NPOST Police Test Grammar and Punctuation Questions and Answers 1 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following sentences, intended for a police report, is grammatically correct and avoids common sentence structure errors?
- The suspect fled the scene, he was last seen running northbound.
- The suspect fled the scene he was last seen running northbound.
- The suspect fled the scene; he was last seen running northbound. (Correct answer)
- The suspect fled the scene, and was last seen running northbound.
Correct answer: The suspect fled the scene; he was last seen running northbound.
This sentence correctly uses a semicolon to join two closely related independent clauses. Choice A is a comma splice, Choice B is a run-on sentence, and Choice D uses a comma incorrectly before the conjunction 'and' because 'was last seen...' is not an independent clause.
Question 2: An officer is writing a report about multiple pieces of evidence. Which sentence demonstrates correct subject-verb agreement?
- The bag of collected items, including a wallet and a phone, were sealed and placed into evidence.
- A detailed list of the recovered firearms are attached to this report.
- The primary evidence, along with the witness testimonies, point to a single suspect.
- The collection of fingerprints from the scene was completed by the forensics team. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: The collection of fingerprints from the scene was completed by the forensics team.
The subject of the sentence is 'collection,' which is a singular noun. Therefore, the singular verb 'was' is correct. In the other options, the verbs do not agree with their subjects ('bag,' 'list,' 'evidence').
Question 3: Which of the following sentences correctly uses apostrophes to show possession and contractions?
- The vehicle lost its front license plate, and it's now being held as evidence. (Correct answer)
- The vehicle lost it's front license plate, and its now being held as evidence.
- The vehicles' front license plate was lost, and its' now being held as evidence.
- The vehicle lost its' front license plate, and it's now being held as evidence.
Correct answer: The vehicle lost its front license plate, and it's now being held as evidence.
'Its' is a possessive pronoun indicating the license plate belongs to the vehicle. 'It's' is a contraction for 'it is'. This sentence uses both forms correctly.
Question 4: An officer must file a report on the new departmental policy. Select the option that correctly completes the sentence: 'The policy change will _______ the procedure for filing reports, and its primary _______ will be improved clarity.'
- affect, affect
- effect, effect
- effect, affect
- affect, effect (Correct answer)
Correct answer: affect, effect
'Affect' is a verb meaning 'to influence or change.' 'Effect' is a noun meaning 'a result or consequence.' The policy will influence (affect) the procedure, and the result (effect) will be improved clarity.
Question 5: When documenting an interview, an officer needs to ensure pronouns are used clearly. Which sentence is written with correct pronoun-antecedent agreement?
- The witness told the suspect that he needed to leave the premises.
- Each officer in the department must complete their annual training by Friday.
- If any citizen has information, they should contact the department immediately.
- After the briefing, every officer returned to his or her assigned vehicle. (Correct answer)
Correct answer: After the briefing, every officer returned to his or her assigned vehicle.
The antecedent 'every officer' is singular. The pronoun phrase 'his or her' is also singular and correctly refers back to the antecedent. Choice A is ambiguous. Choice B incorrectly uses the plural 'their' with the singular 'Each officer'. Choice C uses the singular 'any citizen' with the plural 'they', which, while common in speech, is often considered grammatically incorrect in formal report writing.
Question 6: An officer is listing items found on a suspect during a search. For maximum clarity in a legal document, which sentence is punctuated correctly?
- The officer recovered a wallet a smartphone and a set of car keys.
- The officer recovered a wallet, a smartphone and a set of car keys.
- The officer recovered a wallet, a smartphone, and a set of car keys. (Correct answer)
- The officer recovered a wallet, a smartphone, and, a set of car keys.
Correct answer: The officer recovered a wallet, a smartphone, and a set of car keys.
This sentence correctly uses a serial (or Oxford) comma before the conjunction 'and' in a list of three or more items. This punctuation style is often preferred in legal and official reports to prevent ambiguity.
NPOST Police Test Grammar and Punctuation Questions and Answers 1
Which of the following sentences, intended for a police report, is grammatically correct and avoids common sentence structure errors?