One who reports the crime.

One who provides information confidentially and whose identity is normally not disclosed until required by law.

A technique in which the interviewer acts as if he or she is looking in a mirror and seeing him or herself as the interviewee. Thus, the interviewer should assume the interviewee’s posture and repeat what the person is saying, using a questioning tone to obtain clarification or a more detailed response.

Brief statements which indicate that the officer hears what the person is saying and is inclined to hear more. Proper language and tone of voice that parallels the interviewee’s level of understanding and tone of voice conveys the officer’s willingness to listen and understand. However officers should note that understanding does not necessarily mean agreement. It merely means that the officer comprehends what the person is trying to tell him or her. Recall is enhanced by recreating the event stimuli, which can be both physical and psychological. The interviewee should be asked to think back to the original event recalling the physical surroundings (time of day, workspace, and so on) as well as the emotional situation (rushed, bored, and so on).

Determining if the information is suitable for submission to court is a helpful method an officer can employ to evaluate his or her interviewing skills.

If the who, what, when, where, why, and how of the incident can be answered, then most likely, the desired results were achieved.

There are three major methods for documenting an interview (1)taking notes (2)audio or video recording (3)obtaining written statements

Taking notes during an interview is a necessity that must be done with great care. Usually, it is best to begin taking note early in the interview. This is begun by writing names, addresses, date of birth, and other basic facts. This gets interviewees used to answering an officer’s questions and seeing the officer write what they say.

A permanent, verbal, or written record of a person’s account of an incident or occurrence that may or may not be made under oath.

When to take a written statement often depends on circumstances or agency policy.

Agency policies or local SAO should be consulted for the preferred procedure on locations, materials, equipment, and interpreters needed for the statement.

Identify the basic procedure to follow when taking the statement.

Most jurisdictions require that the statement be sworn. Written statements must be notarized, and audio/video-recorded statements must be made under oath. These statements must be preserved as evidence in the case.

Information contained in witness statements may be used to complete a report, offer PC, file an affidavit, or obtain a warrant. The information may be admissible in court and could help to solve a crime or identify additional suspects or witnesses who have information about a crime, incident, or occurrence. When asking an individual to provide a written statement, an officer must be sure to explain the reason for the request and should be clear about what information (who, what, when, where, why, and how of the incident) is needed.

Before taking statements from multiple witnesses, they should be separated to prevent them from discussing the incident among themselves.

General questions help to determine which person should be asked to provide sworn statements. One of the best questions to begin with is, “Can you tell me what happened?” The officer should listen to the person’s response before asking more questions.

After forming a mental picture of the sequence of events, the officer should identify from whom to get sworn statements.

Florida law, as per F.S. 117.10, provides LEOs with the authority to administer oaths while performing their duties. However, this does not certify an officer as a notary unless they have completed the normal appointment process.

Officers should always administer an oath or affirmation for any sworn statement of affidavit when they want to commit the witness to his or her testimony. Sworn statements or affidavits are not admissible in court if the witness is also in court.

A promise to tell the truth regarding an incident or occurrence.

A solemn and formal declaration or assertion made in place of an oath.

In the event an officer is taking a written statement, the person should read the printed oath on the statement form and sign his or her name indicating the information contained is correct and factual.

A written statement is generally recognized as a better form of evidence than an oral statement or interview.

When writing a statement, an individual should describe, to the best of his or her recollection, every event, person, weapon, vehicle, and all property involved in the incident.

The officer should read the statement back to the witness, to make any needed corrections, and ask the witness to date and sign the statement or make his or her mark.

Any observing officer should date and sign the statement as well.

In some situations, a witness may be injured, sick, or incapacitated and cannot sign his or her name. The officer should write the reason the person cannot sign the statement and then sign it him or herself.

If a person refuses to give a statement, it should be indicated in the officer’s notes. If the person gives a statement but refuses to sign it, the officer should not, “refused to sign”.

Due to facilities and equipment needs, officers normally use this method only in serious criminal cases where visual information about the scene or victim is needed.

After completing and interview, the results should be documented in a report and properly filed.

A written document prepared by a police that gives information about an event, situation, or person encountered by the officer.

A report documents the facts involved in an incident. (Who, what, when, where, why, and how)

Most agencies have procedures describing appropriate forms, who reviews reports and how reports are stored. The officer should be familiar with agency forms and the pertinent information required to complete each one

Operational reports are generally linked to three major categories: offence-incident reports, arrest affidavits, and supplemental or follow-up reports.

To ensure the effectiveness of the report, the report writer must consider the audience, which may include the following: (1) Other officers (2) Supervisors (3) Defense attorneys and prosecutors (4) Judges (5) City, County, and State officials (6) Reporters (7) Victims or their families (8) Suspects, Defendants, and persons convicted of crimes (9) Citizens (10)Insurance companies

Apart from being public records, reports are typically involved in many proceedings as an official representation of facts surrounding and incident. Some examples include the following: (1) Criminal case-filing, (2) Depositions, (3) Pretrial proceedings, (4) Criminal trials, (5) Victim restitution hearings, (6) Civil proceedings, (7) Appeals in criminal and civil cases, (8) Probation and parole hearings, (9) Internal affair’s investigations, (10)Workers’ compensation cases, (11) Research.

The basic steps of report writing are recording the facts, organizing the facts, writing the report, and evaluating the report.

Field notes are normally the primary source documents that an officer will use when writing operational reports.

An officer’s field notes will contain facts about specific events, interviews, information gathered from investigations, and information that might aid in future investigations. Field notes should include the basic facts: (1)Where did the incident take place? (2)When did the incident take place? (3)Who was involved? (4)What happened? (5)How did it happen? (6)Why did it happen?

“Who” is more than a person’s name but includes as much information as possible: name, address, all phone numbers, date of birth (DOB) or age, employment information, race, and gender. It is important to note anything unusual that might help identify the person later such as scaring, body piercings, or tattoos. Any additional information such as height, weight, type of clothing, hair color and length, and unique mannerisms or speech patterns should also be included.

The best practice is to listen and then ask a witness to pause while the officer writes down the information. The alternating method will permit officers to hear and record the most information from witnesses

All names, addresses, and other relevant information should be correctly spelled and accurately recorded. Inaccurate information may result in the wrong person being arrested or in an acquittal of the guilty person.

(am - morning)(Yr - year)(Hr - hour)(V - victim)(S - suspect)(Ph - phone)(F - female)(B - black)(O - Asian)(DOB - date of birth)(AKA - also known as)(pm - afternoon or evening)(mo - month)(min - minute)(W - witness)(mi - mile)(yoa - years of age)(M - male)(W - white)(NMI - no middle initial)(TOT - turned over to)(TOD - time of day)

Notes can be organized in two ways: chronologically or categorically. The most efficient way to organize notes is by grouping all information pertaining to or received from each individual.

Organizing chronologically means sorting information by date and time from the first event to the last.

Information may also be grouped categorically such as witnesses, victims, suspects, weapons used, and crime elements.

Paragraphs containing specific details and pertinent information about an incident and the elements of the crime.

As the officer works on each step of report writing, he or she must keep in mind the following nine elements of an effective report. All reports must be as follows: (1)Factual (2)Clear (3)Concise (4)Complete (5)Accurate (6)Written in standard English (7)Grammatically and structurally correct (8)Legible (9)Timely

LE reports are about events that have already occurred, so they are always written in past tense.

The technical vocabulary of a particular profession that has meaning specific to people who work in that field. Ex AKA, DOA, or "smash and grab"

Consist of informal, nonstandard words often characterized by regional or specific group usage. Ex "tight" "da bomb" "trippin" and "my bad"

Words that are often confusing. Ex are words that sound the same but are spelled differently, such as "there/their/they’re" or "to/too/two".

The content of the narrative should answer four key questions: 1) Why was the officer there? A. Was the officer dispatched to a call at the location? B. Was the officer flagged down while on patrol? C. Was the officer on patrol and saw something occur? 2) What did the officer observe? A. What did the officer see, hear, smell, or feel? B. What were the crime scene conditions? C. What was the officer told by people at the scene? D. Who else responded to the scene? 3) What did the officer do? A. What investigative steps did the officer take? B. What actions did the officer perform (CPR, Response to Resistance)? C. Whom did the officer notify about the situation? D. Did the officer collect any evidence? 4) What were the outcomes? A. What crimes were committed? B. Did the officer arrest anyone? C. What related documents were collected or disseminated? D. Were any further actions or referrals required?

Content relates to the material aspects of the case: What happened, who was involved, etc. Format is the way the information is organized and presented in the report.

Officers must properly identify the correct name and number of the criminal statute violated. If the narrative accurately describes and outlines the elements of a crime, but it is not the crime listed as the classification on the offence report, then the entire content of the report can be called into question.

An opening, body, and a closing must all be included so that the narrative tells a chronological story of what occurred. The opening usually includes the date, place, assignment, and arrival time, the officer’s name, the identity of the victim, suspect, or complainant, and the officer’s first action. The body of the narrative is the detailed chronological account of the incident. This section includes the investigative actions taken by the officer and must address the elements of the crime. The closing explains how the incident was resolved or how the information obtained was handled, including any citations issued or arrest made with the appropriate criminal charges documented.

A sentence is a group of words that contains a subject (a noun) and a verb (action) and expresses a complete thought.

A sentence fragment is a group of words that lacks a subject or verb or fails to express a complete thought.

If using a computer to write a report, the officer should use the spell check feature. Having another person proofread a report will help ensure that correct words have been used. If unsure of the spelling of a word, an officer should consider using a different word. Instead of “penitentiary,” an officer might use “prison”; instead of “contusion,” the officer could use “bruise.” If an officer handwrites a report, he or she should use a dictionary. If carrying a dictionary is awkward, the officer should consider buying an electronic dictionary to use while on patrol.

1. Use a comma to separate two complete sentences that are joined by a coordinating conjunction (and, but, or, nor, for, yet). “I met with the victim, and she gave me a statement.” (correct) “I met with the victim and she gave me a statement.” (incorrect) “I met with the victim, she gave me a statement.” (incorrect: use a semicolon.) “I met with the victim. She gave me a statement.” (correct) 2. Use a comma after an introductory clause. “When the alarm sounded, the burglar ran from the store.” 3. Use a comma to separate items in a series of three or more items. “The victim said his digital camera, television, DVD player, radio, and computer were stolen.” 4. Use a comma to separate nonrestrictive (unimportant) phrases in a sentence. A phrase is a group of words that does not make a complete statement; it is considered nonrestrictive when no pertinent information is lost without it. “The fingerprints, which I found on the window, belong to the victim.” 5. Use a comma between two or more adjectives that are not joined by “and” or “or” when they precede the noun. “The inmate used a small, metal object to cut his own arm.” 6. Use a comma to introduce a quote. “When I arrested her, she said, ‘I’m going to burn his house down when I get out.’” 7. Use a comma when writing dates and addresses. “The first robbery occurred on January 12, 2008, at 345 Monroe Street, Tallahassee, Florida.”

It is the evaluation of content

It is the correction of mechanical errors.

FCIC- Florida Crime Information Center / NCIC- National Crime Information Center

Information contained in the FCIC database includes but is not limited to the following: Statewide information on persons and property, driver’s license and registration information, wanted and missing persons, stolen guns, vehicles, and other property, and persons’ status files and computerized criminal history.

Identify the relationship between FCIC and NCIC.

NCIC contains stolen, abandoned, and recovered property and wanted and missing persons files for all 50 states, Canada, the U.S. Virgin Islands, the commonwealth of Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia. NCIC makes Florida data available to all criminal justice agencies.

Identify the major assets of the FCIC.

Enables officers to gather criminal history or stolen property information, so they can appropriately deal with many incidents.

Identify the national communications link available through FCIC.

FCIC connects to the International Justice and Public Safety Information Sharing Network. (NLETS)

Identify how information becomes available through FCIC.

INLETS allows for interstate and interagency information exchanges. NLETS has the capability to receive, store, and forward message traffic to and from its user agencies.

Identify factors that will ensure officers’ efficient and effective use of the FCIC system.

System users must attend the Criminal Justice Information Services (CJIS) certification class and pass the certification exam.

Identify the legal issues for confidential information that is disseminated for non-law-enforcement purposes.

Misuse of the FCIC/NCIC system can result in both disciplinary and legal action including termination against the officers involved. The agency involved could lose as an FCIC terminal site.

Identify what information to provide when requesting a check.

When requesting information on a wanted or missing person, officers should provide all identification data available, such as name, race, sex, date of birth, physical features, approximate height and weight, etc. For vehicle or vessel identification information, an officer should provide the vessel name, manufacturer, license, tag/decal number, year of make, etc. For stolen property requests, the name, manufacturer, description of property, shape, etc.

If the FCIC/NCIC database contains data that is the same or similar to the information requested, a list of possible matches will be returned.

When data must be entered into FCIC/NCIC, the officer must provide the original report and supplemental documentation to the person at the agency responsible for making such data entries

Officers should follow agency polices for adding information to the systems or when conducting a database inquiry.

Officers use radios to send and receive vital information, call for backup, or identify a suspect or wanted person.

The patrol car radio is usually under or affixed to the dashboard of the patrol car. In some patrol cars, radios are mounted on the vehicle transmission hump or in a metal rack designed for holding electronic equipment. In unmarked or undercover vehicles, the radio may be mounted under the seat or in the trunk. On police motorcycles, the radio is usually mounted in plain sight behind the handlebars.

Duties include but are not limited to: answering all incoming emergency and non-emergency calls to the LE agency, directing callers to other resources as necessary and gathering information for officers’ calls for service. They also access the FCIC/NCIC systems to provide vital information to officer who request it.

The basic police radio is generally fitted with at least three switches, levers, or buttons to control volume, squelch, and channel selection.

Officers should plan messages before transmitting them. Though an officer will have to speak quickly in an emergency, the more planed the message is, the more coherent, capable, and professional the officer sounds.

The officer should speak directly into the microphone in an evenly modulated tone of voice.

Before voice transmissions, officers should listen to make sure there is no other radio traffic and then depress and hold the transmit button for approximately one second before speaking.

Trailing voice (diminishes in volume), the rate of speech (too fast or too slow), or speaking in monotones or a soft or unclear (mumbling) voice

Identify the location of FCIC and NCIC.

FCIC is housed at FDLE in Tallahassee, FL / NCIC is housed and maintained by the FBI in Clarksburg, WV