At 9:15 a.m., Captain Mitchell called her first command meeting.
The conference room was located on the second floor, behind a set of frosted glass doors. Eight supervisors sat around a rectangular table. Some looked curious. Others looked nervous.
Lieutenant Marcus Reed, a veteran officer with twenty-two years of service, sat near the end.
He had served under three different precinct commanders and had learned that new leadership usually arrived with promises.
Most promises disappeared within a month.
Renee entered carrying the same blue folder.
"Good morning, everyone."
The supervisors stood.
"At ease," she said.
She placed the folder on the table and looked around.
"I know some of you were expecting Chief Harlan to remain in command until the end of the quarter. However, the commissioner has approved an immediate leadership transition."
Marcus nodded.
"Yes, Captain. We received the notice."
"Good. Then I'll keep this brief."
She opened the folder.
"I'm not here to insult anyone's work. I'm not here to punish people for decisions made before I arrived. But I am here to establish one expectation."
She paused.
"Every officer in this precinct will be held to the same standard."
Nobody spoke.
Renee continued.
"That includes senior officers, junior officers, supervisors, and me."
Lieutenant Reed leaned forward.
"Captain, may I ask what prompted the immediate change?"
"Certainly."
"Chief Harlan's departure was unexpected."
"His departure was approved by the commissioner."
"Was there a specific incident?"
Renee closed the folder.
"There are several matters currently under administrative review. I won't discuss confidential details in this meeting."
A sergeant at the opposite end exchanged a glance with another supervisor.
Renee noticed.
"Something you'd like to share?"
The sergeant shook his head.
"No, ma'am."
"All right."
She distributed several printed documents.
"These are the preliminary operational priorities. First, we will review pending complaints. Second, we will examine the use-of-force reporting process. Third, we will evaluate the integrity of evidence documentation."
Marcus looked down at his copy.
"Evidence documentation?"
"Yes."
"Is there a particular concern?"
"There are discrepancies in several reports."
The room became noticeably quieter.
Renee continued.
"I won't make assumptions. Every discrepancy will be examined fairly. If an error was accidental, we will establish why it happened and correct it. If someone deliberately altered a record, that will be treated differently."
A supervisor cleared his throat.
"Captain, are we talking about misconduct by patrol officers?"
"I'm talking about records. The investigation will determine responsibility."
Marcus studied her expression.
He recognized something in her tone.
She wasn't improvising.
She already knew where she wanted to look.
After the meeting, the supervisors filed out one by one.
Marcus remained behind.
"Captain Mitchell?"
"Lieutenant."
"Can I speak with you privately?"
"Of course."
He closed the conference room door.
"I've been here a long time. I've seen good officers leave because they felt nobody was listening."
Renee nodded.
"That's something I want to understand."
"Then you should know that some of the complaints you're reviewing were never properly investigated."
"Which complaints?"
Marcus hesitated.
"Several involving Officer Carter's unit."
Renee looked at him.
"Daniel Carter?"
"Yes."
"What kind of complaints?"
"Excessive force allegations. Disrespect toward civilians. Two incidents involving questionable arrest documentation."
"Why weren't they resolved?"
Marcus lowered his voice.
"Chief Harlan had a close relationship with Carter's former supervisor. Every time someone complained, the paperwork seemed to disappear into administrative review."
Renee didn't react immediately.
"Do you have documentation?"
"I have copies of some reports."
"Where?"
"In my office."
"Bring them to me. Don't remove anything from official storage, and don't alter any records."
Marcus nodded.
"I understand."
He turned to leave, then stopped.
"Captain?"
"Yes?"
"There's something else."
Renee waited.
"Officer Carter knows people. He's been protected for a long time. If you challenge him, he'll probably make things difficult."
Renee closed her folder.
"Lieutenant, I didn't come here because I expected everyone to make things easy."
Marcus gave a small, reluctant smile.
"Then I hope you know what you're walking into."
"I do."
When he left, Renee returned to her office.
She opened her laptop and accessed the department's internal records system.
A list of complaints appeared.
Three cases had been marked resolved.
Two had incomplete supporting documents.
One had no recorded supervisory review.
She opened the oldest file.
The incident involved a civilian named Thomas Bell, who had alleged that Officer Carter struck him during a traffic stop.
The complaint had been dismissed as unsupported.
But the attached evidence inventory contained an unusual note.
BODY CAMERA FOOTAGE: TEMPORARILY UNAVAILABLE.
Renee stared at the screen.
She checked the incident date.
Then she checked the retention log.
The recording should have existed.
It should have been preserved.
And according to the system, someone had accessed the evidence archive three days after the complaint was filed.
Someone had requested the footage.
Someone had changed its status.
Renee wrote down the access reference.
Then she noticed the name associated with the authorization.
Chief Robert Harlan.
Her expression became serious.
The problem was no longer simply about an arrogant patrol officer.
It was about a chain of command that might have been hiding something.
And Renee intended to find out exactly what.