiana University’s (IU) high standards for pursuing and arrest. On September 7, 2022, two IUPD officers responded to a complaint from a parking attendant regarding an individual who left the parking lot without paying. The officers located the individual and arrested him. The criminal charges filed against the individual were later dismissed. An initial and standard department review of the arrest conducted in October 2022 by the former IUPD Police Chief concluded no wrongdoing had occurred and no subsequent action was undertaken.
On June 15, 2023, the IU administration was made aware of the individual’s concerns and complaints following the filing of a lawsuit with the U.S. District Court. Immediately, IU conducted a thorough evaluation of all associated behaviors, processes, and procedures. This secondary review determined that the former IU Police Chief did not follow mandatory review protocols during the initial 2022 review. With the application of the full review protocols, in the summer of 2023, IU determined that IUPD policies were indeed violated during this incident.
In response to the incident, IU has taken the following actions:
- All responsible parties within IUPD have received disciplinary action.
- IU has engaged an external consultant to conduct a thorough review of the police department in Bloomington and on every IU campus to assess policies, procedures, practices, cultural norms, and leadership.
- Enhanced training on fair and impartial policing, procedural compliance, and field operations is underway.
- IU is implementing operational changes to university processes such as parking enforcement, to ensure reasonable responses in the future.
- IU will maintain an open dialogue and inform of any additional steps we may take to ensure that IUPD operates at the highest ethical standards aligned with IU’s core values.
We are deeply saddened by the behavior and actions that took place and offer our sincere apology to the individual and to our community. Indiana University holds our staff, faculty, and leadership to the highest standards of ethical conduct and integrity, including IUPD.
The following video is a compilation of unedited footage captured by two IU Bloomington Police officers on September 7, 2022. Personally-identifiable information has been redacted to comply with Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) standards.
