Citizen Complaint or Commendation Procedure

Citizen’s Guide to Making Complaints and Commendations

The Chester Police Department is committed to providing high quality police services to the community. In order to be responsive to community needs, it is necessary to have citizen input. Your constructive comments about our service, good or bad, will help us to improve and to achieve our goals.

Making a Complaint

A complaint can be made by letter, e-mail, telephone or in person. An Internal Affairs Complaint Form should be completed which can be located in the front lobby of the Chester Police Department or by clicking on the link at the bottom of this page.

It has been our experience that many complaints involve a misunderstanding of police policy or procedure and are often resolved by speaking with supervisory personnel. While we encourage you to try this avenue, we understand that some complaints do require a full inquiry. During this process, you will be kept informed of the progress of the inquiry and may be asked for additional information; you will also be advised when the investigation is completed.

Commending Exceptional Performance

The best way to commend the actions of a police employee is to write a brief letter or e-mail describing the incident, telling us about the actions you think were exceptional. Information such as the date, time and location will help identify the employee if you don’t know his or her name.

You may submit notes to Aaron P. Berube, Chief of Police, care of The Chester Police Department 84 Chester Street, Chester, NH  03036.

If you choose not to write, you may ask to speak with the employee’s supervisor and make a verbal commendation.

Letters which commend individuals are usually placed in the employee’s personnel file and posted. Although our employees don’t expect to be thanked for everything they do, recognition of exceptional service is always appreciated. This kind of feedback helps us to know if we’re doing a good job.