INTRODUCTION

 Writing is one of the most indispensable skills that a learner should

develop to be able to express his or her ideas effectively.
 Proficiency in writing is required not only of civilians but also of
uniformed personnel such as police officers who are considered the
premier law enforcers in the country. They write police reports during
their day-to-day activity.
 Police report writing is a regular part of an officer’s job. Complete,
factual, accurate, and detailed reports can speed up an investigation
while incomplete, opinionated, inaccurate, distorted, or misleading
reports can impede it or even get it dismissed in the court on the basis
of a technicality, regardless of facts.
 Police reports can make the difference between conviction and
acquittal.

RATIONALE:

 The ability to write reports effectively is advantageous in any profession,

most especially in the police service because “EVERY POLICE
ACTION TAKEN MUST BE FOLLOWED BY A WRITTEN
REPORT.” Hence, all information important to the police must be
reduced in writing.  In many cases, however, there are no set patterns
but each police officer prepares his written reports as he sees it fit.

GENERALITIES:

 In the arm of police organizations together with the handling of

departmental routine, the executives and the supervisors must premise
their actions in many instances on information furnished by efficient
reports. Therefore, officers must compose his reports as clear, concise,
thorough, accurate, legible and well-organized. 
 As much as possible, it should be set up in a narrative style, which is,
reporting the incidents in the order of their occurrence, followed by any
conclusion. Short sentences and timely paragraphing afford quicker
understanding and officers should attempt to practice this technique.  It
 is difficult to find anything more important in police work than GOOD
POLICE REPORTS.

What is a REPORT?

 It is a story of actions performed by men.

 A chronological, step by step, account entirely or almost entirely a
factual account of the incidents that took place in a given event. Or it is
the story of actions that were actually performed by flesh and blood
human beings.

What is a POLICE REPORT?

 is any written matter prepared by the police involving their interaction

with the community
 It provides a record of incidents requiring police response. This includes
criminal offenses, arrests, lost and found properties, and general
information.
 Another concept, “Police Report” is an exact narration of facts which
were discovered during the course of a crime investigation which serves
as a permanent record for future reference.

What is a fact?

 is a statement which can be proven because it is based on any or all of

our five physical senses of sight, taste, smell, touch, and hearing

IMPORTANCES and PURPOSES (Soriano, 2005):

1. Serve as records for planning, directing, and organizing duties for police
administration
2. Used as legal documents in prosecution
3. Used by local media

POINTS TO CONSIDER IN WRITING REPORTS:

 1. Using the best language: concise, clear, organized, thorough, accurate,
and adequate
2. Avoiding the errors of form: well-versed in grammar and all its governing
rules to avoid errors in spelling, typographical forms, file number and
report format
3. Avoiding errors of substance: the most important aspect; this has
something to do with the exact content of the report with the
completeness of the 5W’s and 1H

TYPES OF REPORT WRITERS

1. Who write without thinking

2. Who write and think at the same time
3. Who think first and write afterwards

WHO WILL READ YOUR REPORT?

1. STEPS IN REPORT WRITING

2. PRE-WRITING- This refers to any activity that a writer engages in prior
to the actual writing of the draft. In a writing class, activities under this
category include brainstorming or generating ideas. In public safety
report writing, this is represented by the acronym GRO which stands for
Gathering, Recording, and Organizing Facts.

2. GATHERING OF FACTS- Before writing the report, you need to be sure

that you have the facts. By facts, we mean the details of the incident or
account as they happened and not as they are told by one who was not
present at the scene of the incident.

3. RECORDING AND ORGANIZING- Parallel to gathering of facts is data

gathering. For police report writing, a pre-writing templates on offenses
against persons, properties, vehicular accidents, and complaints or
incidents, which may be useful in writing spot reports or other official
reports following the memorandum format.

 
 4. WRITING AND EVALUATING- shall be expounded in separate
chapters of this book. Briefly though, with the filled-out templates, the
writing stage will no longer be as laborious or painstaking as when there
is no organized baseline data gathered in the pre-writing stage.

            Evaluating on the other hand, is the stage in the writing process where
you take a closer look at the written work both in content and form. Content
Evaluation or editing is checking whether the report has the qualities of good
writing such as accuracy, clarity, conciseness, objectivity, and completeness.

COMMON TYPES OF REPORT

1. POLICE BLOTTER- This refers to a logbook that contains the daily

registry of all crime incident reports, official summaries of arrest, and
other significant events reported in a police station.
2. SPOT REPORT- A spot report is a report on an incident that took police
in each area within a public safety officer’s jurisdiction. It is submitted
within 24 hours from the occurrence of the incident. The purpose of the
report is to immediately inform an immediate superior, normally the chief
of police, about the incident so that the latter can make appropriate
operational decisions or measures, especially since all actions that may
arise from the incident can be construed as command responsibility.
3. INCIDENT REPORT- An incident report is a written account of an event
or occurrence. The purpose of this report is to document the exact
details of the occurrence as basis for further actions of concerned public
safety officers.
4. INVESTIGATION REPORT- This refers to a report in such as in criminal
investigations. The arrangement of the parts follows a specific pattern to
be easily found and read. The format is similar to a memorandum
format except the text or body should have the following parts:
AUTHORITY, MATTERS INVESTIGATED, FACTS OF THE CASE,
DISCUSSION, CONCLUSIONS, and RECOMMENDATIONS. The parts
are capitalized followed by a colon (:) . Paragraphs are numbered
consecutively using Arabic numbers such as 1, 2, 3, and 4, among
others.

The investigator signs the report. On top of the letterhead and on the lower
fold of he paper, the word CONFIDENTIAL is typed or stamped.
5. INITIAL INVESTIGATION REPORT- An initial investigation report is a
normal offshoot of a spot report or incident report that requires
resolution-be it in the form of a formal complaint for crimes committed or
recommendations for the closure of a particular case.
6. PROGRESS REPORT- A progress report is a follow up of the initial
investigation report. It covers new findings, statements of additional
witnesses, if any, or simply an update of the ongoing action or
investigation of a particular case. In a progress report, it is assumed that
the incident has been reported and the method of operation or “modus
operandi” of the suspect has been determined.
7. FINAL INVESTIGATION REPORT- This refers to the final report on a
particular incident or case where all important angles and details
considered in the initial investigation and progress reports are taken
account. Details that can be covered in this type of report may include
the apprehension of the suspect and the final disposition of the case
(e.g. filing of information in court by the Prosecutor). Substantiating
documents such as the Initial Investigation Report, Progress Report,
Affidavits of witnesses, photographs, sketches and other pertinent
documents are attached in the report.
8. TRAFFIC ACCIDENT REPORT- This report involve collision between
cars, (or other forms of land transportation), crashes against fixed
objects, hit and run cases or non-collision cases such as accidental
burning or fall from high places which may or may not result to injuries
or death of persons involved.
9. SITUATIONAL REPORT (SITREP) refers to a report which is done on a
need basis. It contains the actual situation on a particular incident or
incidents which are on public interest. This is primarily addressed to the
commander or chief for him to know the actual situation before the
media and the public is informed. A SITREP may be done every hour,
every 6 hours, or every 8 hours depending on the situation.
10. BEAT INSPECTION REPORT- This report is submitted daily by
any duty officer after his/her routine check on foot.
11. AFTER PATROL REPORT- This refers to a report which is
submitted by assigned sector using official vehicles and is signed by the
team leader.
12. AFTER-OPERATION REPORT- After-Operation Report, which
may well be classified under spot report (if reported within 24 hours after
the operation,) is an informative report on common operational activities
involving police action such as service of warrant of arrests or
apprehension of suspects and/or fugitives from law.
 13. AFTER-ENCOUNTER REPORT- After-Encounter Report is a
report on special missions or combat operations involving lawless
elements and subversive terrorists or rebels. This report also includes
salient supporting documents such as sketch of the encounter scene,
list of participating troops, summary of ammunition stock status,
recommendation for award for troop members (for exhibiting superior
combat skills and unflinching bravery in the face of dangers) and the
proposed citation. Aside from the reports mentioned, there are still other
types of special reports unique to a particular public safety agency
(BFP, BJMP and PNP).

In the police service, for instance, those who are involves in the investigation
of sensitive cases may be required to prepare additional reports such as
background investigation, coordination, intelligence and after-mission reports,
among others, which are normally prepared by officers on specialized
missions.

WRITING THE REPORT

            Experience-based writing or one that is based on facts or events that

actually happened is easier to write than a fictional story or any form of
composition that requires both research and analysis. Narrative report is
telling (or writing) things as they happened. Writing narrative reports requires
skills on sentence construction, organization of ideas and use of appropriate
words or diction.

1. SENTENCE CONSTRUCTION

            You may ask, “How do I start my sentence?”. Customarily, as what we

were taught in our basic education years, we start with the sentence with the
usual subject-predicate order or pattern. The subject or the one being talked
about comes first before the predicate (which contains the action word) or the
one that tells something about the subject. This is called the normal
sentence pattern. Consider the following examples:

                      
The examples above have a basic sentence pattern normally seen in a written
report. However, to make an effective sentence, you can use different
techniques in opening sentences that will immensely contribute to sentence
variety and clarity of ideas.

TWO COMPONENTS OF A SENTENCE:

1. SUBJECT - wherein you must name what you are talking about.
2. PREDICATE - wherein you must tell about the subject.

FOUR GENERAL KINDS OF SENTENCES:

1. DECLARATIVE SENTENCE - declares or states a fact. It ends with a

period.
2. INTERROGATIVE SENTENCE - asks a question and ends with a
question mark.
3. IMPERATIVE SENTENCE - expresses request or command and ends
with a period.
4. EXCLAMATORY SENTENCE - exclaims a strong feeling or emotion
and usually ends with an exclamatory mark.

POLICE SENTENCE - a grammatically narration of facts with the usual

subject, predicate and verb.  It is distinctive because of the use of police
words, phrases, clauses and other terminologies without however, being too
technical, legal and vulgar.

TOPIC SENTENCE - is the first sentence immediately at the beginning of the

next or ensuing or following paragraph.

1. OPENING SENTENCES

            Sentences can be opened in various ways. Study closely the

techniques and the corresponding examples below them.

 
B.1. USE OF ADVERBS- Adverb refers to a word or phrase that modifies or
qualifies an adjective, verb, or other adverb or a word group, expressing a
relation of place, time, circumstance, manner, cause degree, etc.

Examples:

Noisily, anxiously, forcefully, gently, patiently

angrily, hurriedly, happily, steadily, hopefully

Examples of adverbs used in opening a sentence:

1. Quickly, the victim attempted to flee but was held back by the suspect.
2. Immediately, the suspect brandished a .45 caliber pistol and started
firing indiscriminately.
3. Instinctively, Police Staff Sergeant Bartolay went toward the suspect
and grabbed his arm to disarm him.
4. Slowly and cautiously, the snipers crept toward the location of the
kidnappers.
5. Fearlessly, the responding policeman exchanged fire with lawless
elements.

Note: Observe caution in the use of adverbs as sentence openers lest the

writer appear subjective or opinionated. Use adverbs that do not connote
personal judgment to make report as objective as possible.

B.2. USE OF PREPOSITIONAL PHRASE

            A phrase is a group of words, without a subject and verb, which

functions in a sentence as one part of the speech. (Just to refresh you of the
different parts of speech, think of words like nouns, pronouns, adjectives,
verbs, prepositions, conjunctions, and interjections)

            A prepositional phrase consists of a preposition and

an object, usually a noun. Together, the preposition and the object (or the
phrase) functions either as an adjective phrase modifying nouns and
pronouns, or an adverb phrase modifying adjectives and adverbs.
 

Examples of prepositions:

Under               Above             across              During              From

Around                        Behind             in                     Over                On

Examples of prepositional phrase:

under the piles of documents              above the sink                        across the

street

around the neighborhood                  behind the wheels                   in the

bedroom

during the camp drill                          over dinner                              on the

third floor

from the director’s office                     after cleaning                          before the

sunset

against her will                                    near the door                          with his

tool                

Examples of prepositional phrases used in opening a sentence:

1. In her sworn statement, witness Cielo Pormento admitted that the

suspect is her former boyfriend.
2. With his defensive tactic’s skills, Sergeant Buendia was able to disarm
the suspect.
3. On September 14, 2020 at about 4:00 P.M., Gina Gonzales, 23 years
old, single and resident of AD 436 Betag, La Trinidad Benguet came to
this station.
4. Upon arrival, the responding officers sealed the area.
5. Inside the bedroom, the investigators recovered a pair of blood-stained
rubber slippers.
 

B.3. USE OF PARTTICIPLE OR PARTICIPIAL PHRASE

B.3.1. Use of PRESENT Participial Phrase

            Present participles are verb forms ending in -ing that are

used adjectves or descriptive words.

Examples of present participles and present participial phrases:

PRESENT PRESENT
PARTICIPLE PARTICIPIAL PHRASE
running running wildly
working working hard
speaking speaking in a low voice
laughing laughing boisterously
driving driving recklessly

Examples of present participial phrase used in opening sentence:

B.3.2. Use of PAST Participle or Participial Phrase

            A past participial phrase ends in ed (t or en) and is used as an

adjective to describe the word (noun or pronoun) that follows it.
(e.g. sworn affidavit, mutilated body, etc)

            Following are examples of past participles and past participial phrases:

 
 

PAST PARTICIPIAL
PAST PARTICIPLE
PHRASE
horrified horrified by the news
captured by arresting
captured
officers
arrested arrested inside his office
hacked hacked to death
accused accused of Qualified Theft

Examples:

1. Exhausted, Police Technical Sergeant Galang, the duty desk officer,

stood up and stretched his arms and legs.
2. Hacked to death, the victim was brought to the morgue for autopsy.
3. Shot at close range, the victim sustained a bullet wound in the nape.
4. Shocked, the members of the media moved toward the crime scene.
5. Visibly shaken, the star witness could only stare at the victim’s young
son.

B.3.3. Use of PERFECT Participle or Perfect Participial Phrase

            A perfect participle or perfect participial phrase can also be used to

open a sentence. It consists of helping verbs having or having been together
with the past participle form of the verb. It is used to indicate a completed
action before another action. It functions mainly as an adjective describing the
subject of the sentence.

Examples:

Having shot                             Having been notified

Having beaten                        Having been discovered

Having arrested                       Having been interviewed

Examples:
 1. Having shot the stray dog, the security guard apologized to his
superiors.
2. Having beaten the man with a club, he was charged with serious
physical injuries.
3. Having arrested the man who has gone berseck, Police Corporal Zuelo
reported back to his chief of police.

As a writer, you should exercise caution in using the perfect participial phrase
as a sentence opener lest the sentence should result in an error known
as dangling modifier. You have to remember that the introductory verbal
phrase should be followed immediately by the noun it modifies.

B.4. USE OF SUBORDINATE OR DEPENDENT CLAUSE

            A subordinate clause contains a subject and a verb, but it cannot

stand alone as a complete idea. It is used to clarify the meaning of the main
clause or the independent clause. It starts with a subordinating conjunction
such as “because,” “when,” “although,” “before,” “since,” “as,” even though,”
etc.

B.5. INVERTED ORDER

            In the inverted order, the writer opens the sentence with the predicate
first. In other words, the verb comes first before the subject.

Examples:

Inverted Order- Recovered from the crime scene were five shells of .45

caliber pistol believed to have been used by the unidentified gunman.

Natural order- Five (5) shells of .45 caliber pistol believed to have been used
by the unidentified gunman were recovered from the crime scene.

 
B.6. START WITH INFINITIVE PHRASE (To + main or base form of the
verb)

Examples:

1. To divert the attention of the suspect, Nilda Silva screamed at the top of

her lungs before pretending to collapse.
2. To subdue the enemy, the responding team used high-powered guns.
3. To encourage the witness to speak, the complainants showed
photographs of the victims.

EXPANDING SENTENCES

            In a narrative report, details which come in descriptive words, phrases,

or clauses are essential to clarity of meaning. There are different ways by
which a subject can be described. Consider the following examples:

1. The officer with the blue Pershing cap is my immediate superior.

2. The officer who is wearing the blue Pershing cap is my immediate
superior.
3. The officer wearing the blue Pershing cap is my immediate superior.

The underlined word group in the first sentence is a prepositional

phrase starting with the preposition with followed by an object -cap. In the
second sentence, it is a relative clause starting with a relative pronoun who,
and in the third sentence, it is a participial phrase. All underline word groups
modify or describe the subject officer.

Examples:

1. PREPOSITIONAL
2. RELATIVE CLAUSE 3. PARTICIPIAL PHRASE
PHRASE
describing the subject
(Examples) (Examples)
(Examples)
The cadet who was
The cadet with a long The cadet holding a long
holding a long
firearm marched toward firearm marched toward
firearm marched toward
the barracks. the barracks.
the barracks.
The witness in a pair of The witness who was The witness wearing a pair
black jeans and white wearing a pair of black
of black jeans and white
polo skirt appeared jeans and white polo
polo shirt appeared pale
pale. shirt appeared pale.
The firearms in the
The firearms which are in The firearms taken into
custody of the
the custody of the custody of the police are
police are high-
police are high-powered. high-powered.
powered.

            Clauses, unlike phrases, are groups of words that have a subject and
a verb. They are classified into independent clauses (with ideas that can
stand alone) and subordinate clauses (or ideas that depend on the main
clause to clarify the meaning of the sentence).

4. PAST PARTICIPIAL PHRASE (describing predicate nouns)

Examples:

These are unlicensed firearms seized by the police operatives.

(Seized by the police operatives is a past participial phrase describing

firearms- the predicate noun, or the noun after the linking verb are)

5. INFINITIVES (to + verb)

            This word-group can be used as an adjective and an adverb.

As an adverb:

Examples:

The ground commander sent the best sniper to neutralize the hostage-taker.

 
(The phrase to neutralize the hostage-taker is used as an adverb describing
or modifying the verb sent. It shows the purpose of the action and it answers
the question why.

The Director issued the memorandum to remind his subordinates of their

duties.

(Why dis the Director issue the memorandum? It is to remind the subordinates
of their duties.)

He dispatched his men to investigate the incident.

He instructed them to proceed to the crime scene.

The suspect entered the bar to drink several bottles of beer.

As Adjective:

            This is a crime to be solved immediately.

            The prosecution has additional evidence to present.

            We have a new plan to execute.

6. USE OF APPOSITIVE

            This is an explanatory noun placed in “apposition” or side by side

relationship with the subject or noun. Nouns are commonly used as appositive
and mean the same thing as the word or noun that is placed next to it.
Consider the following examples (the underlined word is the appositive):

1. Police Captain Felix Carillo, the chief of police, accommodated us.

2. Maria Aragones, the victim’s mother, pleaded for his son’s safety.
3. Perfecta Masibay, the helper of Sanchez couple, narrated her ordeal.
Notice from the examples above that the underlined words (appositives) can
substitute for the subject nouns- meaning, appositives will have the same
function or will mean the same thing as the nouns to which they are apposed.

COMBINING SENTENCES

            Aside from the use of descriptive phrases and clauses, another way to
expand sentences is to combine ideas. That is, if two or more ideas are
related, you can express in a single sentence. Consider the following
examples:

Example:  Police Corporal Waldo boarded the patrol car. He proceeded to the
crime scene.

Combined Sentence: Police Corporal Waldo boarded the patrol car and

proceeded to the

crime scene.

1. KEY CONCEPT: Two sentences can be combined using compound verb

or predicate. (boarded and proceeded)
Example: He gathered vital pieces of evidence. He interviewed witnesses.
He gathered vital pieces of evidence and
Combined:
interviewed witnesses.

2. KEY CONCEPT: The two sentences in the example are combined into a

compound sentence using the coordinating conjunction “but” preceded by a
comma. Other conjunctions used to connect ideas into a compound are “and,”
“or,” “yet,” “nor,” and “so,”. You can also use a semicolon to connect ideas in
lieu of a coordinating conjunction.

The team hunted the prime suspect. The suspect eluded the
Example:
arrest.
Combined: The team hunted the prime suspect, but he eluded arrest.
 The investigator did not find any trace of forcible entry at the
Example:
main entrance. He proceeded to the back door for clues.
The investigator did not find any trace of forcible entry at the
Combined:
main entrance, so he proceeded to the back door for clues.

3. KEY CONCEPT: Sentences can also be combined by changing one of

them into a phrase.
The investigator did not find any trace of forcible entry at the
Example:
main entrance. He proceeded to the back door for clues.
Not finding any trace of forcible entry at the main
Combined:
entrance, the investigator proceeded to the back door for clues. 

4. KEY CONCEPT: Another way to combine sentences is to change one of

them into a subordinate clause to create a complex sentence. This type of
sentence makes use of subordinating conjunction as “when,” “whenever,”
“before,” “after”, “although,” “while”, “where,” “whenever,” and
“though”.

Mrs. Elsie Gao learned about the tragedy that befell her son. She
Example:
became hysterical.
When Mrs. Elsie Gao learned about the tragedy that befell her
Combined:
son, she became hysterical.   

USING TRANSITIONAL WORDS OR PHRASES

            Coherent narrative report writing hinges on the right use of connecting

words or phrases that provide smooth or seamless transition between ideas.
They are like “bridges” or linkages between sentences ushering in unified or
unbroken flow of ideas. Thus, they help avoid unnecessary interruption or
immediate switch of ideas or topics as events are narrated.

            In narrative reports, there are plenty of transitional devices (also

known as time-order words) to connect ideas. These devices may show or
signal time-order, spatial order, comparison or contrast, cause and effect,
emphasis, addition, and examples.
 

1. TIME-ORDER WORDS

            Time-order words showing sequence of events in a narrative report.

Examples

First Afterward Suddenly In the past Immediately

At the same
Later Before Since Meanwhile
time
Next Simultaneously Finally Gradually Presently
Last Now In the meantime Shortly After a while
Soon During Earlier Then And then
At length By this time At that time Thereafter Then
Lately Until And then Eventually When
At length At last So far    

            The examples above are transitional words that signal time order.
When used appropriately, they help readers understand how ideas relate to
each other over time. These are particularly essential in a narrative report
because they vividly show the chronology or sequence of events as they
happened.

Example:

            The three students-Molino, Salama, and Torre, alighted from the
jeepney and proceeded to the Maharlika Restaurant. They occupied a table
near a window. After about five minutes, a waitress approached them and
took their order. Then, Torre left his seat to go to the men’s room. Shortly
after closing the door of the men’s room, he heard successive
gunshots. Immediately, he hid inside a cubicle, and waited until the
commotion stopped. Thereafter, he slowly opened the door of the men’s room
and slowly peeked through it. From his position, he saw a gun-wielding man
fleeing the restaurant. At the same time, he also saw bloodied bodies strewn
on the floor and slumped on tables.

2. SPATIAL-ORDER WORDS

            Transition words can also be used to signal spatial order. The purpose
is to guide readers to follow your ideas easily and clearly. By using transition
words in a sentence, ideas or details in a narrative report and arranged
across space such as from left to right, top to bottom, near to far, front to back
and vice versa. 

Examples

Inside Outside Above Behind Near

Ahead Before Below Across from Above
Below To the right/left Behind Beneath In front
Near Far Beside    

Example:

            When the investigating team entered the master’s bedroom, they saw
splintered/broken glasses strewn on the floor. In front of the bed was a half-
empty bottle of pills, with half of the contents spilled on the floor. On the
bed lay two bodies, one on top of the other, apparently lifeless, and
bloodied. On the right side, of the table beside the bed was a pile of papers
with scribbles written in blue ink. Beside it was three crumpled papers with
blood stains. Behind the table and splattered across the wall were these
words: “Para kay Maritess!”

3. COMPARISON OR CONTRAST
Likewise Otherwise
Similarly However
In the same manner Nonetheless
In spite of Instead
On the contrary On the other hand
Even though Notwithstanding
Regardless Still
Though Yet

Example:

            Witness Judy Abilay contended that she saw the couple Roberti
Lontac and Josephine Delgado seated on the bench near the covered court,
holding hands and apparently very sweet. Likewise, Rowena Jullado, a
classmate of the couple, who was walking just a few steps behind Abilay on
the fateful night, averred that the couple looked “happy” and whispered “sweet
nothings” to each other. She even contemplated not to greet them so as not to
disrupt the “sweetness”. Nonetheless, she (Jullado) called their attention and
even asked them what time they would go.

4. CAUSE AND EFFECT

These transition words are used to show cause and effect relationship
between ideas or sentences. They are used to signify that an idea or
statement is predicated on a previous idea.
Thus Because of
Accordingly Then
Since Therefore
Consequently So
As a result Hence
In effect And so

Example:

            According to the subject, he did not employ force or intimidation when
he had sexual relations with the victim as he alleged, they were long-time
lovers. Therefore, he could not be charged with the crime of rape.

5. EMPHASIS
Examples: Indeed, In fact, In other words, Especially, Even

Example:

            The owner-type jeepney was riddled with bullet holed apparently from
high-powered firearms. In fact, upon closer inspection, there were five huge
holes large enough for a normal fist to pass through.

6. ADDITION

Examples: Furthermore, Further, In addition, and, last, next, besides,

moreover, second, also, as well, too, on top of, over and above, plus

Example:

            Besides a plastic bag containing three packs of cigarettes, and a piece

of lighter and crumpled foil paper, the police operatives also recovered from
the suspects two pieces of 9-inch fan knives with wooden
handles. Furthermore, they discovered a tickler containing names and
addresses, including contact numbers.

7. EXAMPLES

Examples: Namely, In particular, As an illustration, That is, For example, For

instance, In other words, Specifically, Particularly

Example:

            The suspects, namely, Froi Lana, Matheo Nava, and Herbert Eliseo

were apprehended in front of the Tokyo Café Restaurant at Legarda Street,
Baguio City while waiting for a taxi ride.

BUILDING YOUR PARAGRAPHS

            Having studied the different techniques in sentence construction, we

go to paragraph development which is a key component in report writing.
            By definition, a paragraph consists of sentences that develop a single
topic. Thus, a basic paragraph structure consists of a topic sentence (which
contains the central idea) and the supporting sentences. You need to read
the entire passage to determine central idea or topic.

            There is no cut and dried formula in determining appropriate

paragraph length. An ideal paragraph is short enough to maintain its focus on
a single idea and long enough to develop, explain, or illustrate that idea.
Generally, paragraphs are shorter in the introductory and ending paragraphs
compared to the body paragraphs.

            Well-organized paragraphs show logical and orderly development of

thought. In narrative report, paragraphs are arranged in chronological order
(also called time order). It means that the report is written in the sequence of
what happened first and what happened next. In addition, as it deals with the
past occurrence, the report is always in the past tense.

            The paragraphs in a police report are not only indented but also
numbered. The beginning of each paragraph signals the change in thought or
focus from the topic discussed in the preceding paragraph.

TIPS FOR A GOOD PARAGRAPH CONSTRUCTION:

1. Write short paragraphs- A short paragraph allows your reader to focus

on a single idea and not “loaded” or “dumped” with different ideas or
information. Breaking an idea into smaller units or paragraphs will give
your reader both reading space and time to absorb and understand the
facts.
2. Give complete idea in each paragraph- Writing short paragraphs
does not mean having incomplete ideas. You can make your
paragraphs brief but substantial-with all the necessary information
needed for clarity and understanding. This is where the 5Ws and 1H.

As the narrative relates an experience or events that transpired, it follows the

conventions of story-telling- character, setting, plot, climax and ending, and is
embellished with details which support the story.

3. Connect your paragraphs- Use appropriate transition words or

phrases to move smoothly from one paragraph to another. They serve
as a bridge connecting ideas from one paragraph to next. Transition
 words used between sentences are also used to tie paragraphs
together.
4. Be consistent in verb tense, person and number- To achieve
coherence or a smooth flow of ideas in your paragraph, you have to be
consistent in the use of verb tense, person and number. Do not shift
from past tense to present tense. Neither should you shift in person or
number.

MODULE SUMMARY

1. Sentence is a group of words that contains a subject and a predicate (verb). A sentence
expresses a complete thought. 
2. Sentences can be opened through various ways. This is by using adverbs, prepositional
phrase, participial phrase, subordinate or dependent clause, inverted order, and infinitive
phrases. 
3. In a narrative report, details which come in descriptive words, phrases, or clauses are
essential to clarity of meaning. There are different ways by which a subject can be
described. Expanding sentences can be done using prepositional phrase, relative
clause, participial phrase, past participial phrase, appositive and infinitives (to+verb).
4. Aside from the use of descriptive phrases and clauses, another way to expand
sentences is to combine ideas. That is, if two or more ideas are related, you can express
in a single sentence.

EVALUATING CONTENT

            Before submitting your written report, you need to read and evaluate
whether it is acceptable in both content and form. CONTENT refers to the
substance of your report while Form refers to the structure or the way the
report is presented. Thorough evaluation means you take a second or third
look and meticulously go over the entire writing until you can confidently
exclaim, “My reader will appreciate this report”.

            Content-wise, you as a writer should check whether your report

contains the essential qualities of good writing. Remember the
acronym ACCCO- which stands for Accuracy, Clarity, Conciseness,
Completeness, and Objectivity.

ACCURACY

Accuracy in report writing refers to correctness or precision in both information

and word choice. To be accurate means to be free of errors in substance and
details. If you mean to write 300 people, do not write 30 or 3000. Check the
names, details, and dates. What about the time the alleged incident occurred?
A one or two-hour difference in the report vis-à-vis the actual time incident
may be sufficient reason to support an alibi and thus weaken the case for the
prosecution or defense.

Accuracy also means using the exact words meant to express your intended
meaning. This means using” specific word” rather than vague ones. If the
victim was “strangled to death” or “gunned down”, do not write “killed”. Don’t
leave the reader guessing or wondering what “exactly” occurred.

Example (Vague):

            Sometime in October last year, the security guard of the

pharmaceutical company saw two suspicious-looking men leaving the
stockroom, carrying a loaded backpack. The guard attempted to apprehend
the men, but they immediately fled on foot. Later, the branch sales assistant
reported that about ten (10) pieces of BP monitors were missing and could not
be accounted for.

Example (Accurate)

            On October 5, 2011 at around 8:00 P.P., duty guard Polo Malvar of
XYZ Pharma Company noticed two suspicious-looking men leaving the
company stockroom. Each was carrying a loaded backpack. Malvar called
their attention and approached them but the duo hurriedly fled toward a
waiting taxi with plate number OTP 519 which then immediately sped off.
About five minutes later, the branch sales assistant-Criselda de Vera, reported
that about ten (10) pieces of BP monitors and could not be accounted for.

CLARITY

            Reports that are clear are easy and understand. Clarity means
freedom from ambiguity. It means you do not have to read the same
paragraph repeatedly to understand its meaning. It also means not having to
ask, “who did what?” or “what is that again?” with a corresponding confused or
puzzled look plastered on your face.

            A good strategy to make your report clear is to divide long sentences
into shorter ones to allow reader time to breathe and understand each idea.

Strategies to make sentences clear:

 1. Avoid elaborate and impressive words. Use simple, easily
understood words in your report. Avoid fancy words or expressions.

Examples:

Elaborate:        The vehicular accident caused bodily impairments to ten

passengers.

Simple:            The vehicular accident injured ten passengers.

2. Avoid double negatives and construct positive sentences

Examples:

Negative:        Applicants who will not pass this test will not qualify for

admission.

Positive:            Applicants who will pass this test will qualify for admission.

CONCISENESS

            To be concise is to express much in a few words as possible-to be

brief but substantial. Another term for this compact. In a narrative report, the
role of a writer is not to re-enact events but to summarize them using only
pertinent or important details. Any extraneous details irrelevant to the event
should be excluded, lest they render the report superfluous or bring the reader
off his focus from the more important details. It is thus necessary for the writer
to determine which details should be included and which ones should be
overlooked.

Examples:

Having been shot, Norma Lagueno howled in pain and slowly crawled and
dragged her bleeding left leg as she looked for cover.

Concise:
Having been shot in her left leg, Norma Lagueno crawled for cover.

***Do not use complicated and long sentence when you can send a clear
message using a short sentence. Do not beat around the bush. Be direct.

SIX STRATEGIES IN WRITING CONCISE SENTENCES:

1. Use active voice instead of passive voice- Make the subject of the

sentence the doer of the action. An active sentence is shorter than a
passive one.

Passive: The incident was investigated by a special team.

Active: A special team investigated the incident.

Passive: The report was reviewed by the chief of police.

Active: The chief of police reviewed the report.

2. Reduce long clauses into phrases.

Wordy: The suspect who was in the custody of the jail guards attempted to

flee.

Concise: The suspect in the custody of the jail guards attempted to flee.

Wordy: The man who is sitting beside the mayor is the chief of police.

Concise: The man beside the mayor is the chief of police.

 
 3. Cut unnecessary words and empty phrases- Eliminate wordy
phrases.

Wordy: The team made a decision to clear the area of peddlers.

Concise: The team decide to clear the area of peddlers.

4. Eliminate repetition and redundancy- Repetitious expressions make

our writing longer and add nothing to the meaning of the sentence.

List of repetitious/redundant words (the words in parentheses should be

eliminated)

(advance) notice Join (together)

Ask (a question) Kneel (down)
Assemble (together) (major) breakthrough
(brief) summary Might (possibly)
Modern technology
(close) proximity
(of today)
(Completely)
(mutual) cooperation
destroyed

Wordy: When asked a question by a reporter, the witness turned pale.

Concise: When asked by a reporter, the witness turned pale.

5. Avoid “Nominalization” or using the noun forms of verbs- Using

verb instead of their noun forms makes your sentences crisp and
concise.

Wordy: The analysis of the report by the prosecutor was thorough.

Concise: The prosecutor analyzed the report thoroughly.

6. Avoid the use of “there is/are/were” as sentence openers.

Wordy: There were two witnesses who testified against the kidnapping
suspect.

Concise: Two witnesses testified against the kidnapping suspect.

OBJECTIVITY

            Objectivity means being fair and impartial in writing reports. It also

means avoiding the inclusion of opinions, personal judgment, and emotions in
writing sentences.

            The key to objectivity or being fair and impartial writing reports is to
use language that has a neutral tone. This means that your report covers all
sides of the story and does not slant toward or favor one side only. To do this,
you need to avoid opinions, personal judgment and emotional overtone in
your sentences which will render your report subjective and partial.

            Although the statements of witnesses, victims and suspects may not
be objective, it is important that you as a writer, properly quote or attribute the
statements to your source (s) without adding your personal judgment or
conclusions. Write only facts and include brief details.

Example:

Subjective The suspect was extremely mad and murderous.

The suspect, armed with a bolo, ran towards a group of
Objective bystanders and shouted, “Papatayin ko kayong lahat!” (I will kill all
of you!)

Slanted/Partial Upon arrival from work, Mara Santo noticed that her five-year-
old daughter Olivia had bruises, swollen limbs and could not
talk. Her Japanese live-in partner Sinichi
Kowa rationalized that the child accidentally fell from the stairs
while she was playing. His alibi was that he was in the comfort
room when the accident occurred.

***The underlined words are connotative or suggestive. They

 hint the presumption of knowledge if not guilt of the Japanese
being questioned.
Upon arrival from work, Mara Santo noticed that her five-year-
old daughter Olivia was covered with bruises, had black eyes,
swollen limbs and was unable to talk. When asked about the
child’s condition, Sinichi Kowa, Santo’s Japanese live-in
partner who was alone with the child, narrated that the child
was playing near the stairs when she accidentally slipped and
Objective fell. He alleged that he was in the comfort room when the
incident occurred.

***The paragraph above is a narration of facts as they are

told, without a tint of partiality, opinion or judgment. To be
objective is to consider all angles without siding with or
favoring any of the persons involved in the investigation.

COMPLETENESS

            Completeness involves answering all possible questions that may be

asked by the reader using 5Ws + 1H formula.

            A good narrative report answers all questions that may be possibly
asked by the reader-the 5Ws and 1H-the who, what, when, where,
why and how. The why which concerns unearthing or revealing everything
regarding the nature of the crime or action being reported should be carefully
constructed in a manner that can be proven by facts and evidence. Opinions,
judgments concerning the nature of the crime should be backed up by
evidence (real, direct or circumstantial) usually in the form of statement
whether by the victims, suspects or witnesses.

BASIC QUESTIONS NECESSARY IN THE PREPARATION OF A GOOD

REPORT:

1. WHO?
1. Who was the complainant?
2. Who was the victim?
3. Who was/were the witnesses?
4. Who committed the crime?
 5. Who reported to the scene of the crime?
6. Who was the officer-in-charge?
7. Who handled and received the evidence?
2. WHAT?
1. What happened?
2. What was the nature of the incident or crime?
3. What did the reporting officer do?
4. What evidence was obtained?
5. What weapon (s) or tool (s) was/were used in the commission of
the crime?
3. WHEN?
1. When did the incident/crime happen?
2. When was the crime discovered?
3. When did the authorities arrive at the scene?
4. When was the suspect arrested?
5. When was the victim last scene?
4. WHERE?
1. Where was the crime committed?
2. Where did the incident occur?
3. Where were the tools acquired or obtained?
4. Where was the victim? Suspect (s)?
5. Where was the suspect (s) last seen?
6. Where was the evidence marked?
7. Where was the evidence stored?
5. WHY?
1. Why did the criminal commit the crime?
2. Why did it occur? (This question seeks to determine the motive of
the perpetrator of a crime or the reason why an incident (e.g. car
accident/altercation/riot occurred)
3. Why were the victims reluctant to talk?
4. Why so much time passed before the crime was report?
6. HOW?
1. How was the crime carried out?
2. How was the crime discovered?
3. How did you (the first responder) go to the scene of the crime?
4. How was the crime reported?
5. How did the criminal get away?
6. How did you get informed regarding the crime?
7. WITH WHOM?
1. With whom did the criminal associate?
2. With whom was the victim last seen?
 3. With whom are witnesses connected?
4. With whom did the criminal commit the crime?
5. With whom did you talk at the scene and other places?
6. With whom did you work at the investigation?

8. HOW MUCH?
1. How much damage was done?
2. How much property was taken?
3. How much money was taken?
4. How much information are the witnesses not giving out?

EVALUATING THE FORM

            Competent writers always examine what they have put down. Better
than competent writers-good writers examine the effects before they put them
down. They think that way all the time. Bad writers never examine anything.
Their inattentiveness to the detail of their prose is part and parcel of their
inattentiveness to the detail of the outside world. -Clive James (2007)

A. GRAMMAR

            By grammar, we mean the standard rules in writing and speaking-the

agreement between subject and verb, use of verb tenses, pronoun usage, use
of different parts of speech-preposition, proper verb forms, conjunctions and
interjections.

            Listed below are common errors in grammar found in actual police

reports:

1. USE OF ONE OF THE FOLLOWED BY A SINGULAR NOUN

Example:

Incorrect: The accused is one of the ten most wanted person for the month of

December 2011.

            ***ONE OF THE…phrase shall be followed by a “PLURAL NOUN”.

Correct: The accused is one of the ten most wanted persons for the month of
December 2011.

 
2. USE OF PROCEED AT INSTEAD OF PROCEED TO

Example:

Incorrect: The operatives headed by Police Lieutenant Gaston proceeded

at Isla Bato to arrest the suspect.

Correct: The operatives headed by Police Lieutenant Gaston proceeded

to Isla Bato to arrest the suspect.

PREPOSITIONS are words which begin prepositional phrases.

While Prepositional Phrase  is a group of words containing a preposition, a
noun or pronoun, object of the preposition, and any modifiers of the object. A
preposition sits in front of (is “pre-positioned” before) its object.

3. VERB TENSE INCONSISTENCY

            Police reports are littered with sentences that reveal glaring

inconsistencies in the use of verb tenses. Since reports are narration of facts
that already transpired, the generally -accepted tense used is the past tense.
Report writers should double-check for tense inconsistencies and strive to
correct the same.

Examples:

Incorrect: Upon arrival thereat, the operatives saw the accused drinking beer

and immediately arrest him.

Correct: Upon arrival thereat, the operatives saw the accused drinking beer

and immediately arrested him.

Both underlined verbs are used inconsistently. Saw is in the past tense

while arrest is in present tense.
 

4. Use of THIS and THESE

            This is a demonstrative pronoun used to point out an object or a

person near the speaker. These is a plural form of this and is used when
referring to more than one person or object. Hence, to use this before a plural
noun is incorrect such as the following examples:

Incorrect:         Upon reaching Kulasisi restaurant, this

operatives immediately presented to the accused the Warrant of Arrest issued
against him.

Correct:            Upon reaching Kulasisi restaurant, these operatives 

immediately resented to accused the Warrant of Arrest issued against him.

5. USE OF RELATIVE PRONOUN WHICH INSTEAD OF WHO WHEN

REFERRING TO PERSONS

            The relative pronoun which is used for objects or things while who is

used for persons. The pronoun that can be used either for persons of objects.

Incorrect:         Police Lieutenant Nolla’s team is conducting follow-up

operation to apprehend the suspects which have been hiding in unidentified
places since May this year.

Correct:            Police Lieutenant Nolla’s team is conducting follow-up

operation to apprehend the suspects who have been hiding in unidentified
places since May this year.

6. SUBJECT-VERB DISAGREEMENT
Singular subjects require singular verbs and plural subjects require plural
verbs.

Incorrect:         The accused, with lewd desires and actuated by lust,

unlawfully touched the private par of the victim, Raica Wawa,
which act, committed against her will, are prejudicial to the child’s welfare.

***Change are to is. The word act is singular; hence, the linking verb after it

should be singular as well.

Correct:           The accused, with lewd desires and actuated by lust,

unlawfully touched the private part of the victim, Raica Wawa,
which act, committed against her will, is prejudicial to the child’s welfare.

7. USE OF PAST TENSE OF THE VERB IN THE INFINITIVE to + verb

            The infinitive to should be followed by the base form of the verb as

in to do, to develop, to rescue, to neutralize, to solve, to interrogate, or to ask.

Wrong:             We need to recognized the contribution of police officers in

nation building.

Right:               We need to recognize the contribution of police officers in

nation building.

8. MISUSE OF PERFECT TENSES

            In narrative report writing, there are only two forms of perfect tenses
that can be used: The past perfect tense (had followed by the past participle
form of the verb) and the present perfect tense (has/have plus the past
participle form of the verb). The past perfect tense is used for an action
completed before another past action. Consider the example below:

 
            The suspect had already fled when the police operatives arrived at the
crime scene.

                               (Past perfect)                                                (Simple past)

            In the example above, there are two past actions involved. Take note
that the past perfect tense refers to the earliest past action or the action which
occurred before another action took place.

9. PRESENT PERFECT WITH INCORRECT VERB FORM

            In narrative reports, the present perfect tense (has/have+past

participle) is used for actions that took place at an indefinite time in the past or
for actions that are recently concluded at the time of speaking or writing.

Examples:

            The witness said that she has just arrived from a media interview.

            A common error committed in narrative police reports is the use of the
perfect tense with incorrect verb form. That is, instead of using the past
participle form of the verb, the writer uses the present or base form of the verb
after the helping verbs has or have. For example, has gain, have develop,
has dispatch.

Wrong: According to the lone witness, the suspects have gain entrance at the

back portion of the house.

Right:   According to the lone witness, the suspects have gained entrance at

the back portion of the house.

10. Use of Article a and an followed by a PLURAL NOUN.

Examples:

Wrong:             A simultaneous raids

                        Members of this precinct and the Business Promotion Office of

the Pasay City Hall conducted a simultaneous raids on stalls peddling pirated
DVDs along Juan Luna Street, Pasay City.

Correct:           simultaneous raids

                        Members of this precinct and the Business Promotion Office of

the Pasay City Hall conducted simultaneous raids on stalls peddling pirated
DVDs along Juan Luna Street, Pasay City.

Wrong:             an operations

                        The members of the PDEA conducted an operations inside a

posh subdivision in Brgy. Alabang , Muntinlupa City.

Correct:            an operation

                        The members of the PDEA conducted an operation inside a

posh subdivision in Brgy. Alabang, Muntinlupa City.

11. Confusion or Mix-up in the use of words that can pass either as
Noun or Verb, e.g. USED OF instead of USE OF

Wrong:             The suspect, through the used of an improvised gun, shot the

victim at his face, resulting in the latter’s instantaneous death.

Correct:            The suspect, through the use of an improvised gun, shot the

victim at his face, resulting in the latter’s instantaneous death.
 

12. Incorrect Form of the Main Verb when used in a Passive Sentence

            A passive sentence has the subject as the receiver of the

action  rather than the doer of the action. When the subject is the doer, the
sentence is in the active voice.

EXAMPLES:

Active: Police Lieutenant Moreno, the team leader, dispatched three more

SWAT members to

assist in the rescue of the kidnapped victim.

Passive: Three more SWAT members were dispatched by Police Lieutenant

Moreno, the team

leader, to assist in the rescue of the kidnapped victim.

            In the active sentence, the subject Police Lieutenant Moreno is the

doer of the action-that of dispatching the SWAT members. The SWAT
members are the object of the verb dispatched or the receiver of the action. In
the passive sentence, the receiver of the action-three more SWAT members-
becomes the subject of the sentence.

            A common error in narrative report with passive sentences is the use
of the base form of the verb instead of the past participle. Examples: was
dispatch, is/are believe, was submit, etc.

Examples:
Wrong:             The doctor refused the police officer’s request to take a
photograph of the victim while the latter was being treated. According to the
doctor, he was not authorize to grant such request.

Right:               The doctor refused the police officer’s request to take a

photograph of the victim while the latter was being treated. According to the
doctor, he was not authorized to grant such request.

Wrong:             The attack was halt when bystanders pacified the suspects.

Right:               The attack was halted when bystanders pacified the suspects.

            Good writers sexercise caution in the use of the passive voice. It is
only used when the writer or reporter wants to emphasize the receiver of the
action rather than the doer of the action.

13. Starting each paragraph with “THAT”

            The word “That” at the beginning of each paragraph is commonly used

in sworn affidavits with the usual introductory paragraph marked by a colon.
Paragraphs should start with natural subject-verb pattern or the inverted
pattern where verb comes first/. Paragraphs 2 and 3 below are erroneous.

1. Reference: HWI of Director, MPD dated January 24, 2011 to effect the
arrest of an extortionist in Juan Luna Street, Plaza Miranda, Manila.
2. That this pertains to the operation conducted by MPD Task Force Anti-
Kotong which led to the arrest of MMDA traffic law enforcers Juan Jose
Mateo, 48 years old, married and a resident of #215 Lerma St., Brgy.
Tunasan, Muntinlupa City.
3. That prior to the arrest of said person, this Desk officer received a
telephone call from a concerned citizen that there was on-going
“kotong” (extortion) activity involving two MMDA traffic law enforcers
prompting the undersigned to organize a team to check on the veracity
of the report.

Consider the revised version as shown below, Note the removal of the
“that” in paragraph s 2 and 3.
 1. Reference: HWI of Director, MPD dated January 24, 2011 to effect the
arrest of an extortionist in Juan Luna Street, Plaza Miranda, Manila.
2. This pertains to the operation conducted by MPD Task Force Anti-
Kotong which led to the arrest of MMDA traffic law enforcers Juan Jose
Mateo, 48 years old, married and a resident of #215 Lerma St., Brgy.
Tunasan, Muntinlupa City.
3. Prior to the arrest of said person, this Desk officer received a telephone
call from a concerned citizen that there was on-going “kotong”
(extortion) activity involving two MMDA traffic law enforcers prompting
the undersigned to organize a team to check on the veracity of the
report.

14. Use of Present Perfect Tense for Actions that Occurred at a Specific
Time in the past

            Observe the example below:

Wrong:             On October 17, 2009 at about 8:00 P.M., Avon Samgan,
neighbor and friend of the victim, have noticed the latter’s unusual behavior.

***The present perfect tense (has/have + participle form) is not to be used in

reference to

actions that took place at a definite time in the past. The appropriate tense to
be used is simple

past tense.

Right:               On October 17, 2009 at about 8:00 P.M., Avon Samgan,

neighbor and friend of the victim, noticed the latter’s unusual behavior.

15. Use of a verb instead of a noun following the article “the” or “a”

Example:
Wrong:             The accident resulted in the damaged of the vehicle.

Right:               The accident resulted in the damage of the vehicle.

Wrong:             The two teenagers were apprehended and brought to this

station by Police Master Sergeant Dalauig after a brief chased along Lerma
Street, Naga City.

Right:               The two teenagers were apprehended and brought to this

station by Police Master Sergeant Dalauig after a brief chase along Lerma
Street, Naga City.

16. Use of Refer with instead of Refer to

Example:

Wrong:             The case will be referred with the Manila Prosecutor’s office

for proper disposition.

Right:               The case will be referred to the Manila Prosecutor’s office

form proper disposition.

17. Incorrect Use of Pronouns or Disagreement between Pronoun and

Antecedent

                        An antecedent refers to the noun for which a pronoun stands.

Example:

                        The police officer said that he brought the suspect to the
prosecutor’s office for inquest.

 ***In the above example, the police officer is the antecedent or the noun for
which the

pronoun he stands.

 
Wrong:             While Maria was waiting for a jeepney ride, suspect Ruelo
Torres, suddenly came from behind and lunged their bladed weapon to her
back.

Right:               While Maria was waiting for a jeepney ride, suspect Ruelo

Torres, suddenly came from behind and lunged his bladed weapon to her
back.

18. USE OF WHEREIN

Example:

Wrong:             This refers to a murder case by gun shooting wherein the

victim was identified as Atty. Dinah Duma-an y Barba, 52 years old, single and
native of Surigao del Sur.

Correct:            This refers to a murder case by gun shooting in which the

victim was identified as Atty. Dinah Dum-an y Barba, 52 years old, single and
native of Surigao del Sur.

19. Use of Both followed by a singular noun

                        Both is a plural indefinite pronoun which should be followed by

a plural antecedent.

Wrong:             Both witness positively identified the suspect as the same

person who was seen tailing the victim before the shooting incident.

Right:               Both witnesses positively identified the suspect as the same

person who was seen tailing the victim before the shooting incident.

20. Use of Shed light to instead of Shed light on

Example:

Wrong:             The District Director ordered the traffic officers to shed light

to the car accident.

Right:               The District Director ordered the traffic officers to shed light
on the car accident.

 
21. Incorrect use of prepositions Between and Among

                        Between  is used when two persons or things are involved.

When there are more than two persons or things being referred to, the correct
preposition to use is among.

Examples:

Wrong:             The victim and the suspect were reportedly arguing

who among them should feed the ailing dog.

Right:               The victim and the suspect were reportedly arguing

who between them should feed the ailing dog.

Wrong:             Between the three victims of the car accident. Ali Walas

suffered the most serious injuries.

Right:               Among the three victims of the car accident, Ali Walas

suffered the most serious injuries.

22. Use of Past Participle instead of Simple Past Tense

(e.g. undergone instead of underwent)

Examples:

Wrong:             Maria Lontoc was transferred to Baguio General Hospital

where he undergone surgical operation.

Right:               Maria Lontoc was transferred to Baguio General Hospital

where he underwent surgical operation.

Wrong:             Shortly after the program had begun, the lights inside the
auditorium flickered and eventually gone out prompting the spectators to rise
to their seats and turn unruly.

Right:               Shortly after the program had begun, the lights inside the
auditorium flickered and eventually went out prompting the spectators to rise
to their seats and turn unruly.

B. SENTENCE ERRORS
Common sentence errors consist of run-ons, fragments, misplaced modifiers,
faulty parallelism and faulty coordination.

1. RUN-ON SENTENCE

            A run-on sentence consists of two sentences or ideas written as one

without appropriate punctuations or connecting word separating the ideas. It
can either be a comma splice,  where two complete ideas are separated by a
comma only or a fused sentence where there is no punctuation at all between
ideas.

Examples:

COMMA The altercation occurred in front of the victim’s residence, the

SPLICE suspect was allegedly drunk at that time.
FUSED The altercation occurred in front of the victim’s residence the
SENTENCE suspect was allegedly drunk at that time.

            In the first example (comma splice), a comma separates the ideas. In
the second example, there is no punctuation that separates the ideas. Either
example is incorrect. To correct the above run-ons, simply separate the ideas
into two sentences by adding a period at the end of the first idea.

Correct: The altercation occurred in front of the victim’s residence. The

suspect was already drunk at that time.

            Another way to correct it is to add a semi-colon between ideas. Note

that the second idea starts with a small letter.

 
Correct:           The altercation occurred in front of the victim’s residence; the
suspect was allegedly drunk at that time.

Four Ways to correct a comma splice and fused sentence:

1. Use of coordinating conjunction

Two police officers were awarded yesterday, and one of them was disabled.

2. Use of Semi-Colon

Two officers were awarded yesterday; one of them was disabled.

3. Use of a Subordinating Conjunction

Two police officers were awarded yesterday although one of them was

disabled.

4. Use of a period

Two police officers were awarded yesterday. One of them was disabled.

2. MISPLACED MODIFIER

            This refers to modifiers or descriptive phrases that are not placed
beside or near the word (s) they are supposed to modify or describe resulting
in ambiguous or confusing sentences.

Examples:

On June 21, 2009 at about 5:00 P.M., a woman appeared to this

Wrong office and presented a photograph of the suspect who introduced
herself as the lone witness to the stabbing incident.
On June 21, 2009 at about 5:00 P.M., a woman who introduced
Right herself as the lone witness to the stabbing incident appeared to this
office and presented a photograph of the suspect?
 

3. FRAGMENT

            A fragment consists of phrases or groups of words that lack either a

subject or verb and does not express a complete thought.

When uncovered, reveal a male cadaver, clad in white shirt soiled

Fragment
with blood and a pair of gray Corduroy short pants.
When uncovered, the stretcher revealed reveal a male cadaver,
Revised clad in white shirt soiled with blood and a pair of
gray Corduroy short pants.

            The first example is a fragment because it does not have a subject

(one being talked about). The second example clearly expresses a complete
idea.

4. DANGLING BEHAVIOR

            A sentence has a dangling modifier if the subject of the main idea or

amin clause is not the one that the phrase modifies. Consider the examples
below and their corresponding corrections:

Incorrect: Driving along Paseo de Roxas, a huge billboard being dismantled

was noticed by Inspector Martin.

                              

Correct: Driving along Paseo de Roxas, Inspector Martin noticed a huge

billboard being dismantled.

 
5. FAULTY PARALLELISM

            Faulty parallelism occurs when a sentence contains elements of

different grammatical kind. This sentence error disrupts the reader’s flow of
thought and expectations. In contrast, a sentence with parallel structure
consists of words or phrases of the same kind.

Examples:

Non-parallel: Police Corporal Lita Barbaro is a model employee, ideal wife

and loves her parents.

Parallel: Police Corporal Lita Barbaro is a model employee, ideal wife

and loving daughter.

            In the first example, adjectives are used Ii.e. model employee, ideal
wife) followed by another word (verb) loves. This violates the principle
parallelism because of the use of a different grammatical element. To correct
this error, the same grammatical element should be used (i.e. loving daughter)
as in the example.

6. USE OF SPLIT INFINITIVES

Examples:

Wrong:             The robbers decided to equally divide the loot among

themselves.

Right:               The robbers decided to divide the loot equally among

themselves.

C. PUNCTUATIONS

END MARKS
            Punctuation marks found at the end of a sentence can be a period, a
question mark, or an exclamation point. These marks determine the type of
sentence used. Period is used for declarative and imperative sentence,
question mark for interrogative, and exclamation point for a sentence that
expresses strong feeling.

Examples:

 DECLARATIVE: There are approximately 20, 000 examinees for the

PNPCAT each year.
 INTERROGATIVE: Who accompanied the victim to the hospital?
 EXCLAMATORY: Ready, aim, fire!
 IMPERATIVE: Go to the police station and report this incident.

COMMA

            The following are a number of ways by which a comma or commas

can be used in report writing:

1. To separate items in a series

Example:

 Police Captain Noel Divino, Police Corporal Adel Coya, Police Staff
Sergeant Anita Tio, and Atty. Teody Nagallo participated in the two-day
symposia sponsored by the Department of Justice.

Use two commas when there are three items in a series. Use three commas
when there are four items in a series.

1. After a subordinate clause that begins a sentence

Example:

 If the witness appears today, we will cross examine him.

The underlined clause is a subordinate or a dependent clause. It depends on
the main clause. The clause following it will make the meaning of the entire
sentence clear.

1. Separate an appositive from the noun it refers to. (Use of a pair of

commas)

An appositive renames a noun. It is “apposed to” or placed next to another

noun to explain, identify or rename (the noun).

Example:

 Police Major Henrik Uy, our deputy director for operations, led the

responding team that rescued the kidnapped Ateneo student.

1. Before the conjunction in a compound sentence

A conjunction is a connecting word that joins words, phrases or ideas.

            Example:

 The members of the rescue team rushed to the site of the

accident, but not a single person was present there.

1. After an introductory phrase at the beginning of the sentence

2. Prepositional Phrase

Examples: On April 18, 2011 at about 4:00 P.M., a woman who identified
herself as Kreesha Yu called up this office.

2. After a participle or a participial phrase at the beginning of a

sentence

Examples: Wasting no time, Police Corporal Kris Bayola and his men

searched the master bedroom where the burglar hid.

COLON

            A colon (:) indicates that something is to come. It is a signal of

introduction in formal sentences. Study the following uses of this device:
 1. Before a list of items often introduced by such words as the
following or as follows

Example: The operatives seized from the suspects the following items: an
icepick, a pair of old rubber shoes, three packs of cigarettes and a lighter.

1. For common uses such as separating hours from minutes,

minutes from seconds in athletic events and chapters from verses
in Biblical references.

Example: 10:05 P.M. (minutes to seconds)

1. After salutation of a business letter

Example: Dear Sir:

1. Before an announcement

Example:

Here is the latest news: The kidnappers are demanding a one-million peso
ransom.

DASH

1. Emphasizes appositive material (a noun that renames the subject)

Example:

            The four SWAT members-Police Captain Topacio, Police Lieutenant

Arnulfo, Police Corporal Dagan, Patrolman Malabanan-have been awarded
Efficiency Medals by the Secretary.

2. Ends a sentence with a list or series

Example:

            Police Brigadier General loves target shooting, playing basketball and

rowing-all activities reflective of a truly athletic man.

SEMI-COLON

            You can use a semi-colon to connect two simple sentences if you do

not wish to use a comma and a coordination conjunction.

Without semi-colon With semi-colon

Police Staff Sergeant Rico wants to go Police Staff Sergeant Rico wants to go
to the police station, but Police Master to the police station; Police Master
Sergeant Barnedo prefers to stay at Sergeant Barnedo prefers to stay at
home. home.

QUOTATION MARKS

1. Quotation marks are used to quote the exact words of the speaker
or source.

Example:

The suspect immediately drew his service firearm and shouted, “Don’t you
dare disrespect me!”

2. They are used to emphasize words or refer to words in a special or

emphatic way.

Example:

A “buy-bust” operation is an entrapment of a person selling prohibited drugs.

 
 3. They are used to enclose titles of stories, poems, songs, chapters,
articles and other parts of books or magazines.

Example:

Lyra, in her column, “Here’s the Point,” praised the members of the SOCO
team that handled the crime investigation.

APOSTROPHE (‘)

1. An apostrophe shows possession or ownership.

e.g. Cathy Javier’s statement

Here are the basic rules in the use of apostrophe:

1. Add ‘s to show possession of singular and plural nouns whose spelling

does not end with

SINGULAR PLURAL
Man’s statement Men’s room
Child’s eyes Children’s clothes

1. Add ‘s to a singular common noun ending in (If the next word begins
with s, add only an apostrophe)

e.g. actress’s award

      actress’ secret

1. Add ‘s to the last word of compound nouns to show possession.

e.g. mother-in-law’s insinuation.

1. Add ‘s to the last noun for joint ownership.

                        e.g. Mather and daughter’s restaurant

 1. Add ‘s to each name/noun to indicate separate ownership.

                        e.g. Mother’s and daughter’s restaurants

2. An apostrophe replaces missing letter (s) in a construction.

e.g. “Something’s (Something is) going to happen,” says the Commanding

Officer.

3. It forms plurals of letters, numbers and words.

e.g. The word “proceed” is spelled with two e’s.

CAPITALIZATION

            Remember the following basic rules of capitalization:

1. Capitalize the beginning of every sentence.

Example:

The arrested persons were informed of their constitutional rights under the
Miranda Doctrine. Their statements were taken only in the presence of a
counsel of their choice.

2. Capitalize proper nouns.

3. Specific persons (e.g. Lourdes, Leah, Elle)
4. Places (g. Baguio City, La Trinidad)
5. Capitalize specific entities or things (e.g. Days: Monday; Brand
names: Sharp)

SPELLING

            Being able to spell words correctly is one of the marks of a good

writer. Error-free spelling is a reflection of your eye for details and sensitivity to
your readers. Errors in spelling may cause you your credibility as it makes
your report unclean and sloppily done.

USEFUL TIPS TO IMPROVE YOUR SPELLING SKILL:

1. Make sure you get the names right.

2. When in doubt, ask or better yet, consult the dictionary.
3. Know commonly misspelled words.

CIVILIAN LETTER

Civilian Letter

 A purely civilian letter is used when communicating with the President of

the Philippines, Department Secretaries, Provincial Governors, City or
Municipal Mayors, Managers of the bottling companies and the like.
 Civilian letter, unlike the subject-to letter, has different forms because
the former is particular on symmetry or a well-balanced appearance.
 Also, a civilian letter has a different phraseology, and its paragraphing is
not numbered, not unless in tabulation, enumeration.

Parts of Civilian Letter

1. Heading- A typed or a printed letterhead may be used. The former

includes a writer’s address usually blocked with the dateline (no
abbreviation for the months, street, district, city or country).  For
example:

                        490 Lakandula Street

                        Magsaysay, Baguio City

                        October 12, 2017

The latter, usually used in business firms, includes these pieces of

information:  name of the company, its address, telephone number and the
ZIP (Zone International Program) Code, if any.  Sometimes a company slogan
or trademark is written.

The use of identifying file reference is optional depending on instructions

issued by the Chief or Head of Office.  If ever used, it is placed at the left
margin two spaces below the letterhead and on the line of the current date.

2. Dateline- Month, day and year in that order is the dateline. In business

correspondence, the month is never abbreviated; it is spelled out.  Also,
st (as in 1st), nd, (as in 2nd), rd (as in 3rd), or th (as in 4th), is not used
after the month.

Wrong:             October 22th, 2017

Correct:            October 22, 2017

There should always be a comma between the day and the year.

3. Inside Address- The addressee’s name should be written fully. It

should always be preceded by a courtesy title, except in case of M.D.,
Ph.D., and a few others. 

            The first line shows the addressee’s name and designation; if any; the
second line, the name of the company or the unit the addressee belongs to;
the third and following lines, the address of the company.  If not belonging to
any office, the addressee’s local or home address will do.

Examples:        Miss Jenevive A. Palmito                    

                        Police Community Relations, PNP                  

                        PRO-Cordillera

                        La Trinidad, Benguet

 

4. Attention Line- To speed up handling of letter, the attention line is used

when the letter is addressed to a company or to an individual or a
particular department of a company or to an individual aside from the
addressee.

Examples:        ATTENTION:  Mr. Jomael M. Kilakil

                        Attention of the Production Manager

                        Attention Atty.  Norman T. Palsaen

A business correspondence should remember that the Attention Line, even if

it includes the name and/or title of a specific person, has no bearing on the
salutation which agrees with the first line of the inside address.

            The Attention Line is strategically written at the center page just below
the inside address and above the salutation.

Example:          Mr. Jubar E. Antonio

                        Manager, Philippine Life Security

                        Philippine Arcade

                        Bacolod City

                        ATTENTION:  Claims Department

5. Salutation- Greets the reader and the greeting may be formal or

informal or cordial or personal. The following examples show the
different kinds of salutation and the tones they reflect:
 

SINGULA
  PLURAL
R
Extremely Sir:
Sirs:
formal (for
Madam:
official Mesdames:
communicatio Dear Sir:
n) Still very Dear Sirs:
Dear
formal. Dear Mesdames:
Madam:
Dear Mr. Dear Messrs.
Lee: Lee and Chua:
Formal but
cordial
Dear Mrs. Dear Mmes. Lee
Lee: and Chua:
Gentlemen: 
(When
addressed to a
company or to a
Informal  
group consisting
entirely or men
or even men and
women.
Dear
Senen: or

Dear
Dearest
Personal  
Senen,
(usually
used in
courtesy
letters)

Except for peers and loyalty, the virtually universal form is “Dear Sir:” or Dear
Sirs:”, or “Dear Madam:” or Dear Mesdames:”.  The singular form is used for a
person or a particular member, e.g.  the manager of a firm, etc.
            “Sir:” without “Dear . . .” is usually reserved for honorific distinction in
addressing a person on rank, like a judge.

            For titles, “Miss” for an unmarried woman, “Mrs.” for a married woman,
or “Mr.” can be used.  “Mr.” and “Esquire” cannot be used together as they
mean the same thing.

            In writing to a firm, “Messrs.” for men and “Mmes:” for women are
used.

            “Doctor” is occasionally written out in full, although the abbreviation

“Dr.” is perfectly accepted.  The following titles are frequently abbreviated, but
it is more dignified to write them in full as in “Hon.” for “Honorable”, “Prof.” for
“Professor”, “Atty.” for “Attorney”, and “Rev.” for “Reverend”.

The title “Reverend” may properly refer to a minister, a priest, or a rector.  The
full name of the person, or the title “Mr.” Or “Dr.” and the name follows in his
title as herein example:

                        Rev. Dr. John Hicks                             

But not:

                        Reverend Dr. John Hicks                                

                        Reverend Mr. Juan Perez                                           

                       

                        The Rev. Antonio Sudario

                        The Reverend Mr. Juan Perez

                        The article “The” is used when the word “Reverend” is spelled
out.

 
            In the inside address, there should always be the first name of the
person even if prefixed by titles “Reverend”, “Principal”, “Superintendent”, or
“Professor”.

            These titles of positions when following names of persons should

never be abbreviated.

Wrong:             Miss Dianne Ivy Bony D. Agumas, Treas.

Correct:           Miss Dianne Ivy Bony D. Agumas, Treasurer

6. BODY- The body is the message itself. In it, one of the problems that
may confront a correspondent is paragraphing.  This, however, does not
pertain to the appearance of the message; but, rather, to its content.  A
correspondent gets confused on how to end and how to begin another
paragraph.

The general rule for paragraphing is to have each separate idea or subject
occupy a separate paragraph.  For instance, if one were to invite the
Secretary of National Defense as a Guest Speaker on a certain big occasion,
the former mentions the subject to be talked about, the time allotment, and the
anticipated acceptance of the letter.  How many paragraphs would there be? 
At least three.

7. SUBJECT LINE- The subject line, or the gist of the message, helps a
very busy businessman find out in a split second what the letter is all
about. As it is a part of the message, this line appears logical above it,
below the salutation.  For example:

Sir:

            SUBJECT:  Personal Coordination

8. COMPLIMENTARY CLOSE- A complimentary close is usually followed

by a comma and comes immediately after the last line of the message.
The first word starts with a capital letter.  For example:

Formal to a Superior:
            Yours respectfully,

            Respectfully yours,

            Yours very respectfully,

            Very respectfully yours,

Formal, business-like:  

            Yours truly,

            Truly yours,

            Yours very truly,

            Very truly yours,

The tone in the complimentary close must match  with that in the salutation. 
“Dear Sir:” and “Lovingly yours,” or  “Dear Ella:” and “Respectfully yours,” do
not complement each other.          

Here are generally accepted forms of address with their salutations and
corresponding complimentary closes:

To a President of a University

           Dr. Ariel Nimo P. Pumecha

           Vice President for Academic Affairs

           University of the Cordilleras

           Governor Pack Road, Baguio City

Salutation:  

           Dear Sir:

           My dear Sir:

           My dear President Donato:

Complimentary Close:

          Very truly yours,

           Very sincerely yours,

To a Dean of a College

           Mrs. Cherry Ann A. Cabarrubias

           Dean, College of Criminal Justice Education

           University of the Cordilleras-Legarda Campus

           Burnham-Legarda, Baguio City

Salutation:

           Dear Ma’am:

           Dear Mrs. Cabarrubias:

           My dear Mrs. Cabarrubias:

9. COMPANY SIGNATURE- In business correspondence, a company

signature may be shown immediately above the writer’s signature on
the theory that the company, not the writer, is the legal entity. In other
words, the company assumes a greater responsibility that the individual
does; especially if including it is not a standard policy of the firm. For
example:
 

Very truly yours,

BENGUET CORPORATION

Maritess A. Gao-ay

Security Manager

      Among men in uniform, the authority line takes the place of a company
signature.  The line is typed in all capital letters followed by a period, and is
positioned two roller spaces below the complimentary close, as in:

                 

         Very truly yours,

         FOR THE COMMANDANT.          

         KENNY C. MARTIN

         LCOL      (INF)          PA

          Chief for Operations

10. REFERENCE INITIALS

Initials of the writer and his typist or secretary appear at the left side of the
stationery, about two spaces below the writer’s identification.  These initials
are aligned with the left margin of the letter, as in:

            EGTJR:LNR
            EGTJR:LET

            EGTJR/let/lnr  (EGTJR signed the letter, let it be typed.)

11. ENCLOSURE NOTATION

This notation refers to anything sent together with the basic communication. 
In business, here are enclosure styles used:

Enclosure:        Contract

Enclosures:       Contract

Invoice

Enclosures:

1. Contract
2. Invoice
3. Memorandum Receipt

12. POSTSCRIPTS (P.S.)-If a writer has forgotten something in the

message, he adds P. S. Sometimes, he makes it intentional to attract
attention.  The postscript is usually flushed with the left margin.

13. COPIES- When one or two copies are furnished, a carbon copy

(cc) notation is indicated on the original and all triplicate copies of the
letter. This may be done in one or two ways indicated below:

                        cc:  Mr.  Freddie Balo

                        cc:  Mrs. James Louie Reyes

                        cc:  Sales Department

FORMATS IN WRITING A POLICE REPORT

SUBJECT-TO-LETTER

            Presently, a subject-to-letter is most applicable in police report writing. 

Commendations, certificates of appreciations or any other meritorious
recognition, basic transmittal, recommendations for promotion and similarly
related requests also adopt the subject-to letter format.

This is prepared intra-organizational, within the organization – meaning, within

the PNP, within the BJMP, within the BFP, or within the Philippine Public
Safety College (PPSC).  A purely civilian letter is used when sent outside a
bureau.

POSITION AND PLACEMENT- This letter is typed on bond paper measuring

8 by 11 ½ inches.  Only one side of the sheet is used.  Ordinarily, two carbon
copies (thin paper) are prepared.  One copy accompanies the original, the
other copy is kept for file. 

An exception to the rule occurs when a letter is sent from an office not
authorized to keep records, in which cased, both copies accompany the
original, one for the recipient and the other for the first office of record. 

Another exception occurs when copies are furnished to individual

organizations.  When they arise, instructions are obtained from the chief or
supervisor.

PARTS OF A SUBJECT-TO-LETTER

THE HEADING

All of the materials above the first line of the body comprise the heading. 
These are the office of the origin and address, file reference, identifying
initials, date, subject, channels through which the letter will pass, and
addressee to whom the letter is being sent.

LETTERHEAD – Printed letterhead stationery is normally used for the first

page.  If not available, a typed letterhead may be substituted.  Each
headquarters has its own letterhead.  In offices where more than one kind of
letterhead is used, the nature of the letter will determine which letterhead is
proper.

FILE REFERENCE – Otherwise called the Office Symbol, a file reference is

placed at the left margin usually two spaces below the letterhead and is in line
with the date.  This is also used as identifying information on the second and
subsequent pages.

IDENTIFYING INITIALS – Some offices place the surname or the initials of

their originator and the typist on the letter.  The initials of the individual who
dictated the correspondence and those of the typist are placed in the upper
extreme right corner on the first page of all copies or on the file copies only,
depending on the instruction issued by the chief supervisor.  In large
installations, the telephone number of the originator may be added.  Example: 
EGTJR/ilh/4472610.

DATE - This may refer either to the date of signature or the suspense date. 
The date of signature is placed at the right of the page on the second line
below the letterhead and ends at the margin.  The letterhead is placed after
the printed word, “DATE” when suspense date letterhead is used. 

           Both are expressed by day, month and year, in that order.  The day
and year are numerals.  The month may be spelled out or abbreviated.  If the
month is abbreviated, the year may be shortened to the last two digits, as in 1
Jul 03. 

           Usually, abbreviations occur in informal correspondence, not in formal

communication, like the subject-to letter, or civilian letter.

SUBJECT
           The subject line should contain words not exceeding 10.  It starts two
spaces below the file reference.  The word “SUBJECT” is followed by the
punctuation colon.  Title capitalization rules are used. 

           This means that capital letters for the first letter of the important words
should be reflected and small letters for the unimportant ones.  When the
subject extends to two lines, the second is blocked under the first letter of the
first word in the subject.

EXAMPLE:

           SUBJECT:  Reconsideration of Request for Lateral Entry

In general, a letter refers to one subject only.

CHANNELS

Correspondence can be routed directly to concerned or “THRU” channels,

through a lower chief or supervisor expected to exercise control, take action or
to be concerned.  When correspondence is routed to an addressee through
an intermediate agency, office, another format is used.

It is written in block style and with open punctuation.  In addition, the “THRU”
and “TO” data begin on the fourth line below the preceding item.

SUBJECT:            Leave of Absence

THRU:                 Chief of Police

                          Philippine National Police

                          La Trinidad Municipal Police Station

                          La Trinidad, Benguet

 
TO:      Regional Director

           Philippine National Police

           PRO-COR

           Camp Bado Dangwa, La Trinidad Benguet

ADDRESS 

           The address preceded by “TO” or “FOR” will be written in block style

with open punctuation and normally placed on the fourth line below the
SUBJECT or the “THRU” addressee (if used), as an example shown in the
preceding item. 

           Unless the correspondence pertains to an individual personally, the

name of the individual will not be used in the address of the Subject-To
Letter.  When it is necessary, however, the correspondence address to an
individual, his grade, first name, middle initial (if any) and last name are
indicated in that order.  His service number may be shown if it is known and
considered necessary for identification.

           TO:                            PCPT Norly S. Laruan, PNP

                                            Deputy Chief

                                            Traffic Management Section

                                            Calasiao Municipal Police Station

                                            Calasiao, Pangasinan

                                           

           “IN TURN” ADDRESSEES

When letters are routed to several addressees, the entire address of each will
be placed on a single line as much as possible.  The copy for each addressee
will be identified by a check mark on the duplicate copy by his address.
         

          “MULTIPLE” ADDRESSEES

When the same letter is intended for several addressees, the entire address
of each will be placed on a single line if possible.  The copy for each
addressee will be indicated by a check mark.

           “ATTENTION” ADDRESS

To speed up routing, correspondence may be addressed to the attention of an

individual or the head of a subdivision of an agency or office, either by
reference to the name of the subdivision or by the use of an office symbol. 

           The name will be used only when there exists a special reason for
calling the letter to the attention of the individual known to handle the type of
correspondence concerned, and when it is known that he will be at the place
addressed.

EXAMPLES:

        ADDRESSED TO THE ATTENTION OF AN INDIVIDUAL:

        FOR:           The Regional Director, PRO-CAR

                          Camp Bado Dangwa

                          La Trinidad, Benguet

                          Attn:  PLTCOL Chester Clyde A. Amok

 
        ADDRESSED TO THE ATTENTION OF THE HEAD OF A UNIT OR
COMMAND:

        FOR:           The Provincial Commander, PRO-Abra

                          Camp Gorio Delizo

                          Poblacion Abra

                          Attn:  Chief, Research Division

ADDRESSED TO THE ATTENTION OF THE HEAD OF A UNIT OR

COMMAND BY THE USE OF AN OFFICE SYMBOL:

       

        FOR:           Chief, PNP

                          HQPNP, Camp Crame

                          Quezon City

                          Attn:  ODO

THE BODY

(a)  If signing for a chief superintendent, director, deputy director general, or a

director general, and addressed to a member or members under him -

           BY COMMAND OF DIRECTOR BUENO:

(b)  If signing for a non-star rank -

           BY ORDER OF SSUPT FORTALEZA:

(c)  If not addressed to a member or members under him -

                    FOR THE DIRECTOR:

NOTE:  A Staff Officer may sign under the authority line only when authorized
to do so.

SIGNATURE 

           The signature contains the name of the officer (usually first name,
middle initial, and last name), signed in ink (black or blue-black, never blue or
any other color); the name being typed, stamped or printed in capital letters
identical with the written name, the officer’s rank or service and title or
designation.

           BY COMMAND OF DIRECTOR CRUZ:

                                                              AVE MARIE K. OSILA

                                                              Chief Inspector, PNP

                                                              Chief, Admin Division

           The use of the double signature is avoided.  Instead of this, a

designated individual may sign his own name and add the word “FOR” in front
of the typewritten name in the signature.  If an officer signs “FOR”, the rank of
the signing individual may be shown:

                          RACHEL P. PASITENG

                          Superintendent, BJMP

                          Asst Regional Director

                          FOR:

                                      ANDREW B. DULAY

                                      Chief Inspector, BJMP

                                      Chief, Admin

           Block style and open punctuations are used.  Abbreviations of rank or
service, and titles may be used.  By block style, the first letter of the rank and
title is placed directly under the first letter of the typewritten signature, but not
necessarily blocking under the last letter of the typewritten signature.

ENCLOSURES

           Enclosures are supplementary documents which are sent with

communications to provide additional information.  When a letter has one or
more enclosures, this fact is entered at the left side of the page in the
following manner:

                    2 Encls:

                          1 – DF with 3 comments

 – Draft of amendment

COPIES FURNISHED (OTHER OFFICES)

           A notation concerning copies furnished will be typed immediately

under, and separated by at least one line from the listing of inclosures, if any. 
When there are no inclosures, notation of copies furnished will be typed
beginning at the left margin on the same line as that of the typed signature,
the copy of each addressee will be indicated by a check mark.

              Copies Furnished:

              The Chief Surgeon

              The Chief Nurse

 

           Or:    Copies Furnished:

              RD-PRO-1

              COP-CMPS

              Intel Section

ADDITIONAL COPIES 

           Ordinarily, a letter or endorsement will be made with two carbon

copies.  Each stamped endorsement which is similarly addressed will be
made with one copy.  Copies will not be signed, but signature placed on an
original is typed, stamped, or reproduced on each copy.

           If sent by an office of record, one copy will be forwarded with

communication to the recipient who is to take principal action on the
communication and the other will be rendered for record.

           If the communication is sent by an office not of record or by an

individual, one copy will be forwarded with the communication to the first office
of record receiving the communication.  A third copy may be retained by the
writer and may be destroyed later when such copy is deemed no longer
necessary.

           The first office of record which receives a communication from an office
not of record or from an individual will withdraw one copy thereof for its
record.  No other intermediate recipient of a communication will withdraw a
copy.

RECORDS FOR INTERMEDIATE RECIPIENTS

           An intermediate recipient of a communication will make a record of

such communication only when office of record is inaccessible and when the
retention of a brief current record of the communication is necessary.  Such
record shall show only the minimum requisite information.  Except in unusual
circumstances, no copy of the letter itself will be made.  Notation for record
purposes of secret materials can be such that content matter or the letter is
safeguarded.

SPECIAL MAIL HANDLING 

           Correspondence sometimes requires special mail handling, when this

is necessary, words such as Air Mail, Special Delivery, etc., are stamped, or
typed in the center at the top and bottom of the first page.

ASSEMBLING 

           The outgoing letter and relevant papers will be arranged from top to
bottom and fastened with paper clips, as follows:

 Outgoing letter on top;

 Copy of outgoing letter, if any;
 Enclosures and copies, if any, in numerical sequence; and
 Information copies of outgoing letter, if any, with enclosures when
applicable.

           The file copy and relevant papers will be arranged from top to bottom,
as follows:

 File copy of outgoing letter on top. If consisting of more than one-page,

last page on top.
 Correspondence, or synopsis to which reply was made, if any; and

Copies enclosures, if any, in numerical sequence.

ISSUANCES

        All issuance is generally termed as an authoritative source of written

communications sent from a higher echelon to subordinates.  Administratively,
issuances can be categorized as Orders, Instructions or Directives which set
forth objectives, programs, and policies.  These issuances prescribe the
procedures, methods, and systems affecting the organization.  Sometimes,
however, the issuance is merely informational, relevant to routinary programs
and operations.

1. MEMORANDUMS

Interpreted the simplest way, a memorandum is “a note to help the memory.” 

Clearly stated, the message is boiled down to the fewest possible words, just
the bare essentials.  Memorandums may be of general application, requiring
compliance by, or information of, a majority or all of the officers and
personnel.         

There is no strict rule governing the tone of a memorandum.  However, it is

usually noted that the tone differs in accordance with the person or persons
reading it.  From a chief of office to, his subordinates, the tone is impersonal
(“Strict compliance expected . . .”).  From a writer sending a memorandum to
somebody of equal rank, the tone is casually personal (“I have noticed
changes in . . .”).  A junior officer writing a memo to the chief of office uses a
more formal one.  In other line agencies of the Philippine Government, using
FOR: and TO:, has been done.

The “MEMORANDUM FOR:” is written above the addressee if sent to a

superior office; the “MEMORANDUM TO:” is equally noted on the upper left
corner of the page if sent to subordinates.

MEMORANDUM FORMAT

            The PNP uses memorandum type as the common medium of

communication and correspondence within the organization.

            In writing and submitting police reports in the PNP, memorandum type
is required. It has the following basic parts such as letterhead, addressee
(sometimes with the use of attention line), sender, subject, date, the content,
and the signature.  The letterhead is usually printed using the official
stationery of the PNP office or station concerned. In the absence of the
printed stationery, an encoded letterhead is enough including the official logo
of the PNP (usually positioned on the left side) and the logo of the office or
station concerned (usually placed at the right side) such as the one below:

Republic of the Philippines

Department of the Interior and Local Government

NATIONAL POLICE COMMISION

PHILIPPINE NATIONAL POLICE STATION

NATIONAL CAPITAL REGION POLICE OFFICE

QUEZON CITY POLICE DISTRICT

Quirino Police Station (PS9)

Anonas Road, Project 2, Quezon City, Metro Manila

Tel. Nos. 434-36-87 / 434-39-42

            The addressee is addressed to the chief or head of unit for office or an
installation by his title. If the memorandum is addressed to a higher authority,
the word “FOR” is used whereas when the memorandum is directed to the
subordinates, the word “TO” is written such as the one bellow:

            For higher authorities:

            MEMORANDUM

                        FOR      :           The Chief of Police

           

To subordinates:

            MEMORANDUM

                        TO        :           All Concerned

            Aside from the chief or head of office whom your letter is addressed,
sometimes the attention line is used to inform other section heads or
individuals in the unit or office for information or action such as the one below:

            MEMORANDUM

                        FOR      :           The Chief of Police

                                                (Attn: Chief, Investigation Section)

            The sender is the one who sends the memorandum and usually uses
the word “FROM”. The designation or position of the sender is usually used to
identify where the originated such as the one below:

                        FROM   :           Investigator-on-case

            The subject is usually the title or topic of the event or report such
as the examples below:

                        SUBJECT           :           Spot Report re: Alleged Shooting

Incident

SUBJECT           :           Progress Report re: Shooting to Death of Juan de le

Cruz

Casimiro of Brgy. Anos, Los Banos, Laguna   

                        SUBJECT           :           Final Report re: Filing of a Case of

“MURDER” against Pedro

Panganiban y Pilaspilas of  Brgy. Lalakay, Los Banos, Laguna  

The date may refer to the date of submission of the report or the date when
the report is signed such as the one below:

            DATE    :           June 21, 2015

The content of the memorandum on police reports such as spot report,

progress report, and final report is the most important part because it contains
the details of the event or incident. The parts of these reports may vary. The
succeeding pages present the different parts of the said reports. The parts of
the memorandum or report are consecutively numbered using Arabic numbers
such as 1, 2, 3, and 4, among others.
The signature of the memorandum or report is signed by the sender. The
memorandum or report is not valid without the signature of the sender.
According to the Memorandum 08-41 “Revised Guidelines for the Standard
Preparation of Communications” issued by the Office of the Directorial Staff
dated August 16, 2012, names of uniformed personnel of the PNP is now
written with appropriate punctuation marks such as the examples below:

PCPT JUAN C. DE LA CRUZ

PSSG Mark Jayson T. Agdeppa

For police commissioned officers, the names should be encoded all

uppercase while the names of police non-commissioned officers are typed in
uppercase and lowercase such as the one above.

In the said TCDS Memorandum 08-41 dated August 16, 2012 and reiterated
in Memorandum dated April 1, 2014, the official font style to be used within
the PNP communications and correspondences is Arial and 12 as the font
size.

When preparing a memorandum, report, or any form of communication and

correspondence in the PNP organization, it should be presentable and printed
clearly. If the report requires several enclosures or attachments, they should
be properly arranged and labelled. Finally, before the report is submitted it
should be thoroughly edited and proofread for grammatical and typographical
errors.

B. ISSUANCE IDENTIFICATION

Other Administrative Issuances, excluding handbooks and manuals, as well

as memorandums of limited application, shall be numbered consecutively by
calendar years.  The first two digits shall represent the last two digits of the
calendar year when the issuance was prepared, and the number after the
hypen shall represent the serial number of the specific issuance.  For
aesthetic purposes, the last digit shall be immediately below the last letter of
the issuance category or type, as in:

           CIRCULAR                                              MEMORANDUM

No. 92-01                                              No. 92-9

OFFICE CIRCULAR                                 GENERAL CIRCULAR

No. 98-13                                               No. 03-9

1. CIRCULARS

These are administrative instructions which are directory, advisory or

informative in nature, more or less permanent in duration.  They deal with
subjects such as delegation of authority to be known by field personnel,
implementing instructions or regulations.  Because they come from the DILG,
the signatory is the Department Secretary.  Circulars are issued to the
Philippine National Police and its directorates.

1. GENERAL CIRCULARS

This type of administrative issuance shall contain administrative instructions

which are directory, advisory or informative in nature, more or less general in
application, permanent in duration and requiring compliance by or observance
from or information of the employees and the general public. 

They may prescribe certain rules, requirements or procedures, or they may

merely relay information for the guidance of those concerned.  They
disseminate information regarding rulings, precedents, laws or regulations of
common interest and opinions, resolutions, and decisions of higher offices.

EXAMPLE:  The FIREARMS BAN as the information is a common interest to

the public.

2. MEMORANDUM CIRCULARS

           Temporary in character, the Memorandum Circular (Popularly acronym

as MC in government offices) deals with subjects, such as explanations or
classifications of certain rules, regulations which are complied with or
executed by subordinates.

3. OFFICE CIRCULARS
           This cover administrative instructions which are directory, advisory or
informative in nature, permanent in duration.  They are applicable to/requiring
compliance by informing of most of all personnel in a particular directorate or
office only, not to those in the field.  Delegation of authority, punching
timecards, appointing/assigning of personnel on duties, or amendments of
previous circulars will fall on this category.

1. OFFICE ORDERS

These are issuances for the regulation of administrative matters in the

General Headquarters, Regional, Provincial/Metrodiscom, and Stations. 
Purely internal, office orders contain administrative instructions that are
regulatory in nature, mandatory in character, and requiring compliance by
personnel.  They usually cover subjects, such as personnel conduct, wearing
Filipiniana, and other related matters.

1. BUREAU REGULATIONS

These are primary regulations for the administration.  Any Regulation should
be signed by the Chief of Bureau, himself.  The chain of communication
emanates from a directorate to The Chief Directorial Staff, then to the Chief of
Bureau, and the Secretary, DILG.

1. TRAINING DIRECTIVES

The DILG Training Orders prescribe courses for individuals and/or training
units.  Specifics include time, scope, and frequency of opening courses.

1. SPECIAL ORDERS
These are used to issue directives affecting the status of individuals such as
appointments, transfers, promotions, reductions, reliefs from duty, separation
and leave of absence.  The Chief Directorial Staff signs the Special Orders.

1. LETTER DIRECTIVES

They contain routine directives by which subordinate headquarters are given

instructions, advice or information.   This issuance is used when a General
Order, Circular or Regulation is inappropriate.  The period of effectivity of the
Letter Directive is two years, unless sooner rescinded or superseded.

1. COMPTROLLER/FISCAL DIRECTIVE

This type is a routine directive to all subordinate headquarters, units, and

offices for the purpose of giving advice, instructions, or information over any
financial transactions within the bureau.  The Director for Comptrollership
signs.

1. LETTER ORDERS

These refer to official orders or instructions sent in the form of a letter to the
persons concerned.  Assignments, details, designations, and other related
matters belong to this category.

1. STANDING OPERATING PROCEDURES

An SOP is a set of instructions regarding the procedures to be followed on a

routinary basis as desired by the chief or the director.  It sets down regular
procedures to be followed in the absence of instructions to the contrary. 
Preparation and submission of reports, maintenance of motor vehicles, and
similar movements/activities are reflected in SOPs.

1. OPERATION ORDER
Shortened as OPORD, the Operation Order carries with it the obligation of
immediate execution at a specified time or date.

1. OPERATION PLAN

           Popularly known as OPLAN, this written vehicle may be effective

immediately for planning purposes or for specified preparatory action for a
particular condition determined to exist.  It contains assumptions.  However,
an OPLAN is not executed until directed by the Chief or Head of a command. 
He is the signatory.  When execution is directed, the plan becomes an order,
which then specifies the time or condition(s) under which is to be in effect.

POLICE BLOTTER

1. MAINTENANCE OF A POLICE BLOTTER

            Each PNP operating unit shall maintain an official police blotter where
all types of operational and undercover dispatches shall be recorded
containing the five “W’s” (who, what, where, when and why) and one “H”
(how) of an information.

A Police Blotter is a logbook that contains the daily registry of all crime
incident reports, official summaries of arrest, and other significant events
reported in a police station (PNP Police Operational Procedures 2013).

Police Blotter for Cases Involving Women and Children

            A separate Police Blotter, however, shall be maintained for crime

incident reports involving violence against women and children and those
cases involving a child in conflict with law to protect their privacy pursuant to
Republic Act (RA) 9262 (Anti-Violence Against Women and Children Act of
2004) and RA9344 (Juvenile Justice and Welfare Act of 2006), respectively
(PNP Police Operational Procedures 2013).

1. Contents of the Police Blotter Entry

The entries in the Police Blotter should answer the following:

1. Who
2. What
3. Where
4. When
5. Why
6. How
7. Disposition of the Case

Sample of a Police Blotter Entry

ENTRY
DATE TIME INCIDENTS/EVENTS DISPOSITION
NO.
1-21-
2019-001 8:10 AM At the stated date and time, an For referral to
2019
alleged shooting incident
      the
transpired 
      along Halsema Highway, Betag, investigation
La Trinidad, Benguet. Upon
      section.
receipt
of the information, the operatives
       
of this
office responded immediately to
       
the
      crime scene. The victim was  
identified as Romeo S. Tigasin,
       
38
years old, married, carpenter,
       
and a
resident of Puguis, La Trinidad,
       
Benguet.
The suspect left immediately
       
after
      the commission of the crime  
 heading
      toward unknown direction. The  
      victim was brought at  
Benguet General Hospital for
       
medication.

1. THE 5Ws AND 1H OF POLICE REPORTS

2. Who?

     These questions include the complete and correct name of all who were
involved in the incident such as the victim/s, suspect/s, witness/es and
whosoever may be listed as present during the incident, or may not be
present, but have knowledge about the said incident. The wrong name results
in failure to locate a witness or apprehend a suspect. The spelling should be
correct including the middle name, exact home address/es whether residence
or hotel, telephone number, cellular phone number, and other contact details
(Soriano2005).

1. Who was the victim?

2. Who was the complainant?
3. Who discovered the crime?
4. Who saw or heard anything of importance?
5. Who had a motive for committing the crime?
6. Who committed the crime?
7. Who helped in the commission of the crime?
8. Who had access to the means for committing the crime?
9. Who worked on the case?
10. Who had access to the crime scene?
11. Who searched for, identified, and gathered the evidence?
12. To whom did they turn over the evidence?
13. With whom did the victim associate?
14. With whom did the suspect associate?
15. With whom was the victim last seen?
16. With whom the witness/es associate?
17. With whom did the suspect commit the crime?

1. What?
     These questions are directed to the crime being committed. Police reports
sometime indicate the crime committed based on Revised Penal Code (RPC)
like Murder, Homicide, or Rape, among others. In initial reports such as Spot
Report, which does not require a thorough investigation yet, this is not
essential. A report of a “Shooting Incident” may be sufficient. It is the duty of
the Investigator-on-Case to determine what crime was committed. What is
more important is to present the detailed facts and circumstances of what
happened (PNP SOP No. 2012-001; Soriano, 2005).

1. What type of property was attacked, e.g. building, residence, car, etc?
2. What type of property was stolen, lost, or found? What items related to
the crime were found at the crime scene? An accurate description of all
such property should be entered in the report.
3. What felony/offense/infraction was committed, e.g. murder, homicide,
rape, physical injuries, robbery, theft, or violation of special laws such as
RA 7610, RA9262, etc.?
4. What type of evidence was found or recovered?
5. What was the crime committed?
6. What are the elements of the crime?
7. What actions were performed by the suspect/s before and after the
crime?
8. What actually happened?
9. What do the witness/es say and know?
10. What evidence was obtained?
11. What was done with the evidence?
12. What tools/weapons were used in the commission of the crime?
13. What did the officers take?
14. What further action should be taken?
15. What knowledge, skill, or strength was needed to commit the
crime?
16. What other agencies were or needed to be notified?
17. What type of transportation was used?
18. What was the motive or suspected motive of the crime?
19. What other crime/s could be associated with this one?

1. Where?

     These questions are concerned with the geographical location of the crime
scene, property, or evidence. Describe in detail where the incident exactly
happened, e.g. “In the master’s bedroom of a two-storey brick brick house
located at 69 Rizal Street, Villa de Calamba Brgy. Halang Calamba City,
Laguna” (PNP SOP No. 2012-001; Soriano, 2005).

1. Where was the crime commtted?

2. Where was the crime daiscovered?
3. Where was the entry made?
4. Where was the exit made?
5. Where was the tools that were used in the crime obtained?
6. Where was the victim made?
7. Where was the suspect seen during the crime?
8. Where was the victim last seen?
9. Where was the suspect last seen?
10. Where were the witnesses during the crime?
11. Where did the suspect live and does he live now?
12. Where is the suspect now?
13. Where is the suspect likely to go?
14. Where was the evidence marked?
15. Where was the evidence found?
16. Where was the evidence stored?

1. When?

     These questions include the date and time when the
felony/offense/infraction was committed, property found, suspect
apprehended, etc. (Soriano, 2005).

1. When was the crime committed?

2. When was it discovered?
3. When did they report the crime?
4. When did the officers and investigators arrive at the crime scene?
5. When was the victim last seen?
6. When was the arrest made?
7. When will a complaint be signed?
8. When did the witness hear anything unusual?
9. When did they contact the witness/es?

1. Why?
     These questions provide the object or desire which motivated the
commission of the crime. In crimes against persons, the usual object includes
revenge, ransom, and sexual pleasure, among others. In crimes against
property, he reason may be to acquire money and property (Soriano, 2005).

1. Why was the crime committed?

2. Why were certain tools/weapons used?
3. Why was the crime reported?
4. Why was the crime reported late?
5. Why were the witnesses reluctant to give information?
6. Why is the suspect lying?
7. Why did the perpetrators prefer that time and day to commit the crime?

1. How?

     These questions pertain to the manner in which the crime was committed.
The narrative on how the incident happened shall be indicated to show the
description of the chronology of events that led to the incident and all the
circumstances thereafter. The actions taken during the initial investigation at
the scene shall also be included. This shall include the weather, lighting,
sounds, activity in the vicinity of the incident and all other peculiar details that
come to the senses of the trained police responder. There is no limit to what
to include in the “How” portion of the narrative (PNP SOP No. 2012-001;
Soriano, 2005).

1. How was the crime committed?

2. How did the suspect/s get to the scene?
3. How suspect/s leave the scene?
4. How did the perpetrators obtain the information necessary to commit the
crime?
5. How was the crime discovered?
6. How were the tools/weapons for the crime obtained?
7. How were the tools/weapons used?
8. How was the crime reported?
9. How much damage was done?
10. How much property or money was taken?
11. How much known information is being withheld?

 
CRIME INCIDENT REPORTING SYSTEM (CIRS)

Each PNP operating unit and utilize the PNP Crime Incident Reporting
System (CIRS), an electronic reporting system that facilitates crime
documentation, modernizes data storage and provides quick and reliable
transmission of crime information from lower units and NOSUs of the PNP to
the National Headquarters at Camp Crame, Quezon City. This is also known
as electronic blotter or shall also maintained more popularly known as “e-
blotter” (PNP Police Operational Procedures 2013).

BLOTTER PROCEDURE

Before entry into the blotter book, the Duty Officer (DO) should first evaluate if
the report is a crime incident, arrest or event/activity, which is for records
purposes only. If the report is a crime incident, the DO shall first accomplish
the Incident Record Form (IRF) from which the entry in the blotter book and
IRS shall be extracted. All other reports shall be reported directly to the blotter
book (PNP SOP No. 2012-001 “Incident Recording System”).

The following incidents or transactions, among others, are entered in the

police blotter (Soriano, 2005):

1. Violations of laws and ordinances reported and recorded;

2. All calls in which any member of the PNP is dispatched or takes official
action;
3. All fire arms, reports and information received by the statins;
4. Movements of prisoners with corresponding notations on the authority
for such movements;
5. Cases of missing and found persons, animals, and property;
6. Vehicular and other types of accidents which require police action;
7. All personal injuries, bodies found, and suicides;
8. Damage of property;
9. All cases in which police member is involved;
10. All arrests and returns made; and
11. Miscellaneous cases, general and special orders, violations of
rules and regulations, and other reportable accident that the substation,
station commander, or higher authority desires to be recoded.
UNIT CRIME PERIODIC REPORT (UCPER)

Purpose

            To promote consistency in the recording of crime incidence, the PNP

adopts a uniform procedure in reporting and collecting crime data including
cases reported to other law enforcement agencies that are part of the Criminal
Justice System (PNP Police Operational Procedures 2013).

Execution and Procedures

            The Chief of Police is primarily responsible for the maintenance of

accurate crime data. Accuracy and integrity of crime recording processes
must be ensured by the Chief of Investigation Section and Crime Registrar.

            The Chief of Police shall likewise ensure that crime data are gathered
from all sources, such as Barangay, NBI, PDEA, BFAR, DENR, DSWD, BOC,
BI, and other agencies with law enforcement functions in the locality.

            Unit commanders shall appoint a Crime Registrar who shall be

responsible in consolidating and maintaining crime data files of each unit to
ensure consistency and continuity (PNP Police Operational Procedures 2013).

Recording

1. Incident Reports

All crime incidents whether reported by the victims, witnesses or third parties
must be recorded in the police blotter, even under the following
circumstances.

1. When the offender is ill and is unlikely to recover or is too senile or too
mentally disturbed for proceedings to take place;
 2. When the complainant or an essential witness is dead and the
proceedings cannot be pursued;
3. When the victim or an essential witness refuses, or is permanently
unable to stand as a witness; and
4. The victim or complainant or witness is a minor.

1. Reporting Jurisdiction

            The police unit with the territorial jurisdiction where the crime was
committed shall have the primary responsibility to record and report the same.
If a continuing crime is committed in various areas of responsibilities, it should
be recorded and reported as a single crime by the unit taking cognizance of
the crime (PNP Police Operational Procedures 2013).

LECTURE VIDEO:

  https://youtu.be/bPkDKkw27IM