CCOG for CJA 230 archive revision 201903

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Effective Term:
Summer 2019 through Winter 2022

Course Number:
CJA 230
Course Title:
Police Report Writing
Credit Hours:
3
Lecture Hours:
30
Lecture/Lab Hours:
0
Lab Hours:
0

Course Description

Introduces police report writing. Covers appropriate narrative structures necessary for operational police reports. Includes critical legal aspects, content, organization, and grammar. Focuses on producing a quality police report capable of withstanding courtroom scrutiny. Audit available.

Addendum to Course Description

Students will learn how to document an investigation in a manner communicating concise and factual information. Covered throughout the course are techniques and procedures for gathering information at certain stages during an investigation and documenting it in a logical and understandable format.

Intended Outcomes for the course

Upon completion of the course students will be able to:

  1. Write police reports in a factual, logical, and understandable format that documents the investigation and is capable of withstanding courtroom review.
  2. Document a crime scene by sketching the location and logging the collected evidence and photographs. 
  3. Interpret laboratory and autopsy reports. 
  4. Prepare and maintain a notebook of the investigation. 
  5. Properly document witness interviews. 
  6. Present a completed criminal case for prosecution.

Course Activities and Design

  • Classroom Lecture
  • Films and Videos
  • Simulated Crime Scenes
  • Role playing situations
  • Practice Interviews

Outcome Assessment Strategies

Methods of examination may include the following: examinations, quizzes, reports, role playing, interview assignments and diagramming a mock crime scene.

Course Content (Themes, Concepts, Issues and Skills)

This course will address topics that include, but are not limited to:

  • Legal Aspects of Investigation
  • Documentation of Crime Scenes
  • Chain of Custody
  • Evidence Logs
  • Report Writing and Interpretation
  • Prosecution Preparation
  • Interviewing Witnesses