Within the department, there are twelve primary divisions: The Chief of Police, Internal Affairs, Development Bureau, Investigations, Traffic Enforcement, Crime Analysis Unit, Public Information Office, Towing Administration, Property & Evidence, Operations Bureau, Technology, Records, and Special Operations.

[citation needed] The Tallahassee Police Department was the subject of intense scrutiny after a botched buy-bust operation ended in a fatal tragedy on May 7, 2008, with the execution-style murder of 23-year-old Rachel Hoffman.

In a civil suit alleging wrongful death, the City of Tallahassee paid the Hoffman family $2.6 million in damages.

Brayshaw brought an action in federal court, challenging the constitutionality of the Florida statute, claiming a right to free speech under the First Amendment.

On April 30, 2010, Judge Richard Smoak ruled in favor of Brayshaw, striking down the 1972 Florida law, finding that the statute was "unconstitutional on its face".

[3][4][5][6] On April 16, 2014, The New York Times reported irregularities in the investigation of an alleged sexual assault involving Florida State University quarterback Jameis Winston.

A medical examination of the unnamed female revealed injuries consistent with sexual contact—bruises, semen—and the woman would later identify Jameis Winston by name as her alleged attacker.

The initial TPD investigation did not uncover the fact that a video of the sexual encounter had been taken by Seminoles teammate Chris Casher.

[7] On May 27, 2020, a white TPD officer shot 38-year-old African-American Tony McDade, a 38-year-old trans man, following reports of a fatal stabbing in Leon Arms Apartments.

He later posted a video on Facebook in which he vowed to kill his attackers and would rather die at the hands of police than return to prison.

[14][15][11][13] A vigil was organised for May 28, this being the third police-shooting (after Wilbon Cleveland Woodard, and Mychael Johnson) since the appointment of Ravell as Chief of Police in December 2019.

[19] The High Risk Offenders Bureau is composed of the Special Investigations Unit and the Violent Crimes Response Section.

This type of community involvement embodies the "Trust, Loyalty and Commitment" that are the fundamental foundations through which Chief Michael J. DeLeo leads the Tallahassee Police Department.