Implementing Innovative Solutions for Evidence Management and Policy Auditing in Law Enforcement

Law Enforcement Policy Review and Evidence Auditing

Massachusetts is home to arguably the largest chain-of-custody scandal in all of law enforcement. Two dirty chemists tampered with and used seized drugs that were submitted by police for independent verification prior to prosecution.

The actions of Annie Dookhan and Sonia Farak has cost the taxpayers of Massachusetts more than a billion dollars. Their actions resulted in 135,000 drug cases being thrown out, where innocent people were incarcerated, guilty people went free. On top of that, prosecutors committed prosecutorial misconduct for failing to turn over exculpatory evidence to individuals that were charged with drug offenses, and two people were murdered by individuals that were released because Dookhan had a role in creating the drug certification responsible for their incarcerations. This sounds like something straight out of a horror movie, which is why Netflix released the miniseries “How to Fix a Drug Scandal” that was based on the cases of the two chemists.

What’s truly troubling is knowing it was avoidable. It was the result of apathy, incompetence, and the systemic failures of management at the highest levels of government. If preventative methods were installed, policies were brought up to industry best practices, supervisors actually had a background in evidentiary chain of custody, and the frontline employees had received updated training and equipment that actually worked, taxpayers could have saved $950 million.

Evidence management is an ongoing law enforcement pain point, and it is just a matter of time until the next big scandal hits. The data shows that there was at least one evidence issue a day in a recent three-year period. Our team of retired law enforcement professionals can help your organization avoid becoming the next front-page headline. We will conduct a full audit of all your evidence policies and procedures and make sure your agency is using industry best practices. We will also conduct a full inspection of the organization’s physical security hardware and protocols.

If you incorporate an audit with the installation of the PADtrax evidence management system, we will be able to provide you with a considerable savings as we are able to tag each piece of evidence as we conduct the audit. Every chief should be so fortunate to have the peace of mind that comes with knowing 100% of their evidence is accounted for. Add in the addition of a state-of-the-art evidence management system with updated policy and procedures, and your organization will have all the tools necessary to be successful, while ensuring the integrity of the evidential chain of custody remains intact for prosecution.

PADtrax Evidence Management Solves Evidence Management

PADtrax is an RFID evidence management system specifically designed to replace the antiquated barcode systems that many law enforcement agencies use to track evidence. PADtrax stands for People, Asset, and Document Tracking, and the system was specifically designed for evidence management and to help law enforcement improve the accountability, speed, handling, and storage of law enforcement evidence. The PADtrax system allows the completion of weekly audits in a matter of minutes, resulting in significant resource savings and peace of mind. Weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly audits will become nearly effortless at this point. Learn more about how PADtrax can simplify all aspects of evidence management.

Zeus Currency Discriminator Helps Cannabis Business Deal with Cash Reliably

Cash in evidence needs to be managed carefully. Reduce the time officers spend dealing with large sums of cash and how it’s documented can help ensure the chain of custody stay intact. The Zeus Currency Discriminator uses a two-pocket design to offer numerous functions, including identifying and separating counterfeit bills, tracking and recording serial numbers, counting mixed bills, and sorts them by denomination, orientation, and face direction. The unit will also generate reports to document every function.

Protect Your Department with an Evidence Room Designed for the Purpose

With all the calls for police transparency and accountability, can you really afford to have an evidence issue? Let our team of retired law enforcement professionals, who are internationally board-certified protection professionals, with years of evidence management under their belts, help you design a state-of-the-art evidence facility that will meet your needs for today while factoring in room to grow. Our design philosophy focuses on limiting and eliminating opportunities for mistakes and theft.

Here are some of the factors that we will address when designing your evidence facility.

• Audit of existing evidence prior to and post move
• Forensic audit of all cash proceeds in the possession of the evidence unit, to include asset seizure funds, and lost & found cash
• Dual factor-authentication
• Access controls
• Audio recording
• High-definition video recording and storage
• Physical design recommendations
• Intrusion alarms, including motion sensors, window and door alarms, and exterior perimeter alarms
• Panic alarms
• Evidence management software
• Two-way evidence lockers
• Policy review and creation
• Storage solutions for firearms, drugs, sexual assault kits, media storage devices, and physical property, both lost & found, and evidence

Whether it is a redesign or a new-construction project, simply let us know when the shell of the facility is in place and our licensed General Contractor can handle the rest.