Evidence and the Internet

be on the Internet.

By Dennis Davenport

In a new and exciting age, are you taking advantage of the some of the current technology? We work in an industry full of rich tradition and history. Many of us, and our supervisors have worked in law enforcement for several years and are used to traditional means of doing our jobs.

The Internet is a valuable tool that many law enforcement agencies have taken little advantage of. The Internet has been touted as a place for X-rated photos, people selling get-rich-quick schemes, and commercial sites. Law enforcement is seeing a great increase in the use of the Internet to find and catch criminals. We have also seen a great increase in the apprehension of pedophiles caught through the use of Internet stings, as well as other sex related crimes and activities. But how many agencies are using the Internet to its full potential? The answer to that question is very easy; none. So the big question is: what is it that we should be taking advantage of? The Internet is sure to change they we shop, conduct business, and conduct criminal investigations.

One of the practical uses of the Internet are the many phone directories. For years when trying to locate a suspect or victim, we had to look them up in the phonebook. Sometimes we found them, but more often not.

We could always call the operator or information, but this was never fool proof. Internet directories offer us a great service. Where we once had to have large telephone directories lying around, we now have access to huge telephone directories that do not take up any room in our office. These directories are easy to use, accurate and updated on a constant basis.

What about research? Agencies are constantly asked to research a variety of topics from different procedures, to methods of storing evidence. This has traditionally been accomplished through the telephone and by word of mouth. This can sometimes take weeks, even months, depending how much time you have. The Internet can offer a time saving solution to this and other problems.

The following are a couple of Internet use success stories. These are here to serve as a basic example of how an evidence unit can use the Internet.

We received a gold class ring along with several other items from a large storage shed. We suspected the ring was stolen, so we tried to find the owner. The ring was a 1966 Texas A&M class ring. It had a name inscribed on the inside, but was barley legible. Through the Internet we found a web site for the Texas A&M university and a page devoted for class rings. I found out that the ring is a not given to anyone who has the money, but the recipients must have a certain GPA and apply to get a ring. There were also lists of people who had received the class ring each year. Unfortunately 1966 was not one of those years. I e-mailed a contact on the web site with my problem and as much information as I had. Several weeks later she e-mailed back saying that she had located the person who owned the ring. I then received a call from the owner’s mother. As it turns out the ring belonged to her son who disappeared in 1975 and has never been heard from again and the ring was one of the few items she had of his. It was stolen in 1981 from her home in the Chicago area and we recovered it in 1995. It took us several years to find the owner, but once we started using the Internet it only took approximately two months. She now lives here in Denver. Needless to say, she was very grateful and surprised to receive a lost memento from her son.

Earlier this year our department reopened a homicide case. A seven year old girl was kidnapped from her elementary school yard and brutally killed in 1984. The case had remained unsolved and our department decided to actively work the case for a couple of months. One of the unresolved issues of the case were some red carpet fibers found on the girls body at autopsy. These fibers were analyzed by the FBI several years ago, but without success. One of the chief suspects at the time owned a 1965 Red Ford Fairlane with original red carpet. At the time a search warrant of his car was not allowed, so these fibers sat in the evidence room. It was my task to find either the suspects car or another 1965 Fairlane so the fibers could be compared. I discovered the suspect’s car had been sold and salvaged. So the only option left was to find someone with a Red Ford Fairlane with original red carpet. I turned to the Internet. I found out the car is a collector item, but was not as popular as some other vehicles. I was able through the Internet and e-mail to find a gentleman in Dover, Delaware, who had one of these cars. The gentleman was a real Ford Fairlane buff. He lived outside of Dover, on 65 Fairlane Rd. and had over 120 1965 Ford Fairlanes. I told him of our situation and he readily agreed to cutting a small sample of the carpet from one of his five red Fairlanes. I had the Dover Police Department collect the sample and send it back. Finally we had a good sample to compare to and possibly include or exclude the suspect vehicle. Analysis showed the fibers did not match, but at least we knew.

So where and how do you get started? There are a number of ways to start searching on the web. The easiest place to start is a search engine. Search engines are large databases that hold information about web sites. You need to remember that each search engine is only as good as the people who put it together. When you search for something, you are not searching the entire web, but only those web sites that the search engine knows about. There are millions of web sites out there and it can be very hard to find ones in particular or a specific topic. I suggest you start at www.locate.com. This site allows you to search several search engines. It also has links to news services, map locators, and directories. The best way to start a search is to list a couple of keywords in the search input. Each engine will guide you to sites it thinks you are looking for. Broad searches will return thousands of possible sites, while narrow searches will probably not lead you to what your looking for. Start somewhere in the middle and find out what works best. Another good starting place are sites devoted to a particular subject. For example law enforcement has a couple of very good sites to lead off into. These sites are listed on page 7. The best advice I can give you is to find something you like and place it into your favorite area or bookmark it. This allows you to rapidly return to what works best for you.

Chat rooms are another great example of excellent use of the Internet. Chat rooms are areas where people can go and exchange ideas and thoughts. Most people, when they hear of chat rooms, think of the romance areas, where people spend hundreds of hours conversing with lots of different people, mostly about sex. You say your chief would never go for that?? Well did you know there is a chat room especially for evidence techs and clerks? There are many different chat rooms available to law enforcement. These offer valuable information and resources from other people in the business. Sometimes it really is great to talk to someone who knows how to deal with a problem your having.

Supplies, supplies… We are always having to deal with evidence supplies, whether you order them or tell someone else to order them, it’s always a hassle. Many vendors have web sites; and a few actually allow you to look through a virtual catalog and order over the Internet. If current trends continue, we will see every major vendor using the Internet to sell their products.

The web is also a great place to find out who you need to call or see. You can use the Internet to look up various agencies, local and federal, businesses, and all kinds of information. This information is usually updated on a regular basis.

Training is another reason for the web. Associations are now using the Internet to post articles, updated information, training dates and times, and newsletters. These sites allow easy and quick contact with people in your field to learn about new procedures, tips and techniques and have questions answered. This allows clerks and techs to maintain current levels of technology in a rapidly changing environment.

As a final thought, check out the Nashville Tennessee Police Department web site. Their property room is allowing people to query the property room database for items they had stolen, to see if the items have been recovered. With some restrictions people can readily see if their property has been recovered. A very interesting idea.