Standard Operating Procedures for Police Report Writing
Let's face it - writing reports is quite possibly one of the most boring, yet tedious tasks a police officer will perform throughout his or her career. However, basic report writing is one of the most important parts of the job that police officers do, and it is imperative that it is done right. It is "the foundation for other important activities and accompanying reports." Hopefully, this article will give you a little insight on how to properly format a good police report with little effort. It is a standard format that is used by most police agencies throughout the United States.
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Get The Facts
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The most important part of police report writing is obtaining all of the facts. Generally, a police officer will first make contact with a person who has a complaint about a criminal legal issue, commonly referred to as the complainant. The complainant will most likely have the best, most accurate information about the incident. This is one of the most crucial parts of report writing because this is where the basis of the report starts. You will need to gather information such as names, dates of birth, race/sex, residence, place of occurrence, dates and times of occurrence, and facts about the incident. Also gather information from witnesses, especially uninterested third parties since they gain little to no benefit from providing you with accurate information.
Organize Your Information
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All information gathered for a police report must be organized chronologically. When you get to a scene and gather the information, write it down just as it happened. For example, you could start your report by writing, "At 10:15 AM on September 12, 2009, I responded to Joe's Laundry House at 123 4th St. in reference to a complaint of a theft." Here, you have just established the date, the time, the location and the reason why you are there. You could continue your synopsis by writing, "Upon my arrival, I met with Tim Johnson, white male, date of birth 01/02/1987, who stated that an unknown person had taken his $20.00 from his desk without his consent." Continue your report by adding information that is pertinent to the case, such as what you observed at the crime scene and what any witnesses said.
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Format Your Report
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Police reports should follow a basic format to ensure that all of the information that needs to be included, is included. The written portion of your report will need to incude the following:
Synopsis - what the complaint is
Crime Scene - what you observed at the scene, to include what you might have recovered as evidence
Witnesses - what any witnesses said
Case Status - what you did to resolve the incident (arrest, forward to an investigative unit, and so on)
Use Plain Language
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When writing a report, keep it simple. Use plain language that everyone can understand. Remember, your colleagues at the department are not the only ones who will read your report. Police reports are read by attorneys for the prosecution and the defense, judges, the media and the public.
Benefits
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The best way to gain credibility as a police officer is to write a clear, concise, readable report that is factual and not opinionated. Follow this simple guideline and you should have little to no problems writing reports effectively.
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