Communications, Report Writing, and Records Management
Reports are the agency's memory and the prosecutor's evidence. A defensible narrative answers who, what, when, where, why, and how, states the elements of the offense in plain facts, identifies all parties by full name and date of birth, records statements as quotations where possible, and notes injuries, force used, evidence collected, and witnesses not yet interviewed. Write in the first person, past tense, chronologically, without conclusions of law or opinion. "The subject was disorderly" is weak; "the subject shouted profanities at passing vehicles and refused three verbal commands to leave" is strong.
Never alter an original report. Corrections go in a dated supplemental that identifies the original and the change. Assume every report, CAD note, and body-worn camera recording will be read aloud in a courtroom and by a defense attorney.
Radio discipline is a supervisory concern: plain language over codes where interoperability matters, clear acknowledgment, channel discipline, and prompt transmission of officer-safety information. Communications center records - CAD logs, recordings, time stamps - are evidence and must be preserved on notice of litigation or complaint.
Records management covers retention schedules, statutory confidentiality, and public access. Under the Open Public Records Act, a custodian must generally respond within seven business days, with defined extensions. Criminal investigatory records are exempt in defined circumstances, but exemptions are narrow and have been narrowed further by directive - assume use-of-force and major-discipline records are disclosable. Juvenile records, domestic violence records, medical information, and personnel files carry their own protections. Expungement orders require a documented compliance process across every system holding the record.
Traps: counting OPRA days as calendar days; assuming "criminal investigatory" covers everything in a case file; destroying records on a routine schedule after a complaint or subpoena has put you on notice.
Rule of thumb: write every report as if it will be read aloud in court.