While reviewing depositions for a school safety lawsuit today, I was reminded of just how important it is not only to properly document school safety and security incidents, but the measures that are in place to try to prevent, respond and recover from school crisis events.
Coming from what is primarily a law enforcement background, documentation seems like such a basic part of work. However, to people who have not had occasion to deal regularly with court processes often do not realize how important documentation can be when it comes to life-safety issues such as school safety training, issuing school crisis plan components to employees and other important aspects of school safety and security.
Forensic case evaluation typically involves the careful review of thousands of pages of a case file. Attorneys, jurors, judges and expert witnesses are often forced to rely on a wide variety of documents to help them make determinations of facts and probabilities in a particular case. Whether the court process involves a juvenile court petition, a criminal proceeding, or litigation against school officials; the quality, accuracy and depth of documentation can be extremely important.