A Lesson in the Importance of Report Writing
I heard it again and again throughout my police career: Write a good report because you never know what will happen with it. Recently, I got real-world lesson in just how important a good police report really can be. I ran into one of the detectives in the hallway at the West Precinct on Tuesday. “I just read one of your reports,” he told me. “V96-076, from 1996.” A 22-year old report! Needless to say, I was surprised . . . and a little worried!
The detective told me that the sexual assault kit from a 1996 case had come back with a DNA suspect match. As hard as I tried, I could not remember the case, which came as no real surprise when considering the case was 22 years ago. The detective went on to explain how the suspect was currently incarcerated at Coyote Ridge Correctional Facility until 2023. He also told me that the case might go to trial, and that I may have to testify in the case. I quickly pulled a copy of the report. As I read through the 5-page narrative from January 1, 1996, I became more and more confident that I could testify convincingly from the information I wrote in that report.
The detective went on to tell me about his most recent interview with the victim. It was, in his words, identical to the account in the report. The victim explained to the detective how she has thought about the assault every day since it occurred 22-years ago. Needless to say, this reminded me of just how important it is to thoroughly investigate and document any crime. While it may be just another report to the officer, the crime can affect the victim profoundly for the rest of their life!
The simple truth is that an officer can never know how long it will take for a police report to find its way to court. A good report is critical to the prosecution’s case, especially when a case is more than two decades old. It can also help victims find the closure they so desperately need. What make this especially noteworthy, however, was the fact that this was the second case in the past 9 months where a report I wrote over 20 years ago could result in my testifying in court. The other report was the Bianchi robbery, a bank robbery that involved the attempt murder of two Vancouver Police Department officers.
While an officer may not have much choice about which cases end up in court, you do have complete control over the quality of your police report. Write good reports, it’s important.
Steven Cox, David Massey, Connie Koski, Brian Fitch ( 2020) Introduction to Policing, 4th edition pg. 117
Investigator and supervisor, persons and financial crimes; public corruption; law enforcement instructor
5 年I’m currently working cold case sex assaults under the SAKI program. The quality and detail (or lack thereof) in decades-old reports is proving critical. I remember some of the grouches back in the old days remarking that if the handcuffs didn’t click, neither did the pen (no arrest equals no report). What a disservice they did to many victims. Thanks Dave King for bringing awareness to this vital aspect of police work.
Police Commander - Retired - Vancouver Police Department, Washington
5 年Good reports are a sign of good supervisors in my view. A sergeant is the gate keeper to records and if they uphold ?high standards, officers will never be faced with a day in court and not have a solid report to refer back to. I am testifying today in a bank robbery/bombing/attempt homicide of three police officers today that happened on October 17,1997. I wrote the original report as a detective and then 15 supplemental reports during the investigation.? In reviewing my reports for trial, I noted my first supplemental report mentioned a correction to the original.? The information I received initially was incorrect and I pointed it out rather than face an inquiry at trial later on.? Good reports keep ?many cases from going to trial. The defendant who can not find holes in the report, usually accepts a plea deal.
Retired Sgt. Chicago Police Department
5 年The most important aspect of police work.
Building teams and solving problems | Operations Management | Investigative support/management
5 年Great points Dave King. To further compound that issue, lawsuits stemming from force reports have a two year limitation statute (after case has been criminally disposed).