SheriffJoe,
Suffice for what?
Though starting out as a road cop myself and experiencing firsthand what it takes to actually produce a handwritten report while in a patrol car in between calls, as a prosecutor I nevertheless had problems with some of the police reports I received from officers (then more conveniently prepared on laptop computers) being far too brief, often failing to include vital information necessary for proper prosecution decisions. An easy example:
“I interviewed the two witnesses at the scene. They told me that they saw [this] happen and they told me that they saw [that] happen.” That was it - the end.
But, that “short paragraph” certainly did not “suffice.” When one of those witnesses became unavailable for trial, I subpoenaed the other, to learn only then that this second witness had been facing away from the action, talking to his buddy, when it happened. This witness had turned around only in time to witness the aftermath, not what caused it. I had to move for the dismissal of an otherwise very good felony case, for lack of available evidence at trial. The judge didn’t like granting that motion, and I certainly didn’t like making it.
When it comes to legal matters, it’s often better to say more than to say less, as long as it actually adds something relevant and necessary to the complete and accurate understanding of the topic, and is not duplicative.
Brevity don’t mean doo-doo if all the necessary information isn’t conveyed.
