NE Valley Times

The Scottsdale Police Department (SPD) has been assessed for its crime reporting practices, focusing on the calendar year 2021. The audit aimed to evaluate the controls over and reliability of crime statistics reported through the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS).

SPD is responsible for submitting crime statistics to the Arizona Department of Public Safety’s (DPS) Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) program. Within SPD, this task falls under the Planning, Research and Accreditation (PRA) unit, which reviews and submits these statistics. DPS then compiles all state data and forwards it to the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s UCR program.

Since January 1, 2021, SPD has transitioned to NIBRS, a more detailed system than previous summary reporting methods. This data originates from police reports entered into SPD's records management system. PRA police analysts conduct quality reviews throughout each month to ensure accuracy before sending monthly data to DPS.

The audit found that while crime statistics were generally reported accurately, some areas required improvement in quality control processes. Specific issues included inconsistencies in coding incident dispositions leading to minor errors in reported crimes and clearances. These inconsistencies could also affect internal department data accuracy on clearances.

Additionally, due to the transition to NIBRS, crimes occurring prior but reported in 2021 are not included in current statistics. Errors and outdated information in statute mapping tables may further impact report accuracy. Overrides of UCR codes are also not routinely documented or reviewed.

To address these findings, recommendations were made such as establishing written procedures for consistency in quality review processes, evaluating the necessity of duplicate clearance reviews, and providing information about city crime statistics on SPD's website.

The department has agreed with these recommendations and plans to implement them by the end of 2022.