criminal justice 2011

Criminal Justice 2011

Class Name,Instructor Name

Date, Semester

Chapter 1:Why We Write Police Reports

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Why We Write Police Reports

• Background• Police reports document the history of law enforcement• Records Management Systems• Uniform Crime Reporting Program• National Incident Based Reporting System• New York State Incident-Based Reporting Program

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

The Mechanics of Writing

• Fill in the blanks• Check the boxes• Bubble in System• Optical Character Recognition• Narrative

3

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Report Writing Technology

Two primary types:1. Computers2. Dictation using recording devices

4

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Computers

What is out there…• Fixed Terminals vs. Lap Tops• Special Features

TemplatesForced ChoicesPull Down MenusGrammar CheckSpell CheckTouch Screen

5

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Optical Character Recognition

G. Tauschek in 1929• Translates scanned images of handwritten or typewritten

words into computer editable text• Useful and effective in entering data into Records

Management Systems• Better developed tor typewritten text and reports• Not so much for printed or cursive handwriting

6

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Dictation

Two components:1. Dictating

• Voice Dictation• Person To Person Dictating

2. Transcribing

7

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Dictation

Benefits of Dictating• Saves time• Final product is usually neater more user

friendly• Use with Automated Reporting Systems

8

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Dictation

Problems with Dictation• Poorly maintained equipment• Loss of power or weak batteries• Background noise• Lack of framework for the report • Poor cadence and speech by the dictator

9

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Automated Reporting Systems

Department Synergies• Rarely Stand Alone• Connect to Dispatch• Connect to Automated Records Management• Cost Effective• Training required for effectiveness

10

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Approval Process

Approval Systems• Hand written reports to supervisor• On-line systems accessed electronicallyCentralized Approval• Specially trained group of officers and

supervisors• Rapid and direct training when needed• Cadre of experts• Frees up other supervisors

11

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

Need for Effective Writing

• Not all programs get the job done• Not all students are created equal• Negative reinforcement of training• Report writing genealogy• Lack of consistency among supervisors• Law enforcement free agency• Trial by fire

12

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

1.1

1.2

1.3

1.4

The International Association of Chiefs of Police established the Uniform Crime Reporting System in

1929

The FBI is charged with managing the collection of crime statistics for the eight Part I Crimes

The National Incident Based Reporting System is an attempt to expand the value of the uniform crime reports by including detailed information on an

expanded set of crimes

It takes two or more people to have an effective dictation process

CHAPTER SUMMARY

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

© 2012 by Pearson Higher Education, IncUpper Saddle River, New Jersey 07458 • All Rights Reserved

1.5

1.6

1.7

1.8

Automated reporting systems almost always depend on supporting systems such as computer aided dispatch and automated records management

A solid report review and correction process is key to a successful report writing program

Knowing how to write is key to learning how to write a police report

A customized spelling cheat sheet is a better option than a dictionary.

CHAPTER SUMMARY