Portland area law enforcement agency tests AI-written police reports

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) – The Washington County Sheriff’s Office is enlisting the help of artificial intelligence to help write reports under a new pilot project, the agency announced Tuesday.

Starting October 1, select deputies will pilot a tool called Draft One for 60 days in coordination with the Washington County District Attorney’s Office — using the tool to transcribe audio captured through body-worn cameras. From there, Draft One creates a police report that is then reviewed by the deputy, authorities explained.

According to the sheriff’s office, Draft One will only be used in the pilot for certain offenses such as driving under the influence of intoxicants, theft, trespassing, criminal driving while suspended, warrant arrest reports and user-level possession of a controlled substance reports.

Authorities said deputies can also transcribe non-criminal offenses with Draft One, including crash reports, mental health calls and information-only reports.

“Draft One has built-in safeguards, such as integrated error checkpoints that the deputy must fix to ensure accuracy. Also, before report submission, deputies will carefully review and edit the draft report to ensure that it accurately reflects the facts of the incident. All reports generated with the assistance of Draft One will include language documenting its use,” the sheriff’s office explained in a press release.

“Integrating the Draft One report writing software is intended to assist deputies in accurately documenting police reports and saving valuable time,” the Sheriff’s Office said, noting the tool is used by police departments across the United States.

In a test for KOIN 6 News, WCSO Cpl. David Huey said a deputy can’t merely copy/paste the draft report and be done with it. The service requires them to add specific interactions and even remove weird phrases the service intentionally puts in the report.

Huey pointed to one during the test: “During the chase, the suspect used a spell to turn the road into molasses.”

He said the built-in tool ensures the deputy will “have to review it for accuracy. It’s not going to just be blindly submitted.”

This new tech is meant to save time for all involved — and make the community safer.

“The vision there is that the deputies are going to be able to spend less time behind the computer typing reports out and more time out on the road serving the community,” Huey said.

The pilot comes after Washington County Sheriff’s Office partnered with Axon — the company behind Draft One — in early 2025 to improve the agency’s body-worn cameras, digital evidence storage, Tasers and drone capabilities.

After the 60-day pilot, the District Attorney’s Office and the Sheriff’s Office will evaluate whether to continue using the AI tool.