I would go into the Kennewick or Pasco PD and ask for the "Form Ones". These forms were on a rolodex. Each page contained a typed, fairly detailed police report about nincompoops of all ages who had committed crimes on the shift just hours before.

We reporters would write down this Form One information with no hassles from the cops. From each numbered Form One, the reporter could write a story like the following fictional example:

Joe Durp, 13, of 224 South Elm St., Kennewick, was arrested by Officer Bob Brown at 8:20 p.m. last night. Police said Durp hit John Smith on the head with a rock and took $78 from Smith's wallet near the Palm Tavern on Lewis St.

Smith, 71, of 556 12th Ave., Pasco, was taken to Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital, where he was treated for a scalp wound and released.

 

Durp, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Bob Durp, is being held in the Franklin County juvenile detention facility on assault and robbery charges. He is due for arraignment Monday morning in Superior Court, Judge John Day presiding."

Stories like this one inform the public about who the alleged criminals are in town, who their parents or spouses are, precisely where they live, and where they allegedly did their crime.

If Durp gets out and commits another crime, the later news story can refer back to the first, as such a story should.

Today, Sunnyside readers aren't getting this kind of information from the local newspaper. The publish a list that appears something like this: