Shasta County’s three law enforcement agencies on Thursday unveiled an online reporting option for low-level crimes that is designed to speed up service while giving officers more time to deal with more serious crimes.
The system, provided by a San Ramon-based software company called Coplogic, is intended to accept reports about petty theft (less than $950 in total value), the theft or fraudulent use of a credit card, vandalism, lost property and harassing phone calls.
Redding Police Chief Peter Hansen said the list of crimes eligible for online reporting could expand depending on how the Coplogic system is used. “The goal is to increase efficiency and make it faster for people to file a report,” Hansen said.
The Redding and Anderson police departments and the Shasta County Sheriff’s Department pooled their resources to acquire Coplogic at an initial cost of $36,000. The system also requires payment of an annual fee of $17,000. Sheriff Tom Bosenko said Redding police and his agency each paid 45 percent of the cost with Anderson picking up the other 10 percent. All three agencies used grant funds to pay for the system.
Representatives of all three agencies, gathered at the Redding Police Department for Thursday’s press conference, said the savings in officers’ time would more than pay for the online service.
Hansensaid if Coplogic saves an officer from having to take just one call per shift,that would add up to about 1,000 calls in a year. Once in place, Hansen estimated the online system will eliminate about 5,000 officer-assisted calls a year, “and the information is still getting where it needs to be.”
Shawn Watts, Anderson’s interim police chief, noted the system also will lead to more efficient use of dispatchers’ time as well.
“I want to emphasize that this is an option,” Hansen said. “No one will get turned away” if they prefer to deal with an officer in person or over the phone.
An e-mail address and access to the Internet are all that is required to file an online report, Bosenko said.
The Coplogic report form is accessed through the appropriate agency’s Web site (see list below). Once the report is submitted, it is reviewed by a supervisor to ensure it meets all guidelines. Once accepted, it becomes a formal report—complete with a report number—and is emailed to the reporting party within five days.
Hansen said RPD’s policy is to review online submissions at least once during each shift so that most people can expect to receive a report in one to two days. The reports can then be used to support insurance claims.
Martin Visser, program manager for Shasta County’s Integrated Public Safety system, said supplemental reports can be filed online if people discover more evidence of theft or other crimes.
Not only does online reporting help law enforcement agencies extend their increasingly scarce resources, Bosenko said it allows those agencies to pool data and, when possible, adjust staffing and patrol levels accordingly.
Authorities also expressed the hope that Coplogic will encourage more people to report crimes. “Often people say they don’t want to bother you, but an unreported crime is an unknown crime to us,” Bosenko said.
“It is important for everybody to report what occurs,” agreed Hansen. “This is one tool to allow that to happen without fear of overburdening police.”
Law enforcement Web sites:
www.ci.anderson.ca.us/police.asp
Jon Lewis is a freelance writer living in Redding. He has more than 30 years experience writing for newspapers and magazines. Contact him at jonpaullewis@gmail.com.
