Storage Methodology

Are you finding that your department is running out of storage space for evidence, getting behind on purge projects, and/or spending an exorbitant amount of time storing and retrieving evidence? Lack of organization is probably contributing to these issues.

All too often, a single storage shelf in a property room may contain recent found property, evidence from a sexual assault case, a no-suspect burglary, and an adjudicated 15-year-old homicide – all with varying evidence storage life cycles. If you implement a logical, organized storage method, it will optimize your storage space and increase efficiency on a daily basis.

Found and Personal Property

Found and Personal Property should be segregated from Evidence. These types of items are generally cycled out quickly – usually around 60-90 days – because they are not associated with criminal investigations and statutes allow for timely disposition. Having all the found and personal property stored in its own location allows for quick retrieval of items when releasing to the owner or pulling for destruction. It is also time efficient because the purge project can be done from one location instead of having to go all over your property room to pull items. When found property is scattered amongst evidence, it often leads to property being overlooked for disposal and held longer than necessary. I recently visited an agency of approximately 75 officers who thought they were staying on top of their safekeeping items. I ran a report from their evidence system, and they had over 1,400 items dating back several years.

Consider Storing Evidence by the Type of Crime

It is logical to store evidence from homicides and sexual offenses separately from other crime types because this evidence will likely be held for a long period of time. This evidence should be in a climate-controlled area that is out of the way, such as an upstairs area, annex, or far corner of the evidence room. An exception can be made for recent cases that are in an active investigation where items are being viewed and sent to the lab. The case can be moved to the long-term location later. Some agencies store all the misdemeanor/petty crime together in the same location because those cases are adjudicated faster, and it makes it easier to pull for disposition.

Implement Standardized Packaging

Ideally, packages of the same size should be stored together for optimum use of space and easy storage and retrieval. You've probably seen evidence shelves filled with a wide variety of packaging – a combination of large and small envelopes, paper and plastic, and boxes and bags. It's impossible to utilize your space efficiently if you have all these types of packaging. Consider a section of shelves just for large paper bags, another section just for 8x10 envelopes, and so on. Also, by implementing packaging guidelines for your officers, it will restrict what packaging comes in and will help you keep your property room more organized and utilize your storage space efficiently. I have a large collection of photos that depict these various storage methods and am happy to share them.