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Crime Tracker - frequently asked questions

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TBO.com

Published: October 16, 2007

What's this all about?
The entries in Crime Tracker Interactive represent calls for service made to area law enforcement agencies. The data is public record and is provided by law enforcement agencies. The initial report does not necessarily reflect the actual location of any arrests or the final disposition of the case.

How do I get started?
You can use Crime Tracker to locate calls for service, or reports of crimes near an address such as your home or office. Or you can click on a map and see all the reported incidents in a region.

By address: On http://crimetracker.tbo.com, fill in a house number and street in the street address blank and fill in the corresponding Zip code. Select the county and year you wish to view. The "cross street" field is optional but may help you narrow your search. Hit the Submit button.

By map: Click on the region you wish to view. The Crime Tracker application will pop up. Or click one of the links below the map to view reports from different years.

Once I get into the Crime Tracker application, how do I move around?
At first, you'll see arsons reports displayed on the map. Use the radio buttons on the right to switch between calls of service for reported crimes. Use the compass arrows on the left to pan north, south, east and west. Use the Zoom In or Zoom Out buttons to magnify or broaden your view. Click on Find Address, type in a house number and street and you'll be sent to the map for that area.

I searched by address and got several results with numbers beside them. Now what?
The numbers are "scores" indicating how close the Crime Tracker database matched the address you requested. Sometimes different addresses can be very similar to each other. Click on the blue hot links to make the map move to one of those addresses.

How do I get details on a call for service of a reported crime?
Click on a colored dot and a box will pop up showing the type of complaint and the address where law enforcement received a call for service. Click the X in the upper right corner of the box to make it go away.

I clicked on dot and got a list of results instead of one result. Why?
There probably were other dots near where you clicked and Crime Tracker wasn't sure which you meant - so it provided a choice. To narrow your search and make sure you're clicking on only one dot, use the Zoom In tool once or twice before you click on a dot.

When you say "Hillsborough County," does that include the city of Tampa?
Yes. We have merged data from both the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office and the Tampa Police Department so you can view everything on one map.

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