What is a police blotter? And where does it come from? And why is it called a “blotter?”

Category: Front Page News Front Page News
Published: 13 December 2014 13 December 2014

Photo: BreAnne Davalos, Interim Director Grant County Regional Dispatch Authority and CAD

The term "blotter" has been used since the 16th century to refer to some form of record-keeping notebook. Large ledgers used to note down entries of daily events in businesses and police stations were often termed "desk blotters," perhaps because when open they resembled the large blotters used to routinely dry ink from the quill pens used in those days. Many of us remember using smaller blotters to prevent smudging of wet ink from fountain pens. But, no one seems to know the exact etymology of the word. The blot thickens.

The Silver City Police Department and Grant County Sheriff's Department blotters, which regularly appear in The Grant County Beat, are a list of calls that come into the Grant County Regional Dispatch Authority through 911, non-emergency line, National Crime Information Center, radio contact, emergency medical dispatch units, district court, Forest Service and Crimestoppers.

According to BreAnne Davalos, Interim Director of GCRDA, calls coming in are routed automatically through Computer Aided Dispatch or CAD. These calls are placed by CAD into groups depending on the source of the call, whether Silver City, Grant County, Santa Clara, Bayard or Hurley, and then into subgroups of police department, sheriff's department, fire department, emergency medical services, etc.

Dispatch can then print out whatever information is contained in CAD, and this printout is termed the "blotter." Dispatch, SCPD and GCSD can print out any part of the information in CAD they desire, Davalos stated, while other agencies must "query" CAD and then print out only information that pertains to that agency. CAD is programmed not to print information about active investigations or any personal data.

The Beat gets SCPD blotters from the police station and GCSD blotters either from dispatch or from the sheriff's office and is most grateful for those agencies' assistance.

"Almost all the blotters' information is public information," Davalos said. "However, each office does their own redacting."

At GCRDA, CAD has been around since the early 90s, Davalos said. Before that, all calls and the log sheets were handwritten.

Davalos indicated that they could use one more dispatcher but funding won't allow it. " You never know when all heck is going to break loose."

 

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