Hazleton police streamline reports with CopLogic

June 06--Hazleton police responded to approximately 29,000 calls in 2013, an "astronomical" number that rivals the call volume of Wilkes-Barre, a much larger neighbor to the north, Hazleton's top cop said.

One of the challenges of responding to such a large number of calls is the time police spend on incidents that don't necessarily require a response, police Chief Frank DeAndrea said.

Streamlining the reporting process would benefit the public and the police department, he contends.

Many of the calls that police handle are made by residents who want reports filed for insurance purposes, DeAndrea said. Incidents could involve a scratched vehicle or when lawn decorations or pumpkins are stolen from porches in late October, he said.

But the existing system for reporting calls has its shortcomings for police and the public, he said.

Police compile "citizen complaint reports" that track the time, date and information about a specific incident. Information from those reports must then be transferred into the department's records management system.

While the chief emphasizes that all calls are of value, he said the department spends thousands of dollars in overtime each year sending officers to non-emergency response incidents.

The existing reporting system also creates hardships for the public, DeAndrea said.

Residents often can't take time off work or have the opportunity to meet with an officer and file a citizen complaint report, DeAndrea said.

Another problem is that residents are often hesitant to call 911 to report less-urgent crimes, such as when a lawn ornament gets stolen, the chief said. A general reluctance to report those types of crimes results in underreporting and could deprive police of information that could help solve a vandalism spree or a rash of lawn ornament thefts, he said.

DeAndrea believes an online reporting system would make it easier for the public to report crimes that don't require an immediate response from police -- and save the city substantial money on overtime by freeing up officers to handle more serious crimes.

City council obliged and authorized him to enter an agreement with CopLogic, which the chief says will streamline records management and give the public the ability to report non-emergency incidents by using a computer or smartphone.

"If the public calls for something that requires us to respond, we will respond," he said. "I'm not trying to get out of calls. The ability to use this system shall allow for HPD and the community to save thousands of dollars and year and it shall allow HPD to better allocate resources to crimes that need (to be) investigated and free up officers to spend more valuable time on patrol."

Council recently approved a resolution that allows the department to use $14,000 in drug seizure funds for buying the CopLogic program. Costs include $9,000 for CopLogic to provide the city with a website with police reporting capabilities. The site will automatically merge those reports with the police department's records management system. The remaining $5,000 in seizure funds will be used for software and database maintenance.

"The DeskOfficer Online Reporting System (DORS) generates an incredible savings in time and allows agencies to better reallocate resources to privatively face crime trends and better meet the needs of the community," DeAndrea said.

The public can use the system to submit tips or file non-emergency complaint reports from virtually anywhere by using either a computer or smartphone, he said.

A computer kiosk would be set up at City Hall for public use, he said. If people aren't comfortable using a computer an officer can help file a report, DeAndrea said.

The program will also help improve communications with non-English speakers. A person can file a report in Spanish or any other language and it will be automatically translated into English for officers to view, the chief said.

The system will assign a temporary report number for each case and an email will be sent to the citizen with a PDF attachment of the report that could be used for insurance purposes. Police can also call up each report by the assigned number and add additional information. When reports are approved, each case will be assigned a permanent case number.

Reporting abilities could be expanded to keep tabs on just about anything, such as non-functioning traffic signals and streetlights, potholes, noise complaints and drug tips, the chief said.

Software maintenance will cost the police department $5,000 per year. Money saved in overtime will be available to cover the annual fee, DeAndrea said.

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