The Office of Professional Accountability Review Board (OPARB) was created in 1999 as an independent office within the Seattle Police Department by Ordinance 119825. The intent was to ensure that Seattle police abide by the the laws, ethics, and policies governing their actions. Three members were elected by City Council for two years; these elected members must include a lawyer, an individual with criminal justice experience, and one person with a history of community organizing and outreach. The Board held meetings four times a month to review complaint records, internal investigations, and to answer civilian questions concerning police accountability. Due to new police accountability legislation in 2017, the Office of Professional Accountability Review Board was disbanded and reformed as two separate divisions: the Office of Police Accountability and the Community Police Commission.
Agendas, meeting minutes, and documents referenced during meetings of the Office of Professional Accountability Review Board (OPARB). These documents include multiple drafts of OPARB's 2007 General Policies and Procedures Report as well as multiple drafts of their 2007-2009 Strategic Plan Report, Seattle Police memoranda answering questions from previous meetings, a 2008 email from Mayor Greg Nickels about his plans to implement OPARB's reccomendations, and a letter of complaint towards Seattle police from a civilian in 2006. The minutes for 2010 and the majority of 2011 are missing.
Records are open to the public.
[Item and date], Office of Professional Accountability Review Board Minutes and Agendas, Record Series 9365-01. Box [number], Folder [number]. Seattle Municipal Archives.