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Official Crime Reports NIBRS/UCR
Crime Statistics
The White Settlement Police Department collects and reports crime statistics by voluntarily participating in state-wide crime reporting through the Texas Department of Public Safety. Crime statistics are used as a tool for allocation of public safety resources, deployment of personnel, and crime reduction initiatives. Knowledge of hot spot crime areas can assist the department in focusing on problematic areas to improve quality of life, reverse crime trends, and partner with the community to assist the agency in reporting suspicious activities.
Uniform Crime Reporting Program (UCR)
The objective of the Uniform Crime Reporting program is to produce reliable crime statistics for law enforcement administration, operation, and management. While the UCR program has been around since the 1920s, crime reports are obtained from law enforcement agencies across the United States. In Texas, crimes known to police are reported to the Department of Public Safety. In White Settlement, this task is automated through the department's record management system on a monthly basis.
National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS)
While the UCR program has provided a steady, reliable stream of information about crime, data about specific crime incidents are not available. The summary-based methodology, despite its reliability, is limited in many aspects. The Federal Bureau of Investigation and Bureau of Justice Statistics created a new collection system in 1985. This new system is referred to as the National Incident Based Reporting System. In White Settlement, crime statistics are produced utilizing the Incident-Based Reporting system and forwarded to the Texas Department of Public Safety on a monthly basis.
Texas Crime Reports - Summary
The Texas Department of Public Safety converts Incident-Based Reporting data into a summary for inclusion in the Texas Crime Report. The White Settlement Police Department utilizes monthly summary reports that are returned by the state after validation as an official record of crime statistics for the city based upon historical precedence and record keeping. The official catalog of annual crime statistics is included in each year's Annual Report which is disseminated to the City Council and community.
Accessing Crime Statistics Summary Reports from Texas DPS
While crime numbers can fluctuate depending on when you run a report, the department publishes the summary report received from the state to bolster transparency in crime reporting. The form utilized is called the Return A - Monthly Return of Offenses Known to the Police under the Uniform Crime Reporting.