Savannah Police investigations into officer-involved shootings stretch on

Correction: This story has been updated to correct several factual errors.

The Savannah Police Department has seven open internal affairs investigations scrutinizing officer-involved shootings that have occurred within the past two years ― despite the fact that the Chatham County District Attorney and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation have closed four of them.

More: Chatham County District Attorney's office closes four officer-involved shooting cases

When there is an officer-involved shooting, the police agency requests the GBI to investigate, then hands over the investigation to the DA. The police agency simultaneously launches its own internal investigation. These processes then determine whether criminal charges will be filed and whether the officer or officers involved will be fired.

For a Savannah Police internal affairs investigation to be made public, the outside investigation must first be closed by both the DA and GBI. After lengthy delays due largely to high prosecutorial caseload, the Chatham DA closed four officer-involved investigations on March 29.

Asked why the internal affairs investigation into those cases haven't been resolved, Savannah Assistant Police Chief Robert Gavin said most internal affairs reviews don't begin until the GBI and DA have completed their inquiries to “determine whether a crime has been committed.”

IA investigations stretching on

Six officer-involved shootings have occurred between 2020 and 2022 involving Savannah Police. All internal affairs investigations remain ongoing. The reviews include:

• The Feb. 19, 2022, shooting of Zachary Smith, who was shot and injured by a Savannah Police officer Brandon Hower on White Bluff Road after a hectic police chase;

• The March 26, 2022, shooting of Robert Gadson, by two off-duty Savannah Police officers, Molly Montgomery and Martin Gurrola, after a fight unfolded between Gadson and bar employees at Boomy’s on Congress Street;

• The April 2, 2022, shooting of James Miller by Savannah Police Officer Claudette Simons at the 140 block of Bordeaux Lane after Miller was chasing people in the Colonial Oaks area.

• The Dec. 5, 2020, shooting of Olrich Fejfar by Savannah Police Officer Philip Webster after Fejfar allegedly exited a tent in a homeless camp "in an aggressive manner holding a razor knife and another sharp object" and;

• The April 10, 2022, shooting of David Dixon by Savannah Police Officer Reginald Brannan after Dixon allegedly repeatedly attacked officers with a makeshift weapon at the corner of Abercorn and Bay Streets.

Of those cases, one remains unresolved at the DA's level. On June 24, 2022, Saudi Lee was shot and killed by former Savannah Police officer, Ernest Ferguson. On Oct. 20, SPD fired Ferguson after a separate internal affairs investigation found him to have been drinking and driving, speeding and lying about his alcohol consumption to a Liberty County Sheriff’s Office deputy and Georgia State Patrol trooper.

SPD's internal affairs investigations have taken an average of 550 days. One case has stretched past the 960-day mark.

“As applied, there are occasions where investigations are complex and it is not feasible to conduct a full and complete investigation within three months,” Gavin wrote in the email. “Each case is assessed on its own merits. In officer-involved shootings, where outside agencies conduct parallel investigations, our process can take more than 90 days.”

It’s unclear where the Savannah Police Department stands in the process of its internal affairs investigations, including how close they are to closing the cases. The commander of the Office of Professional Standards, SPD Lieutenant Richard Wiggins, referred all inquires to the City of Savannah Public Information's Nick Zoller.

Asked about the pace of the internal affairs inquiries, Zoller responded: “It would not be an effective analysis to simply look at all officer-involved shootings and average out the days a case is investigated by the Office of Professional Standards because each case is unique," Zoller wrote in an email on June 28.

Lengthy investigations do have consequences, according to an academic article published in 2019 by University of South Dakota Assistant Professor of Criminal Justice Thomas Mrozla. He suggests ongoing investigations affect both officers and complainants.

Specifically, Mzorla wrote, prompt internal affairs investigations show that the police chief doesn’t tolerate corruption and misconduct within the force, allows the accused officer to focus on his regular policing duties rather than the investigation and allows the victims’ families and community at-large to receive closure. A prompt internal affairs investigation also boosts department morale, Mrozla wrote.

Contacted regarding his research, Mrozla said, “When these things aren’t investigated in a proper manner, it weakens accountability and public trust."

More: Savannah Police detective under review over search warrants in Charles Vinson murder case

More: Chatham County District Attorney's office closes four officer-involved shooting cases

More: Chatham County District Attorney staff shortage puts defendants, victims, prosecutors in jeopardy

IA investigations dragging on

Agencies overseeing police departments set recommendations for the length of internal affairs investigations.

Established in 1979, CALEA (Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies) is an international certification for public safety agencies, which requires organizations such as police departments to benchmark and report on 483 standards to achieve accreditation. One of those standards is for every police department to specify a 30-day time limit for completing an internal affairs investigation and issue status reports due every seven days.

There may be exceptions to the 30-day limit, but extensions should be granted only in those cases in which extenuating circumstances exist, according to CALEA.

The United States Department of Justice states that it is “preferable to conclude investigations within 180 days.”

“Completion of Internal Affairs investigations should occur as rapidly as is reasonably necessary to fulfill the investigative mission,” reads Chapter 3.6 of the United States Department of Justice Standards and Guidelines for Internal Affairs. “In all instances, however, an internal investigation should be completed within a reasonable time before any applicable statute of limitations or other bar to officer discipline has run out.”

Some local police departments also set time limits on IA investigations. Others don’t.

Similar to SPD, Chatham County Police Department’s Office of Professional Standards policy states that all investigations should be completed within 90 days of the date assigned. The Garden City Police Department doesn’t have an official time limit on investigation length, but GCPD Administrative Commander Brian Hood wrote in an email that GCPD tries to “complete our investigations in two weeks or less, but it depends on the type of investigation that we are conducting.”

Despite ongoing IA investigations, officers are quickly returning to duty

While the internal affairs investigations of the officer-involved shootings have dragged on, six of the seven officers have returned to work. The other, Brannan, died in a car accident in August 2022.

On average, SPD officers have returned to work 22 days after shootings.

Officers quickly returning to work with multiple probes ongoing worries Mrozla, the professor.

“When an investigation is not closed, and we don't have an answer if something was justified, it could be problematic from an accountability standpoint when officers who are involved in shootings return to duty so quickly,” Mrozla said.

This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Savannah Police investigations into officer involved shooting lengthy