Amarillo Police Say You Can Now Report A Crime Online

This is just the beginning ladies & gents!  Before you know it, all crime reports will be done through the Internet.  Cops will also have flying cars and electronic "you have the right to remain silent" sticks.  We begin in Amarillo with the Amarillo Police Department making online crime reporting available.

Just to kind of start things off, this isn't something you would use for emergency cases!  The online crime reporting is for non-emergency cases, like that time you woke up and your car had been broken into, that's the kind of cases.  If you're witnessing a burglary or an accident, don't you dare report it online, you still need to call 911!

Amarillo Police:

"The Amarillo Police Department has updated the availability of on-line reporting of some incidents. The on-line reporting system allows anyone to report certain crimes that may not require immediate response by a uniformed officer. On-line reporting helps uniformed officers remain available to respond to urgent events such as traffic accidents with injuries or crimes in progress. The reporting system also allows people to make a report at their convenience. If officers are not immediately available because they are responding to urgent calls, other calls must wait until an officer is available to investigate the complaint. The on-line system helps people avoid the delay to speak to an officer.
Crimes that can be reported on-line include thefts, vandalisms, identity thefts, forgeries (not including prescriptions) and certain credit card and debit card abuse reports with under $1500 of loss. Simple assaults except those involving domestic violence or injuries that must be documented with photographs can be reported. The system can accept interference with child custody reports, but one parent must live within the city limits of Amarillo to qualify. Criminal non-support cases can also be filed on-line.
Reports filed on-line are assigned to an investigator like reports filed through an officer.
To access on-line reporting, go to the Amarillo Police Department’s newly updated web page, http://police.amarillo.gov/ . Click on the PUBLIC tab to pull down a menu that shows on-line reporting, or simply click on the symbol marked ONLINE REPORTING in the gray bar on the right side of the page. Simple directions allow you to quickly determine if your report can be made on-line and complete the report."

Cell phones and other mobile devices can be used for online reporting as well.  If you're using a mobile device, the online reporting icon will be at the top center of the home page.