GlossaryStaffing, accountability, and public reporting
Internal affairs
Internal affairs is an agency function that receives, reviews, investigates, or oversees allegations about employee conduct under the agency's procedures.
Internal affairs is an agency function that receives, reviews, investigates, or oversees allegations about employee conduct under the agency's procedures. It can be organized as a dedicated unit or assigned through another structure. An internal-affairs case is a review process, not proof that an employee committed misconduct or a criminal offense.
Reading the process
Henrico County Police's internal-affairs policy describes identifying potential policy or law violations, assigning investigation responsibility, maintaining records, and tracking case status. It provides a named local example rather than a universal national procedure.
An administrative investigation asks questions under employment or agency rules. If alleged conduct also raises criminal issues, a separate legal process may be involved. The existence or outcome of one review does not automatically supply the outcome of the other.
Example
Hypothetical example: A department opens an internal-affairs case about an alleged failure to follow a reporting policy. After review, it records an administrative finding. No criminal charge is described in the available record.
The record supports describing the policy review and its stated finding. It does not support adding a criminal conviction or assuming that a prosecutor considered the same matter. The scope of each process needs its own evidence.
Common confusion
A public complaint is one possible starting point. Internal matters can also arise from supervisory review or other sources. Complaint intake totals therefore need not equal all internal-affairs investigations.
Civilian oversight operates under a separate local mandate and may investigate, review, audit, or monitor. It is not automatically the same function as internal affairs.
Local reporting
Check the policy's finding definitions, responsible decision-maker, status date, and whether a case includes multiple allegations. Distinguish open cases, completed investigations, sustained allegations, and discipline. A short annual table may summarize only one of those stages.