Police and Prison Service Personnel Ombudsman
About
The Police and Prison Service Personnel Ombudsman is the entity with whom police officers and prison guards can file a complaint about the police or prison system or their employees in cases such as discrimination or unfair treatment. The Ombudsman is an independent, civilian, non-biased entity, to which police officers or prison guards can reach directly, without an intermediary.
The Ombudsman is appointed by the Minister of Public Security in consultation with the Minister of Justice and with the approval of the Internal Affairs and Environmental Protection Committee in the Knesset. The Ombudsman is not subordinate to the Israel Police Commissioner or the Israel Prison Service Commissioner and in this way is impartial and independent, thereby avoiding conflicts of interest
The Ombudsman role was established in 1980 and modeled after the IDF Soldiers’ Ombudsman. This was due to the similarity between the frameworks as well as a result of the police officers’ and prison guards’ ineligibility to unionize.
Process
In the event that the Ombudsman finds a complaint justified, he notifies the relevant police or prison service official and makes recommendations to ameliorate the situation and prevent future incidents from recurring. The recommendations must then be implemented by the respective organization within two months of receiving the recommendations. If no measures are taken, documented reasoning must be submitted to the Ombudsman, signed by the Israel Police Commissioner or the Israel Prison Service Commissioner.
Duties and activities of the Ombudsman
- To investigate complaints and report on findings, and if necessary, make recommendations to rectify the injustice and prevent future incidents from recurring
- To issue an annual report to the Minister of Public Security and to the Internal Affairs and Environmental Protection Committee in the Knesset
- To provide guidance to potential complainers before a complaint is filed
- To speak and conduct courses in the Israel Police and Israel Prison Service
- To meet with the upper echelon of the Israel Police and Israel Prison Service on a regular basis
- To visit police and prison service units
- To produce a periodical with updates on the unit’s activities, serving to raise awareness among personnel about different types of complaints dealt with by the Ombudsman
Roles and Positions
- Acting Police and Prison Service Personnel Ombudsman
Advocate Hana Pasovsky-Kaplan
Contact Us
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AddressHartom St. 8, Jerusalem
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Email[email protected]
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Telephone
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Additional telephone number
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Fax02-5418081
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Call center operating hours
- Sunday-Thursday: 9:00-16:00