"I can meet you tomorrow."
"Thank you. We will arrange a time."
The call ended.
Chen immediately contacted Rebecca Mills.
Her reaction was different.
When Chen mentioned the officer's name, Rebecca became quiet.
"I thought you people had already decided nothing happened."
"I understand why you might feel that way."
"You closed the complaint before even looking at the video."
Chen looked at the file.
"We found that the video may not have been included in the original review."
"It wasn't may not have been. I sent it."
"I see that in the correspondence."
Rebecca's voice became sharper.
"I waited for weeks. Nobody called me. Nobody explained anything. Then I received a letter saying the matter was closed."
Chen listened.
"I am sorry that the earlier review did not address your evidence properly. We are examining that decision now."
Rebecca took a breath.
"What happened to the officer?"
"He remains employed by the department. The current incident is under investigation."
"Then I want to know why nobody did anything before."
Chen wrote down the question.
"We will look into that."
Rebecca agreed to provide another statement.
By the end of the day, the investigation had expanded beyond the original parking garage encounter.
The department now had to examine not only Miller's actions, but also the decisions made by the supervisors who had reviewed previous complaints.
The police chief, Thomas Whitaker, received a briefing at 5:15 p.m.
He listened as Captain Brooks summarized the evidence.
When she finished, he removed his glasses.
"How serious is this?"
Brooks answered carefully.
"The current incident raises substantial concerns about the officer's use of force and the accuracy of his report. The archived complaints also suggest a possible pattern. Several earlier reviews may have been incomplete."
Whitaker looked at the folder.
"How many complaints are we talking about?"
"Eleven entries over three years. We have not determined that every entry involved misconduct, but the similarities justify a full review."
"Has Miller been interviewed?"
"Yes, regarding the current incident. A further interview will be scheduled after we complete the evidence comparison."
"What about Sergeant Carter?"
"We interviewed him today. His supervisory decisions are also being examined."
Whitaker stood and walked toward the window.
He understood that the department faced a difficult situation.
The incident involved a federal judge, but the judge herself had repeatedly asked the department not to provide special treatment.
That made the situation even more sensitive.
If the department appeared to protect Miller, the evidence could damage public confidence.
If it appeared to punish him solely because the person involved held a prestigious position, it would create another problem.
The investigation had to be fair, independent, and thorough.
Whitaker turned around.
"Bring in an outside reviewer."
Brooks nodded.
"I was going to recommend that."
"I want someone who has no previous connection to Miller, Carter, or the earlier complaints."
"Understood."
"And I want the original evidence preserved before anyone starts discussing conclusions."
Brooks closed her folder.
"Already done."
The chief returned to his desk.
"Then let's find out what happened."
The next morning, Sarah Vance received a call from Anthony Price.
She did not recognize the number at first.
The caller introduced himself as a delivery driver who had been involved in a previous encounter with Officer Miller.
Sarah listened carefully.
Price explained that he had heard about the parking garage incident through a local news report.
He had also learned that the department was reviewing earlier complaints.
"I filed a complaint about him two years ago," Price said. "I told them he stopped me without explaining why. I asked for his name and he threatened to arrest me."
Sarah remained silent.
"They closed it," he continued. "I never heard anything after that."
"Have investigators contacted you?"
"Yes. A detective called yesterday."
"Are you willing to speak with them?"
"I already agreed."
Sarah nodded, although he could not see her.
"Then I hope they give you the opportunity to explain everything fully."
Price hesitated.
"Can I ask you something?"
"Of course."
"Do you think anything will actually change?"
Sarah looked at the documents on her desk.
"I can't promise you an outcome. But I can tell you that evidence matters. If people are willing to provide accurate accounts and the investigators examine them properly, the facts become harder to ignore."
Price thanked her.
Before ending the call, he added one final sentence.
"I wish someone had taken me seriously the first time."
Sarah did not have an easy answer.
After the call, she sat quietly.
That sentence stayed with her longer than anything else.
She had heard similar statements in court.
People who had been ignored.
People who had been dismissed.
People who had lost confidence in institutions because no one had taken the time to examine their complaints.
It was easy to discuss public accountability in a courtroom.
It was harder to ensure that accountability existed in the everyday places where ordinary people interacted with authority.