Tools for Proper Note-taking

Today I am going to write on the subject of field note-taking in law enforcement. One of the most important tools in effective note-taking we discussed in class through information presented to us in our book, Just the Facts: Investigative Report Writing by Michael Biggs, is picking the right notebook that is best for you. We learned that there is no notebook that is above all others and has to be used, but rather that the only thing that matters is that you, as the officer, must be comfortable with the notebook you choose.

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With that being said,  I looked up three different types of notebooks that can be used in law enforcement to take notes in the field. The first two included the LawTech extra large note-pad, and the LawTech normal size note-pad. The only difference between these two notebooks are the sizes. The extra large notepad is 4 1/2'' by 8 1/2'', while the normal size can be bought at 2 3/4'' by 4 1/2'' or 4'' by 6''. So, the extra large one is much bigger than the normal size one that can be bought at much smaller sizes. Now, the notebooks both include a crime broadcast checklist, note-taking/report writing checklist, and a Miranda advertisement. Yet, the extra large LawTech notebook has 120 pages to the 64 or 92 pages that the normal size LawTech versions have and the extra large LawTech has a spiral binding on the top as opposed to the normal size versions that seem to not. So, these two versions, while very similar, have different features that make each interesting and likable in their own ways.

Now, the third notebook I found is called the police field interview notebook. It's size is similar to the normal size version of the LawTech at 4'' by 8'', it has 70 pages, it has an extra large cover that allows for writing while the individual is standing up, and it has plenty of space to take down facts about many different issues. So, this notebook is great as well. It allows you to have plenty of space, pages, and surfaces to take down good notes, which is crucial to law enforcement if you want to get to the bottom of any case.

Now, with these three notebooks or notepads being described, I would choose the normal size 4'' by 6'' LawTech notebook. I would choose this because I feel like it is the perfect size and the other two are too big. I feel like it is important to be able to slip your notebook in your pocket easily and quickly if you need to take action. Then, I think the features it comes with, highlighted by the Miranda advertisement, are invaluable and would be very helpful to have as reminders in the field. The police field interview notebook has a lot of great features too, headlined by the thick cover that allows you to take notes while standing up, but the features mentioned earlier that the LawTech has are unique and give you an excellent resource in the field that the police field interview notebook does not.