Communications and Report Writing
Radio discipline
Use plain language consistent with NIMS rather than agency-specific codes when working across disciplines. Transmit location, direction of travel, and a description first; keep it brief; confirm critical information by repeating it back; and never assume everyone heard your earlier traffic. Know the phonetic alphabet and standard status signals.
Information systems
NCIC and DCI queries require a legitimate law-enforcement purpose, accurate entry, and CJIS security compliance. A hit is investigative lead information - confirm before you act on it. Never query for personal curiosity or share returns with unauthorized persons.
The report
Write chronologically, first person, past tense, active voice. Record observations, not conclusions: instead of "the subject was intoxicated," write what you saw, heard, and smelled, and what the subject said. Quote admissions directly. Document the legal basis for the stop, the arrest, the search, the consent, the Miranda warning, any force, and every item of evidence collected.
Write to the elements
For each charge, a fact in the report must support each element. If the statute requires intent, show the words or conduct proving intent. Prosecutors and defense attorneys will read this document in discovery; assume it will be read aloud in court.
Corrections and testimony
Never alter an original report. Add a dated supplement. Review your notes and recordings before testifying, testify only to what you personally observed, and answer the question asked.
Traps
Conclusory adjectives, omitted stop justification, unexplained jargon, missing Miranda documentation, and reports that narrate the outcome instead of the observations that produced it.
Rule of thumb
If a sentence could have been written by someone who was not there, it is not evidence - rewrite it with a fact only you could observe.