But when Internal Affairs reexamined 30 of those complaints with access to body camera footage and dispatch records that Kowalski hadn't reviewed, they found patterns of problematic behavior in 18 cases: officers making stops without reasonable suspicion, officers using force in situations that didn't warrant it, officers making racially coded comments.
Kowalski's failure to investigate properly hadn't just protected Castellano; it had protected multiple officers whose conduct needed to be addressed. The department published a scathing report criticizing Kowalski's supervision and noting that his failure to properly investigate complaints had allowed problematic behavior to continue unchecked throughout his division.
Kowalski had retired six months before the Whitmore incident, so he couldn't be disciplined. But the department stripped him of his retirement ceremony honors and made it clear that his legacy would be one of failed leadership. Several community leaders called for Kowalski to return his pension, though legally that wasn't possible.
The department also implemented sweeping new protocols based on what the investigation had revealed:
All complaints alleging racial profiling would be investigated by Internal Affairs, not by division supervisors, eliminating the conflict of interest that had allowed Kowalski to protect his officers.
All stops would be reviewed quarterly for patterns of racial disparity. The department hired a data analyst whose sole job was to track stop data, looking for officers whose stops showed racial disparities that couldn't be explained by legitimate factors.
All body camera footage from investigatory stops would be randomly audited to ensure officers were following proper procedures: 5% of all stops each month would be pulled at random and reviewed by a team of supervisors and community representatives.
The department created a civilian review board with actual power. Previous civilian oversight had been advisory only; the new board could compel testimony, access all records, and make binding recommendations on discipline for sustained complaints.
Officers were required to complete 16 hours of implicit bias training annually, not the previous two-hour online module that officers could click through without paying attention. The new training was in-person, interactive, and included scenarios designed to make officers confront their own biases.