Will APD begin following the law?

Recent reporting by Statesman reporter Austin Sanders underscores an issue that I raised a couple months ago: APD chiefs have repeatedly ignored requests from the police oversight office to explain decisions not to discipline officers for seemingly indefensible behavior.

According to the memo [by Austin Police Oversight] the oversight office formally objected three times in 2024 to disciplinary decisions made by the interim Police Department chief. In each case, Police Oversight determined through its review that officers had violated department general orders — including excessive force and conduct violations — but APD closed the cases administratively and provided no formal response to objections.

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It's not clear, for instance, if APD has done anything in response to an APO memo highlighting an alarming number of complaints – 25! – against Officer Ryne Kirchberg over two-and-a-half years. Five of the complaints were sustained by APD Internal Affairs.