How do I file a complaint against a police officer in Georgia?

What should I do right after a bad police encounter?

The first hours matter most, because details fade and evidence gets lost.

• Write it all down now: the date, time and exact location, what was said, and the officers' names, badge numbers, patrol car numbers and agency.
• Save your video and photos: back them up somewhere other than your phone. The federal appeals court that covers Georgia has recognized a First Amendment right to record police in public, subject to reasonable time, place and manner limits (Smith v. City of Cumming, 2000). Georgia's eavesdropping law bars recording what happens in a private place out of public view without consent (O.C.G.A. 16-11-62), and it allows recording a conversation you are part of (16-11-66).
• Get witnesses: names, phone numbers and what each person saw.
• Document injuries: photograph them over several days, get medical care, and keep every record and bill.
• Keep your paperwork: any citation, property receipt, report number or business card an officer gave you.

Justice Sentinel lets you record these details as soon as possible after the encounter, so your notes, times and evidence are already in one place when you file.

Where do I file a complaint against a Georgia police officer?

You can file in more than one place. Many people start with the agency and add the others that fit.

1. The officer's own agency

Every police department and sheriff's office takes complaints about its own officers, usually through internal affairs or professional standards. Some publish clear rules:

• Georgia State Patrol: the Department of Public Safety's policy accepts verbal or anonymous complaints about misconduct that could lead to a suspension without pay, a pay cut, demotion or firing. It also accepts complaints filed for a minor child or for someone who cannot file because of a disability or injury. It sends an acknowledgment letter, gives updates at least every 30 days while a complaint is investigated, and gives a written outcome.
• Savannah Police (Office of Professional Standards): takes complaints in person at any SPD facility, by phone, fax, email, mail or an online form, and accepts anonymous complaints.
• Augusta (Richmond County Sheriff): Internal Affairs takes complaints in person, by email, by phone, online or by fax, and says every complainant is entitled to a response.

2. The Atlanta Citizen Review Board

The Atlanta Citizen Review Board (ACRB) takes complaints about Atlanta Police and Corrections officers online, by form, by phone, by email or in person. If you saw or were involved in the incident and fear retaliation or harassment, you can ask to file anonymously; the ACRB decides whether to allow it. Since 2020 the board has also had authority to investigate police shootings and deaths in custody. A 2025 agreement requires Atlanta police to notify it of these within 24 hours. These reviews have been slow: news reports in late 2025 described a backlog of about 50 cases, and in March 2026 the board completed its first police shooting investigation since it gained that authority. You can still file a complaint about one. The ACRB's complaint brochure gives 365 days from the incident to file, but its FAQ page says 180 days, so filing within 180 days meets both. If you face criminal charges from the encounter, consider talking to your defense lawyer before you file.

• File with the ACRB: the board's online and printable complaint forms.

3. Georgia POST

The Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council certifies officers and can reprimand, suspend, put on probation or revoke an officer's certification. Grounds include false statements, a felony, unprofessional conduct, and being suspended or fired for discipline (O.C.G.A. 35-8-7.1). POST investigates involuntary firings, long suspensions and alleged crimes by officers. When an officer is arrested, suspended for 30 days or more, or fired for discipline, both the officer and the agency must tell POST within 15 days. A complaint to the agency can reach POST this way if it leads to that kind of discipline.

4. Shootings, deaths and crimes

The Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) investigates many police shootings and deaths in custody, usually at the request of the agency involved or a district attorney, and sends its case file to the district attorney for review. If you believe an officer committed a crime, contact the district attorney for that county.

Can an officer sue me for a false complaint in Georgia?

Georgia law lets an officer sue someone who filed a complaint the person knew was false when they filed it (O.C.G.A. 35-8-7.3). An honest complaint, even one that is not sustained, is not a false complaint. Stick to what you saw and heard, and say when you are unsure.

Is there a deadline to file a police complaint in Georgia?

Agency deadlines vary, and many agencies do not publish one. The Atlanta Citizen Review Board's materials give 365 days in some places and 180 days in others. The deadlines for money damages are strict:

• City claim: a written claim within six months of the event, stating the time, place and extent of the injury, the negligence that caused it, and a specific amount of damages. It must go to the mayor or the chair of the city council or commission, in person, by certified mail or by statutory overnight delivery (O.C.G.A. 36-33-5).
• County claim: within 12 months (O.C.G.A. 36-11-1).
• State claim: written notice within 12 months of when the loss was discovered or should have been discovered. It must be sent by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery with return receipt requested, or delivered by hand with a receipt, to the Department of Administrative Services Risk Management Division. A copy must also go to the agency involved (O.C.G.A. 50-21-26).
• Personal injury lawsuit: within two years (O.C.G.A. 9-3-33).

Federal civil rights lawsuits (under 42 U.S.C. 1983) usually do not need the city or county claim notices above, but in Georgia they generally have the same two-year deadline as a personal injury lawsuit. A lawyer can tell you which deadlines apply to you.

How do I get police reports, records and body camera video?

Ask under the Georgia Open Records Act. People often call it a FOIA request, but for Georgia agencies it is an open records request.

• Response time: the agency must respond within three business days. If the records are not ready, it must describe them and give a timeline (O.C.G.A. 50-18-71). You can ask in person or by phone, but the law's enforcement provisions apply only to written requests.
• Incident reports: initial arrest and incident reports are public even while an investigation is pending.
• Complaint files: records of a complaint investigation become public ten days after the investigation ends or the file goes up for action (O.C.G.A. 50-18-72).
• Body and dash camera video: agencies must keep most recordings 180 days, and 30 months if they show a detention or arrest, a use of force or a crash, or are part of a criminal investigation. Video that may be needed for pending litigation is also kept 30 months, and if a lawsuit is filed in that time, until the case is finally decided (O.C.G.A. 50-18-96).

Justice Sentinel can generate a records request letter asking for the incident and arrest reports, body and dash camera video, dispatch logs and use-of-force reports from your incident.

When should I talk to a lawyer?

Talk to a lawyer soon if you were injured, arrested or charged, had property taken or damaged, or lost a family member, or if you think you may want money damages. The six-month deadline for a claim against a city goes fast. If you face criminal charges from the encounter, consider talking to your defense lawyer before you file a complaint, because what you write could come up in your case. Legal aid offices, lawyer referral services and civil rights organizations can help you find one.

How does Justice Sentinel help you file a police complaint?

Justice Sentinel is a civil rights app that helps people document police encounters and turn what happened into a formal misconduct complaint, a public records request or a court declaration signed under penalty of perjury. You can start a draft for free; the filing-ready PDF, delivery and declaration review are paid options.

• Document the encounter: answer guided questions about what happened, and the app organizes your account, times, people and evidence.
• Misconduct complaint: a formal complaint about an officer or department, written in clear, official language, that puts your account on the record with the agency, oversight bodies or investigators.
• Public records request: a request for the incident and arrest reports, dispatch logs, use-of-force reports and messages about your incident, and body and dash camera video in states where it is a public record.
• Court declaration: a written statement of the facts that you sign under penalty of perjury. Our team reviews it for completeness and formatting and returns it to you, as a paid option. Courts have their own rules for declarations, so check them, or give it to your attorney, before you file it.
• File it yourself or have it sent: start free with a draft, then choose a paid option: download a filing-ready PDF and send it yourself, or have your complaint and records request delivered for you to the agency you choose, with tracking.
• Proof of delivery: when the agency's mail server confirms it received a complaint or records request we sent for you, you get a Certificate of Service recording when, where and what was sent, which your attorney can use as proof of delivery.
• Agency directory: look up thousands of US law enforcement agencies and start a complaint against the right one.
• Encrypted attorney messaging: if your attorney also uses Justice Sentinel, messages between the two of you in its end-to-end encrypted channel are sealed in your browser before they are sent, so Justice Sentinel can't read them.