19.1 Submitting Property & Evidence

Centreville Police Department Title: Submitting Property & Evidence Directive #: 19.1 Issued: 10.1.2016 Revised: 10.1.2016 Approved by: Charles M. Rhodes, Jr.

Chief of Police A. Policy Officers will submit property and evidence in accordance with this directive.

B. Procedures

1. General Provisions

a. An officer coming into possession of property or evidence will submit the item for storage and processing at CPD before the end of the officer’s shift.

b. The officer will complete an Incident Report describing each item and the circumstances by which the item came into his possession.

c. The Incident Report is in addition to any other required documentation (e.g., Property Record, Chain of Custody).

d. The following is a list of exceptions to the above rule:

(1) Personal property of an arrested individual, other than evidence or contraband, will be returned to

the suspect after he is released from custody; if it is not possible to give the property back to the suspect or another party (e.g., detention center employee, representative of the owner), the property will be stored.

(2) If found property is returned directly to the owner or the owner’s authorized representative, no

documentation is necessary.

(3) Property or evidence should not be taken from another agency unless it is part of a CPD

investigation, the product of a search warrant or the result of a subpoena.

(4) Items deemed hazardous will be stored and disposed of by personnel having the appropriate

training and facilities to do so.

e. Property and evidence will not be stored at any place other than an approved storage area unless prior permission is obtained from the Chief to temporarily store items elsewhere.

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2. Notification to Owners of Found Property

a. When abandoned property is received from someone other than the owner, officers will complete an Incident Report, and if required, the Property Record, and note the:

(1) name, address and phone number of the person turning in the property; and

(2) circumstances surrounding the recovery.

b. Officers coming into possession of another person's personal property will attempt to notify the owner of the found property within three days, and if the owner:

(1) can be determined, he will be notified that his property is being held and the procedures

by which it can be released; and

(2) is known but cannot be notified, the notification attempt will be recorded in the Incident Report,

and if required, the remarks section of the Property Record.

3. Labeling Property and Evidence

a. All property and evidence will be appropriately labeled.

b. A evidence envelope or pouch will be used to hold smaller items.

c. A Property Tag, will be attached to items which cannot fit in an envelope or pouch.

d. The envelope, pouch or tag will include:

(1) the Incident Report number;

(2) a Property Record number (if applicable); and

(3) any other pertinent information in the spaces provided.

4. Offensive Material

a. Property or evidence which may be considered outwardly offensive (e.g., sexually explicit) will:

(1) not be reproduced, disseminated or displayed except as required as part of the investigation and

prosecution; and

(2) be stored in a sealed, nontransparent envelope or other container that will prevent viewing by

persons not directly involved with the investigation.

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5. Temporary Storage

a. Whenever property or evidence comes into the possession of an officer and the custodial officer is not available, the investigating officer will place the item into a secure, temporary locker until it is remanded into the care of the custodial officer.

b. All property and evidence placed into temporary storage will be recorded in a Temporary Storage Log.

c. A supervisor will witness property and evidence being placed into temporary storage and will complete the ‘supervisory review’ section of the Temporary Storage Log.

d. Custodial officers will transfer property and evidence from temporary storage within 72 hours, place it in the appropriate storage location and will complete the “Property Release” portion of the Temporary Storage log.

6. Submitting Evidence to the MSP Forensic Sciences Division (FSD)

a. Officers who collect evidence that may be submitted to MSP Forensic Sciences Division (FSD) will do so in accordance with the Guidelines for Submitting Physical Evidence.

(1) The guide includes MSP’s policy on collecting Deoxyribonucleic Acid (DNA) and collecting

evidence from known sources.

(2) Officers will contact MSP FSD with questions or for assistance on the appropriate submission

of items for analysis.

b. Prior to collecting any DNA evidence, officers will be provided training.

c. All evidence, potential evidence or items to be sent to MSP FSD for analysis or examination will be recorded on a MSP Form 67, Request for Laboratory Analysis/Chain of Custody.

(1) All entries on the Form 67, except signatures, will be typed or printed legibly.

(2) The most important item should be listed first; all subsequent items will be listed in descending

order of importance since all items may not be analyzed.

(3) In instances when indicating the suspect’s name may compromise the investigation, enter

“Confidential.”

(4) Any movement of the item after it is taken into the custody of MSP will be documented on the

chain of custody portion of the form.

(5) The original copy of the Form 67 will be attached to the evidence and always kept with the

evidence to maintain chain of custody.

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(6) The original and three copies of the Form 67 will be submitted to FSD with the evidence; if

applicable, the blue copy of the Form 63 will also be submitted.

(7) Upon acceptance of evidence by FSD, a receipt copy of Form 67 will be returned to the submitting

unit and filed with the Incident Report.

(8) After final disposition of the property or evidence, the original Form 67 will be filed with the

Incident Report.

d. The custodial officer will identify the evidence to be analyzed by FSD.

e. Only items requiring analysis or examination should be submitted to FSD; do not submit non- essential items.

f. Requests for Rush Analysis

(1) All requests for rush analysis of evidence should be in writing from the State's Attorney to the FSD

Director, Deputy Director or Assistant Commander; however, the investigating officer’s commander may also make the request.

(2) The request must contain:

(a) a copy of the Form 67;

(b) the FSD file number, if known;

(c the date the evidence was submitted to FSD;

(d) the suspect's name;

(e) the name of the submitting unit;

(f) the Incident Report number; and

(g) the Property Record number (if applicable).

g. The results of the analysis of all evidence will be provided by FSD, in writing, to the submitting unit for inclusion with the investigative file.17 Page 4 of 4