Sammamish Residents: Reporting Crime to Police is Just a Click Away With new Option

Sammamish residents who want to report a minor crime, such as vandalism or suspicious circumstances, now have a simple and convenient option thanks to a program just launched by the King County Sheriff’s Office.

"Report To Sheriff" is an online program that lets residents report minor crimes at their convenience instead of waiting for a deputy to arrive at their home.

"This is just one more resource people can use to report crimes," said Sgt. John Urquhart, King County Sheriff's Office spokesman.

The site is designed as a way for residents to report non-emergency crimes, including identity theft, mail theft, vehicle prowls, traffic complaints, nuisance phone calls and vandalism. A full list of the types of crimes that can be reported is available at ReportToSheriff.org.

But residents should take note that they can file an online report if all of the following, which are from the new website, are true:

• This is not an emergency
• This is not an in-progress crime
• This incident occurred either within unincorporated King County or within the city of Sammamish
• There are no known suspects
• There was no evidence left behind
• This did not occur on a state freeway
• This did not occur on Sound Transit or a Metro bus
• You are the victim of the crime
• You have a valid email address

If these statements do not fit your case, the Sheriff's Office suggests that you call its non-emergency phone number for help to file a report: 206-296-3311.

Urquhart pointed out that residents are still welcome to call the Sheriff's Office or any of the 12 police departments that contract with the agency and request that a deputy see them in person. All emergency calls should obviously still be made to 911, he said.

The online reporting site also notes, in red letters: "BY CLICKING THE START BUTTON YOU CERTIFY THAT YOU UNDERSTAND FILING A FALSE REPORT IS A CRIME."

Since the city of Sammamish is one of the communities that contracts with the King County Sheriff's Office for its police force, Sammamish residents can take advantage of this program.

To file a report via the city website, go to this site and click on the "Start Report" link. At the completion of the report, you will be given a temporary case report number. When the report is approved, you will receive an email within five days providing you with a permanent case number.

A copy of the report will be attached to the email, allowing you to print the report and keep it for your records or provide it to any agency that needs a copy.

If for some reason your report doesn't meet the online reporting criteria you will be notified, and if the case requires further investigation Sammamish police or the King County Sheriff's Office might contact you.

Both the King County Sheriff's Office and Sammamish police are optimistic about the program. "I would expect it to be pretty popular," said Sgt. Jessica Sullivan of Sammamish police.

Urquhart said that such a program makes sense for a society that's becoming more computer literate each day, and for many people going online is far more convenient than having to spend time on the phone and waiting for a deputy to respond.

Urquhart pointed out that while many of these types of minor crimes go unsolved, the data gathered from the reports is invaluable. Knowing when and where crimes are occurring helps the Sheriff's Office and Sammamish police determine where to concentrate efforts.

"Anything we can do to get more crime data is good," Urquhart said. "Anything we can do to make that process easier is good."