1. How to Write an Incident Report
By
Community Assistants
Jordan Murray and Rachel Herbert
2. Components of an Incident Report
■ What we’re covering:
○Incident Summary
○Incident Narrative
○Informational Reports
○The Importance of Good Note Taking
4. Incident Summary
■ Is a concise list of all of the alleged violations that will be mentioned within
the narrative.
Example:
○ 1.01B Alcohol Paraphernalia
○ 1.07 Conduct Expectations
○ 1.13 Drugs
○ 1.24 Noise Policy and Quiet Hours
○ 1.29 Roommate and Community Expectations
5. Breakdown of an IR’s Narrative
■ Content of an IR
○ Who
○ What
○ When and Where
■ Objectivity
○ Facts
○ Details
■ Mechanics
○ Spelling and Grammar—don’t neglect!
6. Quick Incident Narrative Tips
■ Write the Incident Report in the third-person, in an objective point of
view.
○ DO NOT use words such as: I, me, we, us, my, mine, our, ours, you, or
your.
■ Be sure to use gender neutral pronouns.
○ Use words such as: they, them, their, theirs, etc.
We do not know how an individual identifies their gender, and this
being an Official Document make sure to use gender neutral terms at
all times.
7. Incident Narrative
■ List the respondents and organize them by category.
Example:
Residents:
Ron Swanson (TCS 1104A, #931574893)
Ashley Hiyashida (VCS B-517C, #924769027)
Non-Residents:
Kevin McCallister (#948837402)
Non-Students:
Meghan Giodarno
8. Incident Narrative
■ Set the scene!
○ Times, dates and locations are very important!
○ Don’t forget to include the day of the week!
○ Make sure to mention what initially brought the incident to your
attention.
Example:
“On Monday May 5, 2014, at 11:57PM Resident Assistant Anne Perkins and
Resident Assistant Leslie Knope were completing rounds through Mary
Park Hall when they heard excessive noise coming from MPH 637.”
9. Incident Narrative
■ When you first mention any individual, include their full name, title, ID
number, and bedspace information if applicable.
○ After the first mention, use the individual’s title (RA, Resident,
etc) and last name from then on.
Example:
“At 12PM on August 10, 2014, Resident Assistant Leslie Knope
passed Resident Ron Swanson (TCS 1104, # 931574893) in
the Towers 11th floor hallway and noticed that Resident
Swanson was carrying a 12 pack of Corona.”
10. Incident Narrative
■ Remain unbiased!
Example:
DON’T:
“RA Biggie noted that there were a couple of lighters and HELLA weed on the
table next to the hookah pipe. Resident Smalls DEFINITELY broke policy.
Resident Smalls is stupid.”
DO:
“RA Lemon noted that there were two lighters, burnt coals and ashes on the
table next to the hookah pipe. This is an alleged violation of
1.04.Candles, Flammable Materials, Incense, and Open Flames. Resident
Knope called RA Lemon a “fun-sucking jerk” after RA Lemon asked to
see Resident Knope’s ID.”
11. Incident Narrative
■ Include the protocol that you followed.
○ Knocked on the door and announce self as Res Life Staff
○ What time you called ProStaff or UPD
○ Informed residents) that the situation was being documented
Other Examples:
“RA Knope asked Resident Swanson for permission to enter the apartment.”
“RA Perkins asked Resident Ludgate to speak to the owner of the room after
the door was opened.”
Written by: RA Leslie Knope
Edited by: RSA Andy Dwyer
12. Incident Narrative
■ Be thorough in the details that you note.
Examples:
“...RA Knope informed Resident Swanson that they needed to empty the
contents of the 30 pack case of Pabst Blue Ribbon…”
“ RA Lemon noted that there were two lighters, burnt coals and ashes on
the table next to the hookah pipe.”
13. Importance of Taking Good Notes
■ Good notes can include…
● The times of when you entered, exited, or contacted
Prostaff/UPD
● Respondent information (Full names and ID numbers)
● Specifics
● Any remarks or actions
● Key events
● Police case numbers
14. Importance of Taking Good Notes
■ Why do you want to take good notes?
● It makes filling out Judicial Action a lot easier.
● It helps the Hearing Officers determine whether or not
Residents are responsible for the violations.
■The more discerning you are in observation, the better!
● You have a physical log to rely on.
15.
16. Common Mistakes
■ Listing Respondents
● If you enter an apartment/room alone and no one is present,
document all residents of the space.
● Non-students are not Respondents.
● A Witness is not a Respondent.
■ Policy violations go to every respondent
● The hearing officer will determine who is responsible for a
given policy violation
17. … So is it an Incident Report?
■ Was a policy allegedly broken?
■ Are there Respondents that can be held
responsible for the allegedly broken policies?
18. Informational Report
■ All sexual assaults are Informational
● This abides by Title XI
■ Victims can be a Respondent in an Informational Report
● In order for us to track who brought the information to your
attention.
■ Something effecting the community
● Graffiti, unlocked exterior doors, non-violent resident
confrontations, etc.
19. Information Brought to You
■ The Referral Date is when the info was brought to your attention.
■ The person who brought it to your attention is the witness.
■ An Informational Report can become an Incident Report.
Example:
As an RSA in the Towers, a resident tells you that they are not comfortable with their
roommate keeping alcohol in the shared space of their apartment. The initial information that
you gather from the witness helps you to write an Informational Report. After you finish
writing the Informational you call an RA to edit and ask them to follow up. When the RA goes
to follow up that night, they see a 12 pack of beer on the kitchen table. The information that
the RA gathers will help them to write an Incident Report.
20. In Summary…
■ Residents listed at the top, categorized
■ The entire narrative is in third person and only uses gender neutral terms
■ First mention of individuals receives full identifier with first and last name,
afterwards, only an identifier and last name are needed
■ Abbreviations are only used after writing out the full term
■ Proper procedure is also recorded
■ Proper time abbreviation is used
■ State the alleged violation as it occurs
MAKE SURE A SEPARATE STAFF MEMBER EDITS THE IR PRIOR TO
SUBMITTING
