The first unexpected discovery came from a database query requested through the records unit. There were fourteen formal complaints naming Derek Reigns over the preceding twenty-four months. Twelve had been closed as unfounded or dismissed without sustained findings. The remaining two had received minor administrative resolutions, neither involving the kinds of misconduct alleged that morning.
Marcus looked at the distribution of dates. The complaints were spaced across two years, some arriving within weeks of each other, then disappearing for months. Most involved traffic stops, vehicle searches, or towing. Several mentioned money. Nearly all had been reviewed by the same supervisor, Sergeant Calvin Voss.
"Fourteen complaints doesn't automatically prove fourteen violations," Kim cautioned when Marcus showed her the list. "Some might be mistaken. Some could involve lawful enforcement handled badly. We have to review each file on its own merits." Marcus agreed. What troubled him was not simply the number, but the repeated explanation attached to cases that had nothing else in common.
The first file involved Mrs. Elena Rodriguez, a retired home health aide who had been stopped returning from a pharmacy six months earlier. She wrote that Reigns had accused her of rolling through a stop sign, though she insisted she had come to a full stop. The officer allegedly mentioned a cash payment that would avoid expensive trouble, then threatened to tow her car when she asked for a written citation instead. The complaint ended with a familiar phrase: body-camera footage unavailable because of equipment malfunction.
The investigating note was brief. Officer denies allegation. No independent witness. Insufficient corroboration.
Complaint unfounded. It had been signed by Voss, and there was no indication that anyone had tried to retrieve footage from nearby traffic cameras or contact a passenger Mrs. Rodriguez mentioned in her statement.
The second complaint was submitted by Davis Williams, a thirty-one-year-old delivery driver raising two children with his wife. Williams had written that Reigns asked for five hundred dollars after stopping him for an alleged brake-light violation. When Williams refused, his car was towed, leaving him to miss three days of work while he arranged payment. He attached photographs showing both brake lights operating the evening his vehicle was returned.
Again, the record referred to a camera malfunction. Again, Voss had endorsed the finding that no misconduct could be established. A notation near the bottom of the review said the complainant seemed motivated by resentment over legitimate enforcement action. Marcus reread that line, wondering whether anyone had actually spoken with Williams about the loss of work.
The third file made him put down his pen. Harold Jennings was seventy-three, retired after a career maintaining elevators in office buildings throughout Westbridge. He had lived on Oak Street since his children were small and was known for repairing neighbors' lawn mowers without charging for labor. Eight months earlier, Reigns had stopped him near a school zone and claimed he was speeding.
Jennings said the speed allegation was false. He asked politely to see the reading and was told that challenging an officer could make his day expensive. According to his complaint, Reigns leaned toward the driver's window and offered to "handle the problem" for five hundred dollars in cash. Jennings, who carried less than sixty dollars, refused.