Writing and Grammar Skills Flashcards

Which of the following sentences is grammatically correct and uses proper spelling for a police report?

Answer: The suspect's vehicle was a late-model sedan.

This sentence is the only one without spelling or grammatical errors. The word 'vehicle' is spelled correctly. In the other options, 'seperate' should be 'separate', 'liason' should be 'liaison', and 'definately' should be 'definitely'. Correct spelling is critical for professional and credible reports.

Which of the following sentences uses apostrophes correctly?

Answer: The witness's testimony was crucial to the case.

This sentence correctly uses 's to show that the testimony belongs to a single witness. Choice A is incorrect because 'department' is singular, so it should be 'department's'. Choice B is incorrect because 'It's' is the contraction for 'It is', which is needed here; 'Its' is possessive. Choice D is incorrect because 'officers' is a simple plural noun, not possessive, and should not have an apostrophe.

An officer is writing a report and needs to describe how a new policy will impact the department. Which word should be used in the following sentence: 'The new directive will _______ the way officers document use-of-force incidents.'

Answer: affect

The correct word is 'affect,' which is a verb meaning 'to influence or produce a change in.' The new directive will influence the documentation process. 'Effect' is typically a noun meaning 'a result or outcome.' 'Except' and 'accept' are incorrect in this context.

The following sentence from a field notebook needs revision: 'The suspect fled the scene on foot he was last seen running south on Main Street.' Which of the following is the BEST way to correct this run-on sentence?

Answer: The suspect fled the scene on foot; he was last seen running south on Main Street.

The original is a run-on (or fused) sentence because it combines two complete sentences without proper punctuation. A semicolon is used to correctly join two closely related independent clauses. Choice A creates a comma splice, which is also incorrect. Choice C is grammatically awkward and incomplete. Choice D is also awkward and less professional than using a semicolon.

An officer needs to document arriving at a location. Which of the following sentences is the most clear, concise, and professional for an incident report?

Answer: I arrived at 123 Maple Avenue at 22:30 hours.

This sentence is the most effective because it is direct, uses active voice, and avoids unnecessary words. Police reports should be written with clarity and conciseness. Choice A is wordy ('made my arrival'). Choice C uses overly complex language ('effectuated'). Choice D is too informal ('got to').

Which of the following sentences demonstrates correct subject-verb agreement?

Answer: The captain, along with the two lieutenants, is reviewing the case file.

The subject of the sentence is 'The captain,' which is singular. The phrase 'along with the two lieutenants' is a prepositional phrase that does not affect the subject-verb agreement. Therefore, the singular verb 'is' is correct. In choice A, the subject is 'evidence' (singular), so the verb should be 'was.' In choice B, the subject is 'Each' (singular), so the verb should be 'has.' In choice D, the subject is 'inconsistencies' (plural), so the verb should be 'are.'