And the frustration begins

I have been trying to figure out what I'm doing since 4:30 today. (In my defense, I stopped for a quick nap and to make a delicious Thai dinner for my roommates. I'm not actually so stupid that it has taken me 3 hours ... There was a break.) I'm totally lost when it comes to this records stuff. But just when I was ready to call it quits and write a blog saying I didn't know what I was doing (and yes, I already had the blogger screen pulled up ready to do exactly that), I found this cool little packet that we got in class last Thursday (or Tuesday). And in there, I found pretty much everything I had already found online. So it turns out that my ineptness only plays a small role in this never-ending search for nothingness. (It has been dubbed so because I'm ready to just throw my laptop out the window.) Anyway, here is what I've found:

First, please see the Whiteville police department website. Basically, it would be just as useful if it weren't even there. It was actually a little difficult to find, and it gave me almost no information. I know the chief's name now (Jerry Britt) and his e-mail address. I did find the telephone number (910-642-5111) and physical address, but it turns out the address was already in the packet of information that I so conveniently forgot about. This beautiful packet also shared with me that my search endeavors were pretty much in vain because there is no way to access the information online. But, if I'd like to get in my car and drive to Whiteville, I can get a printout version of yesterday's crimes.

In my search, I also stumbled across the N.C. Department of Justice website, which was also in our packet. (Had I not forgotten this packet, I would have saved a lot of time.) PDF reports are available there with state crime statistics (rates by city) from as recently as 2009. However, I'm just guessing that I'm still going to have to contact the Whiteville PD.


So, I do have some questions that I want my contacts to answer. (Unfortunately, it appears that I may not have any contacts ... This packet says contact with the police department in Whiteville was pretty unsuccessful.) Assuming I ever get to speak to these people, I suppose the most basic questions are as follows:


1. How are the records stored?
2. How are they indexed?
3. How current are the records?
4. How often are the records updated? 
(This packet says they're updated daily, but I didn't find any information to indicate whether that's correct so I just want to make sure.)
5. When was the last time they were updated?
6. When is the next time they'll be updated?
7. How far back do the records go?


I wasn't really able to find the answer to anything online; I just saw that the records have to be requested in person or by a letter. They can fax the records, but somehow in the plethora of room that I have in my college apartment, I haven't found space for a fax machine. Overall, I've been fairly frustrated with this whole experience, and I haven't even started looking for records yet. I can tell that the next few weeks are going to be bundles of fun.