First Advisor
Kathryn Wuschke
Term of Graduation
January 2026
Date of Publication
6-1-2026
Document Type
Thesis
Language
English
Subjects
crime reporting, digital policing, informational justice, Law enforcement, online crime reporting, procedural justice
Physical Description
1 online resource ( pages)
Abstract
Online Crime Reporting portals (OCR) have become a routine entry point for non-emergency police services, fundamentally redefining how the public initiates contact with law enforcement. Although these portals are presented as efficient and accessible, little attention has been paid to whether their design and communication serve the people who use them. Prior research on procedural justice (PJ) has largely examined face-to-face police encounters, while latest studies of OCR systems emphasize victim experience and usability. However, the existing literature offers limited guidance on how PJ principles translate from in-person encounters to digital reporting platforms. This prompted the current study, drawing on and extending ongoing work by Henning et al. (2023), to conduct a content analysis of 975 municipal police agency websites in the United States. The analysis examines the structural and communicative elements of OCR portals, with attention given on language and design features affecting user interaction. Finding indicates that OCR systems are increasingly common across U.S. municipal agencies, with 46.9% of agencies offering OCR in 2026, yet they are predominantly structured around administrative intake rather than victim-centered communication. Victim-centered elements were nearly absent across the sample. Only 0.2% of portals acknowledged the impact of the crime on the victim 0.4% normalized feelings common to victims, and no portal directed blame toward the offender. Only 3.1% reinforced the decision to report, and just 1.1% provided false-report warnings framed in victim-centered rather than deterrence-oriented language. Informational justice was similarly lacking: only 7.6% of portals identified the personally identifiable information required from users, only 3.9% explained why that information was needed, and only 5.2% addressed data security. Language accessibility remained narrow, with 91% of portals available in English only. These gaps suggest that current OCR implementations fall short in conveying core dimensions of PJ, including voice, neutrality, transparency, and respectful treatment. Based on these findings, the study proposes recommendations to guide police agencies in developing OCR portals that more effectively represent procedural justice principles, prioritizing the need for accessibility and user-oriented communication.
Rights
In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Recommended Citation
Natia, Nazmy, "Digital (In)Justice? Evaluating Procedural Justice in Online Crime Reporting" (2026). Dissertations and Theses. Paper 7128.