Preposition: A four-syllable word. It sounds intimidating!

But it doesn’t have to be. The simple truth is that you’ve been using prepositions ever since you learned how to speak…and most people (including you!) use them correctly most of the time.

As a serious writer, you need to learn only a few usage rules about prepositions. Why not learn them now? There are only four rules. Make a commitment to learn one rule a week…and you will soon master a big chunk of English grammar.

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What are prepositions? They are small, ordinary words that indicate direction or purpose: in, by, for, with, to, of, on, over, under, beside, near, along…you can probably think of many more.

Prepositional phrases are small word groups that begin with prepositions: in the garden, by the sea, for a year, with my sister, to the store, and so on.

Here are the usage points you need to know:

1.  Most of the time prepositional phrases are extra parts of sentences. When you’re analyzing a sentence, you should usually skip over the prepositional phrase to get to the really important parts.

Here’s what I mean. Can you figure out why this sentence is incorrect?

A change in city policies are causing headaches for police officers. INCORRECT

What is the sentence really about? Answer: A change. “City policies” aren’t causing the headaches: The change is.

So the sentence needs to be corrected:

A change in city policies is causing headaches for police officers. CORRECT

(You can learn more by clicking here and reading about Rule 4.)

2.  You can use a comma when a sentence begins a prepositional phrase. Most good writers omit the comma if the prepositional phrase is short.

On Tuesdays Chief Strong meets with the mayor. [No comma: On Tuesdays is a short prepositional phrase.]

Under the bed in a box tied with string,  I found a Smith-Wesson revolver. [Use a comma: Under the bed in a box tied with string is a long prepositional phrase.]

You can learn more about these commas by clicking here and reading about Comma Rule 1.

3.  Use your ear when a pronoun (he, she, him, her, I, me, etc.) follows a preposition.

I gave the report to her for proofreading. CORRECT  [not “to she”]

I gave the report to her and him before I delivered it to the mayor. CORRECT  [not “to she and he”]

Chief Strong thanked me for my hard work. CORRECT  [not “I”]

Chief Strong thanked Officer Brown and me for my hard work. CORRECT  [not “I”]

You can learn more about sentences like these by clicking here and reading about Pronoun Rule 3. You can watch a video about this rule by clicking here.

4.  Use prepositions with precision. Notice the different meanings in these two sentences:

Officer McCaffrey walked in the room. [He spent time walking around the room.]

Officer McCaffrey walked into the room. [He entered the room.]

When you’re writing a police or corrections report, of course you want to sound professional. So it’s important to understand what “subject verb agreement” means and how to do it in your reports.

Here’s a strategy that instantly shows off your writing skills:  If your sentence contains a prepositional phrase, take a moment or two to make sure your verb is right.

It sounds harder than it really is! Take a look at this sentence:

Accuracy makes you a better writer.

It’s easy to see that “makes” is correct, right?

Now look at this sentence:

Accuracy with details makes you a better writer.

Is makes still correct? Yes: It’s not details that make you a better writer, but accuracy. So: Accuracy with details makes… is correct.

Watch out for prepositions (small words like in, by, for, with, to, of, and so on). They can fool you into focusing your attention on an unimportant word. Don’t be taken in!

One of the officers needs this laptop tonight.  CORRECT  (One…needs)

Knowing a couple of shortcuts saves time.  CORRECT  (Knowing…makes)

Several boxes of equipment are expected. CORRECT  (Boxes…are)

Another tip: Usually the important word is at the beginning of the sentence. In the previous examples, focus on “one,” “knowing,” and “boxes” to get the verb right.

Are you ready for some practice? Try these. Then scroll down to check your answers.

Misuse of these substances (is, are) punishable by law.

Changes in the procedures often (cause, causes) confusion at first.

His explanation for his actions (don’t, doesn’t) make sense.

Here are the answers:

Misuse of these substances is punishable by law.  CORRECT  (Misuse…is)

Changes in the procedures often cause confusion at first.  CORRECT  (Changes…cause)

His explanation for his actions doesn’t make sense.  CORRECT  (His explanation…doesn’t)

To learn more about subjects, verbs, and prepositional phrases, click here and read about Rule 4.

Can you start a sentence with an –ing word? Yes, you can! In fact you can start a sentence with almost any word. (You may have been told that you can’t start a sentence with and or but. Not true! Professional writers have always started sentences with those words. There’s no such rule – and never has been.)

But some words are potential minefields for starting a sentence, and you should be wary of using them that way. Examples include like, such as, who, which – and yes, -ing words are risky.

Of course it’s correct to start a sentence with a word ending in –ing: But you risk writing a sentence fragment or a dangling modifier. It’s a good idea to check the first word of every sentence to see if either of those errors has crept in. (Checking the first word will also help catch other potential errors.) Read on for examples.

1.  Fragments:

Some –ing words are participles – meaning that they’re descriptions of something else. They need to be glued on to a sentence.

All morning long, two officers were busy. Digging holes in the back yard to look for the murder weapon. SENTENCE + FRAGMENT

“Digging” describes the officers, so it’s an adjective. It needs to be glued on to the previous sentence:

All morning long, two officers were busy digging holes in the back yard to look for the murder weapon. CORRECT

2.  Dangling modifiers:

Descriptions need to be placed next to the person or thing they’re describing. Separating them causes an error called a dangling (“hanging”) modifier (“description”).

I saw smoke coming out of a warehouse driving down Second Street. DANGLING MODIFIER

The warehouse wasn’t driving–you were!

Here’s the corrected sentence:

Driving down Second Street, I saw smoke coming out of a warehouse. CORRECT

You probably see it as often as I do: “I verbally told him to….” The command might be to get out of the car, open her purse, hand over his driver’s license, or something similar.

But verbal is meaningless in sentences like this. Verbal means “using words.” It’s not a synonym for oral. Verbal communication can include writing, texting, emailing, and writing in chalk on a sidewalk.

When you’re careful to use oral for spoken commands, you portray yourself as a professional – a good thing!

And here’s something else to think about. Do you really need “oral”?

Imagine this situation: An officer calls her husband to confirm plans for dinner with some friends. “Do the Johnsons know what time to meet us at the Olive Garden?” He assures her that they do: “I told them to be there at 6:30.”

He doesn’t need to say, “I verbally told them to be there at 6:30.”

Police jargon (“verbally”) is often unnecessary. It wastes time, and it looks odd when someone outside of law enforcement (a judge, attorney, community leader, reporter) reads your reports. Think twice when you’re tempted to slip into jargon!

Are long sentences bad – or good? It’s a question many officers wonder about, especially if they mistakenly believe that a long sentence is a good sentence.

That’s a question that might also be important if you move into an administrative position. Are long sentences better?

No. (Does that surprise you? It’s true!)

If you’re aiming to become a topnotch criminal justice writer, you would be wise to adopt a rule that many professional writers follow: One idea per sentence.

Shorter sentences bestow several advantages. First, they’re easier to read – a huge advantage when you’re busy preparing for a court or disciplinary hearing. Second, they have greater clarity than longer sentences, which can be confusing.

Most important, shorter sentences have fewer errors. As sentences get longer, the likelihood of subject/verb errors, parallelism mistakes, and dangling modifiers increases.

Compact sentences don’t have to be choppy and juvenile. You can always join two short sentences with a semicolon (be sure to skip the second capital letter).

I searched the suspect. He had five hundred-dollar bills in his right pocket.

I searched the suspect; he had five hundred-dollar bills in his right pocket.

You can also use who or which to join sentences.

I searched the suspect. He had five hundred-dollar bills in his right pocket.

I searched the suspect, who had five hundred-dollar bills in his right pocket.

And if you know your comma rules (they’re not difficult!) you can choose from a variety of sentence patterns.

One of the best ways to write a sophisticated report without sacrificing clarity is to employ a bullet list whenever you have a list of information. (Don’t try to write an entire report as a list!) Here’s a paragraph in conventional sentence style:

I searched Dickert’s locker. I found three $20 bills between the pages of a Sports Illustrated magazine. There was a pair of dice in the pocket of a uniform shirt. I found five $10 bills between the pages of his Bible. I found three unopened decks of cards at the bottom of a laundry bag.

And here’s the same information rewritten as a timesaving list. (Each item begins with a “bullet”).

I searched Dickert’s locker and found:

• three $20 bills between the pages of a Sports Illustrated magazine
• a pair of dice in the pocket of a uniform shirt
• five $10 bills between the pages of his Bible
• three unopened decks of cards at the bottom of a laundry bag

Much better, isn’t it? (You can watch a free video about advanced career writing by clicking here: Getting Promoted.)

Most people learn languages by hearing other people speak and trying to imitate them. We learn written languages much later, when we go to school and learn how to read.

It’s an efficient system that works well most of the time – but it can also create problems when we have to write letters and endings that our ears don’t notice.

Here are a few examples:

Many people forget the s in lists, firsts, firsts, and similar words. (Say them aloud and you’ll hear what I’m talking about!)

The latest newsletter lists several job openings that interest me. CORRECT

And many people forget the –ed in supposed to and used to. (Again, listen to yourself say them aloud.)

Although we used to discourage women from applying, we’re supposed to actively recruit them now. CORRECT

Your ear can create other kinds of difficulties too: Misspelling words (many people forget the middle c in Arctic and the i in foliage); punctuation errors (often you can’t hear the difference between a comma and a period), and sophisticated usage that you don’t often hear in everyday conversation–agreement issues for pronouns and verbs, for example.

Bottom line: Educate yourself. Reading is a wonderful avenue to better writing, and you don’t have to limit yourself to grammar books. Any good magazine or book will expand your knowledge of language.

       Seeing and Hearing

Judge Brett Kavanaugh has been under a great deal of scrutiny as Congress debates his nomination to the Supreme Court.

A police report from September 26, 1985 involving Judge Kavanaugh has come to light. Kavanaugh allegedly was involved in a dispute in a New Haven bar.

No one – including Brett Kavanaugh – was charged. You can read more about the incident at this link: https://www.nhregister.com/news/article/New-Haven-police-Kavanaugh-interviewed-after-13275247.php

Here are a few excerpts from the report (you can read it here: https://nyti.ms/2xUsgvG). I’ve followed each excerpt with a comment from me:

At the above date these officers responded to the above location in regards to an assault.

[From me: this sentence is unnecessary. It repeats the information the officer already recorded. Officers are busy!]

Upon our arrival we met Mr. Cozzolino, he stated that a very tall subject hit him in the ear with a glass.

[From me: Omit “Upon our arrival.” And “subject” isn’t precise. The person who was hit was male. The report should say so. Put a period after “Mr. Cozzolino.”]

He also stated that he was in a verbal altercation with an unknown male.

[From me: “verbal altercation” is too wordy. “Argument” is more clear.]

At 1:20 AM Det. Reynolds was notified of the incident.

[From me: I was pleased that the officer wrote this report in active voice. But passive voice crept in at the end – as it so often does. (Sigh.) Who notified Detective Reynolds? If you thought that fact was worth recording, you also need to say who did the notifying.]

The year was 1903, and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle had just published another Sherlock Holmes story: “The Adventure of the Norwood Builder.”

It’s fun to read, but it certainly isn’t relevant to today’s police officers, right? After all, most modern forensic techniques hadn’t been discovered yet. Fingerprinting was brand new then and makes only one brief appearance in the story.

But maybe there’s something in the story for officers today. Let’s take a closer look.

The story is about a homicide, and for once the police were smarter than Holmes–or so they thought. Detective Lestrade, triumphant with the discovery of a bloody fingerprint on the wall, crows, “you must acknowledge that we have been a little in front of you this time, Mr. Holmes.”

Later, though, in a private moment with his friend Dr. Watson, Holmes says, “The fact is that there is one really serious flaw in this evidence to which our friend attaches so much importance.”

“Indeed, Holmes! What is it?”

“Only this: that I know that that mark was not there when I examined the hall yesterday.”

Gulp. At the end of the story Holmes once again finds the true killer. The thumbprint was a red herring, planted there to implicate the wrong man.

What’s the message for today’s officers? Here it is: Always document not just what you did, but what you found (or didn’t find). Writing “I looked for fingerprints” is meaningless unless you add “and found none.” Sometimes – as Holmes knew very well -what you don’t see is more important than what you do see. Write it down so that you’ll have evidence if you need it.