If you see a crime in progress or have witnessed a crime, the first step is to call 911 and stay calm. Make sure you give a clear description of the crime and its location to the dispatcher including characteristic identifiers such as height, weight, hair color, eye color, tattoos, and scars. Identifying as many of these things on the perpetrator or victim as possible can help police officers track them down later and also may provide evidence that will lead to justice being done. Inform the dispatcher if there are any injuries and whether medical assistance is needed.
The next step is to report the crime to DCJS, preferably within 30 days of the end of the reporting month. Timely reporting is important because it helps state and local law enforcement agencies quickly gauge and react to crime trends and improves the accuracy of statewide statistics. It also ensures that crime analysis published each month on eJusticeNY is current and accurate.
DCJS encourages agencies to adopt or adapt their records management systems to support Incident Based Reporting (IBR), which yields reports that are more helpful to police agency managers and researchers than traditional Unified Criminal Reports (UCR). IBR collects and links offender and victim information, counts all unique offenses in an incident, links specific arrests with specific crimes, and provides significant details for each offense type.
The most important thing to remember when reporting a crime is that it is everyone’s right to report any injustice regardless of age, race, country of origin, or immigration status. It’s also critical to be thorough on your initial investigation and not to destroy any potential evidence that could help police track down the perpetrator or even lead to a conviction.