ENGLISH 1

Technical Report Writing

CHAPTER I
Police Report
INTRODUCTION
 
Nearly half of a police officer’s work involves writing,
and because of this, the best arrests will go
unprosecuted if the reporting officers do not have the
necessary writing skills to record their actions in a case
clearly, concisely, and accurately, with sufficient detail.

An officer’s report must document every incident in a

complete, clear, and concise manner.  Any arrest, follow
up investigation, prosecution, or administrative action
that is to be taken as a result of the report must be
initiated, supported, or justified by the information
contained solely within the body of the report.
INTRODUCTION
 
Consequently, every police report must be able to
withstand critical review and legal scrutiny, and must be
truthful, unbiased, and unprejudiced.  Moreover, police
officers have a moral and legal obligation to investigate
all crimes that are reported to them.   
USES OF POLICE REPORTS
Police reports have many different uses, both within
the criminal justice system and beyond:
1. Identification of Criminals
Police reports assist with the identification,
apprehension and prosecution of criminals by serving as
a source document for filing criminal complaints, by
providing a record of all investigations, and providing a
basis for additional follow up investigations.
USES OF POLICE REPORTS
2. Investigative Record
Police reports aid prosecutors, defense attorneys, and
other law enforcement agencies by providing records of
all investigations and serving as source documents for
criminal prosecution, as well as documenting agency
actions.
USES OF POLICE REPORTS
3. Court Preparation
Police reports assist officers prior to or during court
appearances by refreshing the officer’s memory before
testifying, or preparing to provide hearsay testimony at
preliminary hearings.  
USES OF POLICE REPORTS
4. Civil Liability Assessment
Police reports are essential for risk managers,
insurance companies, and civil litigation attorneys for use
in determining potential civil liability by documenting
events such as accidents or injuries on city, county, or
state property, workman’s compensation type injuries, as
well as to presenting justification for an officer’s behavior
or actions in a civil complaint or lawsuit against the
officer.
USES OF POLICE REPORTS
5. Statistical Analysis
Police reports assist police and civilian administrators
as well as the campus community by providing statistical
information for analysis of crime trends, equipment
needs, manpower issues, continued professional training
requirements, and assist in the evaluation of officer
performance.
 
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
On a daily basis, police officers are faced with a
variety of events and incidents.  At each one, officers are
required to make significant decisions, oftentimes
without delay, and while under stress or the benefit of all
the facts regarding the situation.   For this reason, crime
and incident reports must reflect the details of the
specific crime or incident for further reference and use.  
While the details of every incident or crime report will
likely vary, there are six characteristics that all effective
reports have in common.
 
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
An effective police report is always:
1. Factual.  A police report is an objective accounting
of the relevant and observed facts of the case, and any
conclusions made by the reporting officer must be
supported by articulated and documented
facts.   Unsubstantiated opinions or conclusions are
never to be included in an effective report.
 
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
2. Accurate.  The decisions and actions taken as a
result of the report must be supported by accurate
information contained in the report.  If any information is
inaccurate, the credibility and reliability of the report will
likely be jeopardized.  Accuracy is achieved by carefully,
precisely, and honestly reporting of all relevant
information.
 
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
3. Clear.  A police report speaks for the reporting
officer when he or she is not present. There should be no
doubt or confusion regarding what happened during an
incident or crime, based upon the content of a police
report.  Clarity in report writing is achieved by clear and
logical organization of information, the judicious use of
simple, common, and first person language, and
effective writing mechanics.
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
4. Concise.  Reports should be brief but also contain
all relevant information necessary for a complete
understanding of the crime or incident, without
additional explanation.   Brevity should never take
precedence over accuracy, completeness, or clarity in
report writing.
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
5. Complete. A complete report will contain all the
relevant facts, information, and details that the reader
will need to have in order to have a comprehensive
understanding of the crime or incident described in the
report.  The report is complete when it is a complete
word picture of the incident, there are no questions left
unanswered by the reader, officer actions are explained
and justified by the contents of the report, and both
supporting and conflicting information is included.
 
CHARACTERISTICS OF AN EFFECTIVE POLICE
REPORT
6. Timely. No decisions can be made or actions taken
regarding an arrest or request for follow up investigation
if a report is not submitted in a timely fashion.  
FIELD NOTES
An officer’s field notes are the original source
documents used to write a police report.  For this
reason, if field notes are incomplete, poorly organized, or
illegible, they will be of little use to the officer in writing
the resulting police report.  For this reason, field notes
should always be taken at the scene, especially when
interviewing suspect, victims or witnesses, and whenever
the officer wishes to remember specific details at a later
time.
FIELD NOTES
When writing field notes, officers should consider
that field notes are typically more reliable than memory,
especially since reports are typically written several hours
after a specific incident or crime has occurred.  This time
lapse can often cause an officer to easily forget or
confuse certain types of information, especially times,
observations, addresses, and key words and phrases from
statements. Moreover, the judicious use of field notes
can minimize or even eliminate the need to re-contact
the involved parties in a case at a later time.
 
FIELD NOTES
Every event, incident, and crime is different, and for
this reason, the facts and information needed by the
officer to write a police report is different.  However, field
notes should always be able to answer the questions
what, where, when, who, how, and why regarding the
incident.
Regardless of how the individual officer decides to
take field notes, the following information is a snapshot
of the items that should be included in field notes.
FIELD NOTES
Basic Information Additional Information
  and Witnesses
Victims
• Full name Age   • How to contact by
telephone or in person
   Date of birth • Best place to contact
 Race  Best time to contact
 Sex  Place of employment
 Telephone numbers (including name and
(home, work, cellular) telephone number)
• Address
 Email address(es)
Occurrence • Type of crime Location • All persons involved:
 Date and time of incident • Informants
• Was physical evidence • Reporting party
handled by officer, suspect, • Victims
or victim? • Witnesses
• Disposition and chain of  Suspects, if known
custody for all evidence • Officers
• Suspect direction of travel  Outside agencies and
·Type and description of members of outside
weapons agencies
FIELD NOTES
Basic Information Additional Information
 
Occurrence  Direct statements made  Outside agencies and
  by suspect members of outside
• Case number agencies
 Assisting officer’s • Medical personnel
actions (and supplements, • Members of the media
if necessary)
Suspects • Race Unusual or memorable
• Sex gestures
• Age  Speech peculiarities,
• Build such as accents, tone,
pitch, or noticeable
• Height speech disorder, such as
Weight stuttering
Eye color  Jewelry
Hair color  Rings (identify which
Hair style hand and finger)
Facial hair  Necklaces o Earrings
Clothing type  Body piercings
Clothing color  Right or left handed
FIELD NOTES
Basic Information Additional Information
 
Suspects  Which hand was
  dominant?
 Which hand held the
weapon?
 Which hand opened a
door?
 Where was a watch
worn?
 Gang affiliation (if
known)

Incident Specific • Scene description and

photographs (if available)
• Point of entry
• Point of exit
• Description of property
damage
• Types and values of
property taken
• Description of suspect
vehicle
FIELD NOTES
Basic Information Additional Information
 
Incident Specific • Nature and location of
  evidence collected
• Suspect and victim
injuries
• Unique characteristics of
the crime
• Anything else not already
mentioned that the officer
believes is relevant to the
case
NOTE TAKING AND CONDUCTING FIELD
INTERVIEWS
Typically, field notes are obtained from the officer’s
direct observations and from field interviews with
suspects, victims, and witnesses. The field interview,
however, is where the officer will learn the majority of
the information about a crime or incident.  Therefore,
the statements taken during a field interview are often
critical to learning about the specific facts of a case,
because the existence of certain crime elements may
only be revealed from the statements of witnesses,
victims, and the suspects of a case.
An effective field interview should generally
follow the following five step format.
1. Separate the involved parties.  This minimizes
distractions and interruptions.  Separating the involved
parties also focuses their attention on speaking to the
officer, rather than each other, and also minimizes
manipulation of witness statements by other involved
parties.  
2. Establish rapport.  Be courteous, considerate, and
patient. Briefly tell the person being interviewed why
the interview is being conducted, and describe the
interview process to the individual.
An effective field interview should generally
follow the following five step format.
3. Listen attentively.   Ask the person what happened,
and allow them to talk about it freely.   Let them explain
it in terms that they understand.  Be sure to keep the
person focused on the main subject being discussed in
the interview.  If they begin to get off topic, guide the
person back to the subject, and always use active
listening skills to encourage the person to talk. Listen
carefully, and pay attention to the details of the
incident.  Don’t take notes at this point in the interview!
An effective field interview should generally
follow the following five step format.
4. Take notes/Ask questions.  Ask the person to
repeat their account of what happened,  but stop the
person and ask questions for clarification, where
necessary.  Take notes, but write in short, simple
statements, highlighting the important thoughts or
ideas.  Be sure to obtain accurate identification
information for the person at this point, and ask any
additional questions that are necessary for
clarification.  
An effective field interview should generally
follow the following five step format.
5. Verify information.  Repeat specific information to
the person being interviewed from the notes taken in the
previous step, to ensure accuracy, and give them an
opportunity to add facts.  Be sure to confirm direct
quotes, time relationships, weapons information, and
physical descriptions of suspects.  Be sure to verify any
changes made in this stage.
An effective field interview should generally
follow the following five step format.
It is important to note that while some officers may
elect to record an interview with a digital voice or tape
recorder, the use of a recorder may inhibit an individual
from talking freely.  Also, electronic devices can
malfunction or fail, thereby eliminating the information
from the interview.  If interviews are recorded, officers
should also take written notes as a backup in the event
of mechanical or device failure.
 
IMPORTANT FIELD INTERVIEW SKILLS
One of the most important skills that officers are
required to have while conducting a field interview and
taking field notes is determining the difference between
opinions, facts, and conclusions in a statement given by
a suspect or witness.   Another important skill is being
able to determine what information is relevant to the
case or incident.
IMPORTANT FIELD INTERVIEW SKILLS
Opinions are statements that can be open to
interpretation, or expresses a belief not supported by the
facts of a case, while a fact is a statement that can be
verified or proven by the facts of the case. A conclusion is
a statement that is based upon the analysis of opinions
and conclusions, and a conclusion should always be
accompanied with the supporting facts and opinions.   
IMPORTANT FIELD INTERVIEW SKILLS
Generally, relevant facts typically establish the facts of
the case or elements of the crime.   Irrelevant facts, on
the other hand, usually furnish details that are not
elements of the crime, or provide information that may
dilute the facts of the case.  
 
QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY AN EFFECTIVE
REPORT
The facts and questions that an officer includes in his
or her field notes should typically provide the foundation
for an effective police report. As discussed earlier, an
effective police report should always answer the
questions who, what, where, when, how, and why.  
If any of the six questions cannot be answered by the
officer’s report, the report should contain as much
information as possible, as the information can prove to
be vital to investigators, attorneys, and other users of the
report.  
QUESTIONS ANSWERED BY AN EFFECTIVE
REPORT
The following table presents examples of the specific
facts and information that can be included in the body of
the report to help answer of the six questions.  It is not
intended to be all inclusive, and used as a guide. Specific
crimes or incidents will require certain information that
should be noted by the investigating officer in the report.
 Supporting Facts/Information
• was the crime that was committed?  
• are the elements of the crime?
• were the actions of the suspect before and after the crime?
• actually happened?
• do the witnesses know about it?
What • evidence was obtained?
• was done with the evidence?
• weapons were used?
• action did the officers take?
• further action should be taken?
• knowledge, skill or strength was needed to commit the crime?
• other agencies were notified?
• other agencies need to be notified?
 Supporting Facts/Information
• was the crime committed?
• was the crime discovered?
• were the involved parties notified?
• did the involved parties arrive at the scene?
When • was the victim last seen?
• was the suspect last seen?
• did officers arrive?
• was any arrest made?
• did witnesses hear anything unusual?
• did the suspect decide to commit the crime?
 Supporting Facts/Information
• was the crime committed? was the crime discovered?
• was entry made?
• was the exit?
• was the weapon obtained that was used to commit the crime?
• was the victim found?
•
Where •
was the suspect seen during the crime?
was the suspect last seen?
• were the witnesses during the crime?
• did the suspect live?
• does the suspect currently live?
• Is the suspect now?
• would the suspect likely go?
• was the evidence found?
• was the evidence stored?
 Supporting Facts/Information
• are the involved parties in the incident? (i.e., victim(s),witness(es),
• suspect(s)) were the participating officers?
• was the complainant?
• discovered the crime?
• saw or heard anything of importance?
• had a motive for committing the crime?
• committed the crime?
• had the means to commit the crime?
• had access to the crime scene?
Who • searched for, identified and gathered evidence?
• Also with whom… did the victim associate?
• did the suspect associate?
• was the victim last seen?
• do the witnesses associate?
• did the suspect commit the crime?
• Additional information regarding specific people can include, but not
be limited to: phone numbers (home, cellular and work)
addresses (home, work, and email)
• age and date of birth
• social security number
• occupations
• physical descriptions as required
 Supporting Facts/Information
• was the crime committed? (e.g., force, violence, threats, etc.)
• did the suspect leave the scene? (e.g., on foot, by car, etc.)
• did the suspect obtain the information necessary to commit the
How crime?
• was the crime discovered?
• was entry made? (e.g., smashing, breaking, key, etc.)
• was the weapon/tool for the crime obtained?
• was the weapon/tool used?
• was the arrest made?
• much damage was done?
 Supporting Facts/Information
• was the crime committed?
• was a certain weapon/tool used?
• was the crime reported?
Why • was the crime reported late?
(if known) • were witnesses reluctant to give information?
• is the suspect lying?
• did the suspect commit the crime when she/he did?
• did the suspect commit the crime where she/he did?
FUNDAMENTAL REPORT CONTENT  
As previously stated, every crime or incident is
different, and as a result, each report will require
different information to complete a total word picture
about the incident.  However, every report should have
certain content elements, regardless of the crime that
was committed.   
The following general content elements are
fundamental to an effective report, however, it should be
noted that in some crimes or incidents, a specific
element may not be applicable.
FUNDAMENTAL REPORT CONTENT  
1. Initial information.  This should establish how the
officer became involved with the specific incident and
additional background information. The initial
information should also describe the officer’s immediate
observations and any actions they took upon arrival at
the scene.
2. Identification of the crime or incident.  Always
include the facts that are necessary to show that the
specific crime or incident has taken place. The report
should include the common name of the crime, the
statutory reference number and the required elements
necessary for the crime to be completed.
FUNDAMENTAL REPORT CONTENT  
3. Identification of the involved parties. Regardless of
the type of report, the report should always identify the
reporting persons, victims, witnesses and suspects, if
known.  Always include full names, address, home, work
and cellular telephone numbers.  Include alternate
contact information, such as work or school addresses,
email addresses, and their role in the incident.  
4. Victim/witness/suspect statements. Summary
statements of all involved parties should be taken and
direct quotes used, where necessary.  Statements should
always include the details of the events, from their own
perspective.
FUNDAMENTAL REPORT CONTENT  
5. Crime scene specifics/description.  Crime scene
specifics are necessary to accurately re‐ create the scene
and events of the crime.  Include photographs, where
possible, and include the locations of physical evidence
prior to collection.  Photographs should be printed for
inclusion with the report, and booked as property as
evidence, where applicable.
6. Property information.  Property information should
include the color, make, model, serial number, approximate
value, and full descriptions where possible.  Details pertaining to
stolen or recovered property, as well as property booked for
safekeeping, and property booked as evidence should always be
included in the report, and entered into CLETS, were applicable.
FUNDAMENTAL REPORT CONTENT  
7. Officer actions/observations.  Include descriptions
and observations of all actions related to the incident.  If
multiple officers responded to a crime or incident, each
officer involved should include a supplement that details
their own actions at the incident or crime, and the
supplement should be submitted for inclusion with the
master report.  All reports, whether a master report or
supplemental report, should be written from the
perspective of the writing officer, and detail their own
personal actions or observations
SECURITY CLASSIFICATIONS OF DOCUMENTS:
A. TOP SECRET - Information and material (matter)
the unauthorized disclosure of which would cause
exceptionally grave damage to the nation, politically,
economically or from security aspect. This category is
reserved for the nation’s closest secrets and is to be used
with great reserve.
B. SECRET MATTER - Information and material
(matter) the unauthorized disclosure of which would
endanger national security, cause serious injury to the
interest or prestige of the nation or of any governmental
activity or would be of great advantage to a foreign
nation.
SECURITY CLASSIFICATIONS OF DOCUMENTS:
C. CONFIDENTIAL MATTER - Information and material
(matter) the unauthorized disclosure of which, while not
endangering the national security, would be prejudicial
to the interest or prestige of the nation or any
governmental activity or would cause administrative
embarrassment or unwarranted injury to an individual or
would be of advantage to a foreign nation.
D. RESTRICTED - Information and material (matter)
which requires special protection other than that
determined to be TOP SECRET, SECRET or CONFIDENTIAL.
MARGIN RULES:
Top – first page (without printed letterhead), typed
letterhead, ¾ inch or 5 roller spaces from the edge of the
paper;
Top – second page and succeeding pages, 1 ¼ inches
or 7 roller spaces from the top edge of the paper;
Left Margin – 1 ¼ inches or 15 bar spaces;
Right Margin – ¾ inch or 7 bar spaces; and
Bottom – 1 ¼ inches or 7 roller spaces.
PROOFREADING:
Proofreading may seem time‐consuming, tedious,
and difficult, but when writing reports where accuracy,
clarity, and completeness are important, proofreading is
critical.  It is a difficult skill to master, yet one that cannot
be overlooked.
When proofreading a report, special attention should
be devoted to ensure that the following basic questions
are answered:
Is the information in the proper order?
Are the correct crimes cited in the report?
Are all crime elements articulated?
PROOFREADING:
Is the information in the proper order?
Are the facts of the case correct (based on the
officer’s field notes)?
Is the report well organized?
Is all necessary information included?
Are things said efficiently or too wordy?  
Are all conclusions supported by facts?
Are there any gaps in logic?
Are the names spelled correctly?
 
PROOFREADING:
Proofreading Mechanics - A report’s effectiveness
and an officer’s credibility can be damaged by a report
with too many mechanical errors. When proofreading
the reports they have written, officers should look for:  
Inappropriate use of nouns, pronouns, verbs, etc.
Vague or confusing language
Incorrect or inappropriate use of words
Gaps in logic or narrative flow
Spelling errors
Inappropriate punctuation
Incorrect use of police, fire or EMS  abbreviations
Overuse of words, such as “that”  
PROOFREADING:
One of the most effective methods for proofreading
the content and mechanics of any report is to slowly read
the completed report aloud.  When sentences are heard,
it is often easier to identify mechanical errors, gaps in
logical flow, skewed time sequences, incorrect verb
tenses and cumbersome phrasing.
 
God Bless
Us All