What Happened You Ask????
What Happened You Ask????
Resources Available to the Public Regarding Police Activity in the City
There were several police cars on X street – why? I saw three fire trucks in front of my neighbor’s house – are they OK? A package was stolen from my porch – why is it not listed in the Police Blotter?
The Santa Clara Police Department (SCPD) is governed by the California Public Records Act (Government Code Section 6250-6260) and Department policy for the release of police reports.
In 2016, Public Safety Dispatchers fielded 170,127 calls resulting in 89,065 calls for service (50,211 Police; 28,374 self-initiated Police calls for service; 10,480 Fire). SCPD will be releasing the City of Santa Clara’s 2016 crime statistics in February; not every call for service results in a police report or arrest.
SCPD’s Police Blotter highlights a partial list of incidents in Santa Clara and is distributed to the press on a weekly basis. The Blotter provides the date, time, approximate location, a narrative summary of the incident, case number and the most serious arrest charge (not all of the charges).
What types of incidents are generally included in the Police Blotter?
• Routine and unusual calls for service;
• Incidents that may raise awareness and/or educate the public;
• Similar calls for service taking place with frequency, targeting a specific population and/or occurring in a particular area; and,
• When SCPD is seeking the public’s assistance to solve a crime.
Why aren’t certain calls for service included in the Police Blotter?
The U.S. Department of Justice cites several reasons why some information may be excluded from a Police Blotter, including:
• Deprives a person to their right of a fair trial;
• Hampers an ongoing investigation;
• Hinders prosecution;
• Places an officer or witness in danger; and,
• Constitutes an invasion of privacy.
What is an Arrest Log?
The Arrest Log provides a timely, chronological summary of all of the arrests made by SCPD. It includes the name of the suspect(s), date of birth, city in which they reside, arrest date, time, location, case number as well as all of the charge(s) associated with the arrest. This information, located on SCPD’s website (www.scpd.org), is updated daily and serves as the most comprehensive list of arrests made.
So, what are my resources for incidents not posted in the Police Blotter and not resulting in an arrest?
SCPD offers online crime alerting and mapping services that provide easy to read incident crime maps and automated alerts. Neighborhood crime data is available in near real-time. Crime information can be found at Crime Reports or LexisNexis.
https://www.crimereports.com/
https://communitycrimemap.com/
What information is eligible to arrested individuals, suspects and/or witnesses?
Reach out to SCPD’s Records Unit to learn more about the California Public Records Act (Government Code Section 6250-6260) and Department policy for the release of information.
Individuals interested in a police report should submit a Request for Record Information. If eligible, there is a nominal fee associated with the release of police reports. Requests should be sent to:
Santa Clara Police Department
Attention: Records Unit
601 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95050
Fax (408)248-0276
For more information, contact the Santa Clara Police Department at (408)615-4700.
Address/Location
Santa Clara Police Department
601 El Camino Real
Santa Clara, CA 95050
Contact
Emergency: 9-1-1
Non-emergencies: 408-615-5580