Effective Field Notes and Reporting Techniques

1. FIVE Field Notes and Investigating Reporting

2. LEARNING OBJECTIVES • Understand the importance of field notes • Distinguish between basic and primary investigative questions • List the six primary investigative questions • Understand formats for basic incident reports • Discuss aids to information gathering • Summarize the report approval and disposition processes • List elements common to incident reports • Explain techniques involved in writing effective reports 5-1

3. THE IMPORTANCE OF FIELD NOTES • Field notes are more reliable than an officer's memory • Field notes are the primary information source for the incident report • Field notes completed in detail may reduce the need to re-contact the parties involved • Field notes can be used to defend the integrity of the incident report 5-2

4. BASIC INVESTIGATIVE QUESTIONS • Asked by the first-responding officer • Used to fill in the blank spaces on the face of an incident report • Typically includes items such as: • Identity of victims and witnesses • How to recontact victims and witnesses • Specific information about the crime • Descriptions of the suspect 5-3

5. PRIMARY INVESTIGATIVE QUESTIONS • Primary questions meet most investigative information needs • There are six recognized categories of primary questions: • What • When • Where • Who • How • Why 5-4

6. INCIDENT REPORT • While the exact layout for incident reports typically varies from one jurisdiction to another, they all have a “face” with blanks into which the officer conducting the preliminary investigation enters basic case information. • Suspects: Additional information about suspects. • Witnesses: Information from witnesses, including their descriptions of events and things as they experienced them through their four senses. • Evidence: The evidence seized, how it was marked, the chain of custody, and numbers assigned by the property or evidence control room is recorded. • Interviews: All persons with whom the investigator talked during the course of the inquire should be identified, even if they could not provide information at the initial contact. • Investigation: A short description of the crime scene may be given to permit a basic conceptualization of it by persons to whom it is unfamiliar. • Reconstruction: The reconstruction is a narration of the probably manner in which the crime was committed. 5-5

7. INCIDENT REPORT (cont’d) (Source: Courtesy Athens-Clarke County, Georgia, Police Department) 5-5

8. NIBRS • The National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), is administered by the FBI • Its format allows for much more data about an offense to be gathered • Data gathered allows police to look for relationships between: • Victims and offenders • drugs/alcohol and crime 5-6

9. NIBRS INCIDENT REPORT • The NIBRS incident report collects a significant amount of information for later analysis by investigators (Source: Courtesy Sterling Heights, Michigan, Police Department) 5-7

10. SUSPECT DESCRIPTION FORM • There are numerous aids that investigators can use to gather information from witnesses. The suspect description form is one such aid. (Source: Courtesy Philadelphia, Police Department) 5-8

11. ASSORTED HANDGUNS • Another valuable aid for investigators is the handgun identification chart such as the one shown. This is a useful tool for witnesses who are unfamiliar with guns. .22 RG-10 Revolver .357 Herter’s Derringer .357 Colt Python Revolver 9-mm Smith & WessonSemiautomatic .45 U.S. Semiautomatic .22 Ruger Revolver .38 Smith & WessonChief’s Special Revolver .25 Colt Semiautomatic (Source: A Visual Aid for Firearms Identification, Federal Bureau of Investigation.) 5-9

12. Officer sends/givesIncident Reportto supervisor Supervisor reviewsreport Requests correctionsand/oradditional information Approves/Signsreport Corrections madeand/oradditional informationprovided Makes disposition Retained for furtheruniformed officerinvestigation Unfounded Inactivated Referred forplainclothesinvestigation REPORT APPROVAL AND DISPOSITION PROCESS • Police reports are subject to supervisory review for corrections and guidance before their final disposition • Well written reports are very helpful to investigators who may be conducting follow-up investigations at a later date 5-10

13. THE REPORT DISPOSITION PROCESS • Supervisory options for report disposition following approval include: • The case may be retained for further investigation by uniformed officers • It may be unfounded (i.e., the complaint is false) • The case may be inactivated due to the lack of leads • It may be referred to plainclothes investigators 5-11

14. COMMON ELEMENTS OF INCIDENT REPORTS • Race, Ethnicity and Sex • Age • Physical and Email Addresses • Telephone/Pager/Wireless Numbers • Personal Descriptions • Property Description • Occupation • Value • Date • Time 5-12

15. WRITING EFFECTIVE REPORTS • If incident reports are going to serve the many uses to which they can be put, they must meet certain standards. • Fill in all of the blanks on the incident report • Write the report in the first person • Avoid unnecessary technical or legalistic jargon • Write short sentences • Use shorter paragraphs for the same reason. • Support any conclusions you express with details • Don’t repeat facts more than once • Check your spelling • Edit what you write 5-13(a)

16. SUPPLEMENTAL REPORTS • Supplemental reports are written to: • Document new or corrected information • Document specific acts or accomplishments, such as the issuance of a warrant, arrest of a suspect, or the recovery of property • Unfound an offense • Exceptionally clear an offense • Inactivate a case • Should be written every 10 days 5-14