An Administrator's Guide to California Private School Law

Chapter 12 - Investigations

According to the DFEH Workplace Harassment Guide:

 Investigations should not be interrogations. Neither the complainant nor the accused party should feel they are being cross-examined. Studies have shown that open-ended questions are better at eliciting information while not causing people to feel attacked. Investigators should ask open-ended questions on all areas relevant to the complaint to get complete information from the parties and witnesses. 1951

The investigator should focus on the facts to find out:  What happened?  Who was involved?  Who were the witnesses?

 How did it happen?  When did it happen?  Where did it happen?  Why did it happen? Answers to these basic factual questions will help lead to the facts necessary for a final decision as to whether the school’s policy was violated. For each interview, the investigator should also request any documentation in the interviewee’s possession as well as suggestions of other relevant documents, such as diary entries, calendars, Facebook/Instagram posts, emails, phone messages, records, and texts. The investigator should also note the consistency of witness’ stories, whether the witnesses are credible, and whether any exculpatory evidence exists. Generally, the investigator should conduct interviews in the following order:  The complainant/alleged target – to get a complete complaint.  Witnesses – anyone else with knowledge of the incident.  The alleged wrongdoer – give him/her the last word It is sometimes necessary to do supplemental interviews of the complainant, certain witnesses, or the alleged wrongdoer to ask about evidence obtained in subsequent interviews. 2. P REPARATION F OR T HE I NTERVIEWS a. Who To Interview And What To Ask One of the most effective means of gathering facts during an investigation is to interview witnesses who might have information about the allegations in the complaint.

An Administrator’s Guide to California Private School Law ©2019 Liebert Cassidy Whitmore 448