Zebra Technologies and Porter Lee Partner to Fight Crime; CSI Bar Code Application Increases Security While Reducing Time in Tracking Evidence From Collection to Disposition

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Zebra Technologies and Porter Lee Partner to Fight Crime; CSI Bar Code Application Increases Security While Reducing Time in Tracking Evidence From Collection to Disposition
Posted on: 11/17/2003

VERNON HILLS, Ill. -- Zebra Technologies Corp., a worldwide leader in delivering printing solutions for business improvement and security, today announces its latest alliance partner, Porter Lee Corp. Porter Lee provides software, hardware and support services developed specifically for evidence tracking. Under Zebra's partner alliance agreement, Porter Lee offers law enforcement agencies and forensic crime laboratories its Crime Fighter Bar Coded Evidence Analysis Statistics and Tracking (BEAST) property room evidence management, and laboratory information management system software, sold exclusively with Zebra's desktop and mobile bar code label printers and media.

Combined, these products provide complete and secure chain of custody tracking, from the time of collection, through forensic analysis and final disposition. The system has been proven to reduce the time officers spend logging and inventorying evidence by up to 60 percent. In 2002, more than 2.5 million bar code labels were printed using the BEAST system. Porter Lee is the only company to offer evidence collection software with a thermal transfer mobile printer, for in-the-field evidence collection, bagging, and bar coding with archival-quality labels.

One of biggest problems facing crime scene investigators and forensic crime laboratory technicians is the inaccurate and time consuming process of collecting, tracking and inventorying crime scene evidence in a paper-based system. According to the Lake County Sheriff's department in Illinois, a detective investigates approximately 300 felonies per year. Each case, on average, consists of more than 10 pieces of evidence. With a paper-based system, it takes officers 40 minutes to record and tag each piece of evidence -- that's 6.6 hrs per case and 83 days per year. Using the BEAST system, this task can be accomplished in under 15 minutes -- saving 4.1 hrs per case, or about 52 days per year. Time better spent solving crimes.

Property room inventory also presents a major challenge for police departments. An evidence room of 27,000 pieces of evidence would take a total of 1,440 hours to inventory. With the BEAST, inventory would take only 360 hours -- a reduction of 1,080 hours.

"Proper evidence handling and tracking are critical for crime scene investigators and forensic lab technicians, especially when it comes time for trial," says Clint Rand, former FBI agent and Zebra's law enforcement technology market manager. "Most law enforcement agencies and forensic labs handle thousands of pieces of evidence each year. Zebra's desktop and mobile bar code printers and media ensure the evidence labels can be read because they stand up to heat, cold, and the standard solvents found in a crime lab. The accuracy bar codes provide is invaluable for cataloging and tracking evidence as it moves through the justice system."

Using the BEAST, law enforcement agencies can eliminate paper records, which are often out of date, and the time-consuming process of searching for them. With the manual paper process, every evidence package must be individually labeled and duplicate information must be entered in files, logbooks, and on each item of evidence within the package. The BEAST system allows information to be recorded just once using bar coded labels. Date, time, officer, locker/bin, custody status, and a comment can be specified for each custody transaction, as well as detailed reports for chain of custody, item location, and status. In the field, investigators tag collected evidence using a Zebra mobile printer, then use Zebra's desktop printers to tag additional evidence at the station, and label bins, shelves and lockers in the property room.

An optional forensic laboratory information management program is also available under Porter Lee's Crime Fighter BEAST software system, which uses bar codes to track custody of evidence being examined in the lab, and is designed specifically to integrate with the property room evidence management program. The lab system also incorporates Zebra printers to help streamline and maintain case workloads for trial. Using this option, bar coded evidence is submitted to the lab. When the lab scans the bar code label, extensive case and item data is quickly and securely transferred directly to the lab's database and a new bar coded label is then printed for the lab's evidence envelope. A submission receipt bar code is used to confirm transfer to the lab and to provide a tight link for chain of custody. For labeling vials containing DNA testing samples, lab technicians use Zebra's high-resolution desktop bar code label printers. Because the system is completely integrated, the lab technicians do not need to keystroke case data or case numbers to generate additional labels, ensuring accuracy. No other police/lab system provides this level of integration. The forensic laboratory information management system is complete with case entry, active bar coding, chain of custody, management reporting, analytical reports, audit logging, and security control.

"The benefits of using the Crime Fighter BEAST go beyond simply tracking property. The system is an extremely valuable tool for maintaining evidence integrity and control, which is absolutely essential in the law enforcement community today," says Tim Smith, president of Porter Lee. "Evidence is collected 24/7 in this country. Our customers want to know that their staff will be able to use our software to tag evidence. The biggest fear is that evidence is not tagged when it is collected. For this reason, we selected Zebra printers for both internal and in-the-field use because they are rugged, easy to use, reliable, and fast."

Source: Zebra Technologies Corporation