A watchdog without teeth? The Independent Complaints Directorate

The Independent Complaints Directorate (ICD) was established in 1997 to promote proper police conduct and to ensure a transformed police service in line with the spirit and purport of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa. Concerns within the ICD that the police very often do not comply with their recommendations led to a joint ICD/ISS research project to investigate these concerns. The study eventually concludes that the ICD is relatively successful in cases of death in police custody or as a result of police action, but with regards to police misconduct and recommendations for disciplinary action, it is largely ignored by the police.