(La Porte, IN) - Victims of non-violent crime in La Porte will be filing their own police reports online so the city’s short-handed department can focus on more serious matters like drug dealing and traffic enforcement.

           

The Board of Public Works and Safety on Tuesday entered into a two-year contract with LexisNexis, a private legal and risk management services provider of the same online capability for other law enforcement agencies nationwide.  The firm will install and oversee the software allowing the public to file police reports from computers and other devices.

 

Mayor Tom Dermody said the move will considerably reduce the amount of time officers spend answering calls and doing paperwork on the complaints so they have more time on the streets.  He said there were nearly 13,000 calls for service during the first six months of this year at a department whose officer numbers have dwindled from 46 to 31 the past several years.

 

“Our officers can barely keep their head above water dealing with all of these calls,” he said.

 

Police Chief Paul Brettin said dispatchers will be given a list of major crimes officers will respond to.  People reporting other crimes will be given a link to file online.  Brettin said questions like where the crime occurred and value of the stolen items will appear on the screen as the report containing room for a brief summary of what transpired is being filled out.

           

Retailers will also be able to attach surveillance video of shoplifters with their reports.  “The system is very user friendly,” he said.

 

Brettin said the online reports will be assigned a case number and investigated just like any other complaint.  A keyboard will be provided in the lobby of the police station for people without a device to report a less serious offense.

 

Brettin said five officers were recently hired but won’t be ready for duty until after completing several months of training.  Until then, more officers could leave due to retirement or a higher paying job elsewhere.  Brettin said low pay has long been a factor but law enforcement coming under more intense scrutiny recently is adding to the manpower problem here and elsewhere.      

The over $20,000 cost of the new system is much cheaper than the hours officers invest taking the reports.  “It’s basically the future and we’re jumping on board now,” Brettin said.