The codes are used in the reporting system that the department utilizes. An 8600 means no report has to be written. There are a lot of codes for the system which cover almost anything that could happen. If it’s not covered by a specific code, then they use “4519” which is the code for general police services. When you hear them use multiple codes for the same incident, they are summarizing the incident with just the codes. For example, an incident with an intoxited student on the street would be coded 2300 (public intoxication), 4448 (field interview) and 4477 (student incident). This is useful when looking up incidents in the CAD and in the reporting system. The codes are also used to quickly create community reports and crime stats for a variety of uses.
