On February 10, Minnesota Congresswoman Angie Craig defended herself against an assailant by throwing a cup of hot coffee at him. Craig, a Democrat, was bruised but not seriously harmed in the attack. The suspect was later arrested and charged.

You can read the story and the police report at this link: https://nypost.com/2023/02/10/msnbc-doxxed-congresswoman-who-was-assaulted-in-her-dc-apartment/. (MSNBC broadcast the police report, which included Craig’s address. That breach of privacy is a violation of MSNBC’s policies.)

I always encourage officers and trainees to read and evaluate police reports. That’s an excellent way to sharpen your own writing skills.

Here’s the Craig police report. If you were an administrator, what comments would you make? You can read my thoughts below.

My comments:
This report needs to be more efficient. Here’s my version:

C1 said she saw S1 in the lobby. He was behaving erratically. She thought he might be under the influence of a drug.

She said “Good morning” to him and got into the elevator. S1 followed her and started doing pushups. Then he punched her on her chin and grabbed her neck.

Ca tossed her hot coffee at him and ran out of the elevator.

Officers searched the basement level parking lot but didn’t find him.

My version is more than a third shorter. Officers are busy men and women. Stress is a huge problem in law enforcement today. One step every agency could take immediately is to show officers how to do paperwork more efficiently. The Angie Craig police report is a good example.

Photo by Lorie Shaull