Description of the Incident

Officer Dave Johnston stepped into his squad car and pulled the door shut behind him, cutting off the biting wind that was slicing through his uniform. He had just completed an assignment, and was starting to pick up the microphone to clear from the call when he heard the dispatcher assign two cars to a domestic disturbance in his sector. The dispatcher advised that the female caller had reported that her intoxicated husband had just left the house in his bare feet, and was driving around the block in the family car.

"Go ahead," he answered. "The complainant called back and said her husband is back home now." It looked like it would be one of those nights. Johnston, an officer with seven year's experience on the busy department, had handled his share of family fights. He worked in a large suburb bordering one of the busier districts in the city to its east. The suburb contained some tough neighborhoods, and domestic disturbances were not uncommon in those areas. He was tempted to let the other officers handle the call; a crazy drunk who was mad enough to drive around barefoot in this cold weather could cause a lot of problems. It wasn't the kind of thing he wanted to handle this close to the end of his shift, but he didn't like pushing work off on others. He pulled the microphone from its clip, waited for the radio traffic to clear, and advised the dispatcher he would take the assignment. The dispatcher acknowledged, disregarded the original primary unit, and told Officer Gregg Foster1, a 36-year-old four-year veteran of the department, to proceed as the assist car.

By A.S. Michael

Policereportwriting.net


When a new officer hits the streets in the Field Training Program, they are like a new puppy.  Curious, watching everyone, sniffing at everything and ready to wet themselves at the first loud, scary noise.  This enthusiasm is great for getting out and communicating with people.  However, sometimes the training officer discovers later that all that was communicated between the new officer and a victim was never documented.  In their rush to talk to people, appear empathetic and be helpful, the new officer forgot to write important stuff down. Things such as...names, dates and addresses.  Sometimes only a few of these necessary items were forgotten.  Sometimes you wonder, by the contents of their notepad, if the new officer was even there.  Fortunately, this is an easy fix.  Time will take care of the puppy dog enthusiasm.  A good surprise fight will take the nicey-nicey right out of any new officer.  But, another less painful fix is getting organized.

By getting organized, I do not mean perfect files of paperwork, with neatly segmented books of notes.  What I mean by organization is very simply, organizing yourself to take notes. A great way to do this is to get a copy of your department's main incident report or form.  Copy, in order from the form, onto your notepad.

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