It will be easier to report minor crimes and obtain a police report after the West Windsor Police Department introduced an online reporting option on the department’s website, www.westwindsorpolice.com. Project coordinator Lieutenant Tom Moody, in a December 8 press release, said this web-based option provides greater convenience to those reporting a crime and saves time for police.
Only non-emergencies occurring within the township, and with no known suspects, should be reported online, according to the online reporting site. Ten types of incidents can be reported: theft; motor vehicle incidents; criminal mischief/vandalism; damaged property; lost property; suspicious activity; neighborhood disputes; verbal disputes; custody disputes; and hazardous road conditions. The web page also notes that filing a false police report is a crime.
Police personnel will review all online reports, and those approved will be entered into the department’s records management system like reports filed by a police officer. Approved reports will be E-mailed to the filer.
The online reporting system is from Coplogic Inc., a law enforcement software services company based in California.
The Plainsboro Police Department has provided a Coplogic online reporting system since October, 2013. “It’s been very receptive, we’re getting more and more and reports,” Plainsboro Lieutenant John Bresnen says. “There have been 227 online reports from January to now. That’s saved us approximately over 340 hours of officer time, instead of sending over an officer, and taking a report. And it’s also saved some money. The estimate is $12,500.”
According to Bresnen, a small number of reports that are considered solvable cannot be filed online and are rejected. In such instances a detective from the department would contact a filer and write up a report, and the case would be open to investigation.
For example, he says, car burglaries may have an unknown suspect at the time of an electronic filing, yet any subsequent car burglaries may lead to a suspect. Online reporting makes it more convenient for victims of certain unsolvable crimes, such as identity theft, to file a report and turn an incident into a matter of record.
