Ask Joe...
Each month, IAPE's primary instructor, Joe Latta, answers one of your questions. Consider writing us if you have a question that needs an answer. We would love to hear from you.
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Dear Joe,
We recently subscribed to Lexipol which you are probably aware is a subscription policy service for law enforcement. Within the section regarding property and evidence, there is a policy statement that says, " Biological hazards on any evidence to be released to its respective owner shall not be released without a biological hazard liability waiver"
What is your take on that? Do you know where I can get a copy of an agency's biological hazard liability waiver?
Regards,
Serena M
PPD
Dear JG,
I have seen different types of waivers in Property Rooms when releasing evidence, but never for a BIO Hazard, unless they are referring to something that has been chemically treated with some type of chemical. I have attached two different forms for your consideration. The first is for the release of evidence that was in some manner chemically processed, such as ninhydrin. The second form is used for release of a person's medications back to them after being stored in the Property Room. Caution, when releasing medication always confer with your legal counsel as to whether you can disperse medication. Some states prohibit law enforcement from releasing.
Regards,
Joe
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Commentary
Are you ready? For the past twenty year, IAPE has been tracking news stories about Property Rooms issues throughout the United States and Canada including fires, floods and earthquakes. On a very infrequent basis, we read news stories about a Property Room fire. However, in the past 30 days the Kansas City Police Department (MO) and the Ontario Provincial Police in Canada have both suffered noteworthy fires. It should be noted, at this time, the fires aren't suspicious in nature and appears to be something such as electrical. We will post any changes in the future. It appears from first report that fire life safety equipment such as sprinklers, smoke detectors, etc. may have mitigated any additional loses.
My question to all, is your evidence safe from, fire, floods and other similar types of disasters? Do you have the necessary smoke detectors, fire alarms, sprinklers, etc.? Is your property room in a basement in a flood zone? Possibly you can get your local fire department to give an assessment for the potential for a fire and take proactive steps before its too late.
Cause of OPP fire at Cambridge detachment remains under investigation (Canada)
The cause of the fire at the OPP detachment in Cambridge remains under investigation, a spokesperson for the Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management told Global News on Friday.
The agency pegs the damage to the 32-year-old building at over a million dollars.
The OPP detachment in Cambridge has been leveled by a devastating fire Tuesday afternoon. There were no injuries as a result of some alert thinking by the detachment's commander, John Mraud.
"Shorty after 2 p.m. today, our detachment commander alerted all the staff who were working inside that there was smoke and visible flames coming from the roof," OPP Const. Lauren Ball said. Mraud said he was looking out his window when he saw the problem.
"I was just looking out my detachment window when I noticed some flames and smoke so I walked outside just to see where it was coming from and I saw flames and a lot darker smoke coming from the back corner of the roof," he explained.
"So I went back inside the detachment and a 911 call was made to fire and we evacuated the building." Ball said there were "five or six" people inside the building when the fire broke out.
"It was kind of slow to start but once the flames erupted from the back corner of the building it seemed to go pretty fast and we all just stood in disbelief that it spread so quickly," she said.
There is not word on what caused the fire. Ball said the Ontario's Office of the Fire Marshal will investigate with the help of the Cambridge Fire Department. Mraud said that service will be uninterrupted.
"We will keep doing our job to the best of our abilities like we have since the building opened in 1986," he said.
The OPP detachment will temporarily take up office in Milton at the collision reporting centre on Steeles Avenue. "If you call the OPP for help, operations won't be interrupted. We still have officers on the road and we're responding to calls for service," Ball said.
Overnight fire damages KC evidence building; police assessing what it means for cases
August 23, 2018
It is unknown what caused the fire, what was damaged and how that might affect  current and old cases
A fire early Thursday morning damaged one of the Kansas City Police Department's property and evidence buildings. The fire was reported shortly after 12:30 a.m. at the Kansas City Municipal Services building at 5300 Municipal Ave.
The extent of the damage was not immediately clear. However, Kansas City firefighters have turned over the scene to police, who are beginning to assess the damage. "This is a large building, so it will take some time to determine what has been damaged," Sgt. Jake Becchina, a spokesman for the Kansas City Police Department, wrote in an email.
It is unknown what caused the fire, what was damaged and how that might affect current and old cases, Becchina said. Police said it would take some time before they would be able to address those questions.
Firefighters responded to a fire early Thursday at one of Kansas City Police Department's property and evidence buildings. Police are assessing what was damaged and how it could affect both current and old cases.
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