Recently, we interviewed John Calhoon, the Undersheriff for the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office (KS), about the importance of establishing State Property and Evidence Management Associations for law enforcement agencies nationwide. Admittedly, he had never given much thought to them in the past – but all of that changed in April of this year.
Before we dive into how he came to understand the value and contribution of evidence management departments and personnel, let’s take a step back and lay the groundwork for John’s mind-blowing rise-through-the-ranks history in law enforcement. If it were a career biography, it would be called “From Typewriter Repairman to Chief of Police – How a Walk Down an Alley Changed One Man’s Life Forever.” Let’s take a step back in time…
In 1985, John worked as an office equipment repairman (pre-computers). He was going to schools and government agencies to repair (mostly) typewriters. One government agency happened to be a Sheriff’s Office down the alley from a “little bitty” office that John occupied. Although he can’t remember the exact details about how he got involved with the Sheriff’s office, he started in reserves at the age of 21 in Brown County, TX.
(Strap yourselves in, folks. This is where John’s career starts to take on a life of its own.)
After 6 months, he was hired as a Patrolman. Three years later, he became a Sergeant with the Horton Police Department. After another three years, he was promoted to Assistant Chief of Police/D.A.R.E. Officer in Atchinson County, KS – where he served for two years before rising to the position of Sheriff (1994 – 2013). Then he became a Captain – where he currently serves as Undersheriff – before returning to Horton as Chief of Police – A position he held from 2013 to 2020.
2020… the year he decided to retire after nearly 35 years in law enforcement. (***Spoiler Alert: Retirement didn’t exactly stick.)
By “retire,” we mean he still served as the City Administrator of Horton, KS – a role he took on while ALSO being the Chief of Police. Throughout the years, John was on countless law enforcement boards, committees, associations, and councils.
He was also a member of the Rotary Club, The Elks Lodge, the Juvenile Justice Authority, the Community Corrections Advisory Board, and is a Charter Member of Big Brothers/Big Sisters of Atchison County. He organized and chaired a newly formed Community Booster Club in Atchison and coordinated fundraising efforts for a new Football School Board and Finances of the club.
But “retirement” didn’t suit him. Not that anyone would call that retiring.
Soon, John started looking for work outside of law enforcement. He was still in good health and wanted a better lifestyle than his benefits provided at the time. He was offered a job with the postal service and looked into opportunities in the insurance industry. But, nothing really called to him the way public service had.
Then, a good friend – a Sheriff at the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office – called and asked if John would be interested in becoming a Detective Seargent who could help with enhancing the evidence room and conducting background investigations.
He accepted the position and was (in short) “Amazed by the lack of detail in the evidence unit.” He found (among MANY other things):
- Large sums of cash from old cases
- Misplaced or undocumented evidence in the evidence management system
- Poor tracking of property releases
- Lack of policies and procedures
In the next two articles, we will report the details from that fascinating interview with John – including how he turned some things around in the time he worked in the evidence department after turning to IAPE and learning everything he could about evidence management – but for now, let’s talk about what every law enforcement leader would experience by spending a week in the agency’s evidence management department.
To say it would be a wake-up call is an understatement. Mind-bending is more like it. If you think you’ve seen everything that can be seen in law enforcement, you’re wrong. You may have seen your share of victims, perpetrators, and crime scenes, but evidence techs see them all.
Why Should You Enter the Agency’s Evidence Department?
Imagine stepping into the evidence management department—a part of your agency that rarely gets the attention or resources it deserves. As a law enforcement leader, you might expect that everything is running smoothly: evidence is tagged, tracked, and securely stored. But the reality is often far from it.
You might think, “Let the evidence techs do their job,” without ever considering whether they have the resources they need to carry out the day-to-day tasks efficiently and effectively. As Joe Latta of IAPE once said, “Police Chiefs don’t get fired over the actions of their officers. They get fired over evidence scandals.”
Don’t believe it? Check out this disturbing independent article called: Former Chief Gets the Blame for the Evidence Room
Let’s open the door to your agency’s evidence room. You walk in and see unsealed evidence boxes and file cabinets exploding with paperwork. Labels are peeling off of open evidence bags. Crates on the floor are water-damaged, rodent droppings lead to chewed-through backpacks, and mold creeps up the walls. Fluorescent lights flicker as if fighting for their lives. And the incessant buzzing? A refrigerator, also on its last leg.
And the smell? Mostly pungent marijuana. But, there are more subtle notes…a dampness hangs in the air – it reminds you of grandmother’s basement – a metallic smell emanates from the homicide shelves, and you pass something that smells like an odd combination of urine and burnt hair.
High-risk evidence, including narcotics, firearms, and large sums of cash, is mixed in with everyday items. There’s no rhyme or reason to the organization. Some evidence is hidden in cabinets with the most basic lock and key design – that anyone could pick or break with bolt cutters – while other pieces, equally important, are piled onto shelves with no security at all.
And there’s a mind-boggling amount of bikes! What’s with all of these bikes? Bio Hazard containers have no information about their contents. Uncharged mobile devices, stored inside sandwich bags, are tossed into plastic bins with no discernible order. Most disturbingly, there are shelves that contain hundreds of untested rape kits.
RELATED ARTICLE: Mission Possible: A Blueprint for Controlling Every Piece of Evidence
It’s not long before you realize the gravity of the situation. You see how vulnerable your department is, how every piece of mismanaged evidence is a potential lawsuit waiting to happen. Is it the fault of the overworked, under-funded evidence management department? Or the lowest-paid people in law enforcement… civilian evidence techs?
No. It’s your fault. Everything else seemed more important than the needs of the evidence department. Evidence management departments within law enforcement agencies often lack financial resources, significantly hindering their ability to perform at their best. Financial constraints often mean these departments cannot afford essential upgrades and modernizations, which are crucial for effective and efficient evidence handling.
What would you experience by spending a week in the evidence management department? Enlightenment. Abundant liability awareness. And a profound sense of urgency for immediate improvement.
An Antiquated System: A Liability Time Bomb
One of the greatest liabilities comes from the fact that most departments still rely on paper-and-pen systems or an outdated RMS. The reliance on manual systems leads to human error. Illegible handwriting means critical information can be misinterpreted or missed altogether.
Take, for instance, evidence handling protocols—an officer submits a package with drugs from a controlled buy. The handwritten label is unclear, and suddenly the type of drug becomes a question mark. Was it heroin, fentanyl, or methamphetamine? Without consistent, legible documentation, this becomes a liability in court.
Evidence management software (EMS) changes all of that. It eliminates the problem of illegible handwriting by digitizing every entry. Information is entered into required fields, ensuring no critical details are overlooked. Consistency becomes the standard rather than the exception. The software guides officers and evidence specialists to input every necessary detail—date, time, location, description, and chain of custody—all legibly, consistently, and securely. This streamlines the process, reduces human error, and becomes a virtual control center for evidence.
Packaging Protocols: Another Overlooked Liability
Improper packaging can render key evidence unusable in court, leading to disastrous outcomes. Consider drugs—high-risk evidence that demands strict packaging protocols. Without proper airtight, tamper-evident packaging, drugs like methamphetamine, fentanyl, or cannabis are susceptible to contamination, spoilage, or even theft. But, with limited funds, packaging is often inconsistent, with items being haphazardly sealed in inappropriate materials.
EMS not only tracks the evidence but integrates packaging protocols into the process, ensuring every piece of high-risk evidence is packaged according to best practices. It generates reminders for proper packaging methods and alerts staff when something is amiss. Imagine the difference—every drug, firearm, or piece of currency stored in the proper container, logged with its exact condition, and safely secured in smart lockers, which can only be accessed by authorized personnel. The risks of contamination, theft, or evidence tampering plummet.
Lack of Policies and Procedures: An Open Door for Legal Trouble
One of the biggest liabilities comes from a lack of clear, enforceable policies and procedures. Many evidence departments operate without solid guidelines, relying on the “it’s how we’ve always done it” mentality. This inconsistency in how evidence is logged, handled, stored, and eventually disposed of opens the door to mistakes—mistakes that can lead to lost evidence, chain of custody issues, and, ultimately, failed prosecutions.
Contrast this with a department that uses evidence management software. EMS requires users to follow a structured process, ensuring every piece of evidence follows the same chain of custody protocol from intake to release. If an item is missing a step in the process, the system flags it. This built-in accountability ensures that procedures are followed, reducing the chance of error and liability.
Outdated Hardware vs. Modern Solutions
Most evidence rooms still rely on fixed shelving—essentially, giant metal bookcases that take up a lot of room and require a lot of manual labor to manage. You want something from the top shelf? Grab a ladder. More incoming evidence? Well, it looks like you’re building another room—or worse, shoving things wherever you can fit them, creating clutter and increasing the chances of mismanagement.
But modern evidence management systems can be paired with rolling shelves—think of them as space-saving warriors that maximize your storage by compacting when not in use. The same goes for high-risk evidence like narcotics, firearms, and cash. Smart lockers with digital access control can be added to safeguard these items. Only authorized personnel—who are logged and monitored—can access them. This way, you not only protect the evidence, but you protect your department from the kind of legal nightmares that have shut down entire units.
Audit, Inventory, and Disposition Nightmares
Ask any police chief about audits and inventories in their evidence department, and you’ll likely be met with a groan. Without proper software, conducting an audit or inventory is a nightmare. Boxes upon boxes of evidence have to be manually sifted through, checked against old logs, and reconciled by a team that is already stretched thin. It’s not uncommon for this to take weeks, if not months or years, and that’s assuming everything is accounted for. And that’s assuming they ever get done at all.
And then there’s the issue of dispositions—where evidence no longer needed for cases must be properly disposed of. With a paper-based system, tracking the items that are ready for destruction, return, or auction is almost impossible. Departments often sit on mountains of unnecessary evidence, taking up valuable space and leading to significant liability when items aren’t disposed of correctly.
Evidence management software simplifies audits, inventories, and dispositions. With the click of a button, you can generate an audit report, showing you exactly what’s in your department, who handled it, and when. The same goes for dispositions—EMS systems automate reminders for when evidence is eligible for disposal and guide staff through the proper steps to handle it. Space is saved, time is conserved, and most importantly, the department is protected from liability.
RMS and Paper Systems Can’t Share Information— A Modern Nightmare
In today’s law enforcement landscape, the need to share information across departments is critical. Evidence must move seamlessly from the evidence department to crime labs, forensic specialists, and, eventually, attorneys. But RMS systems and paper logs are static—there’s no real-time information sharing. If a forensic lab needs to access a piece of evidence, they must either make a physical trip to the department or rely on someone in evidence to provide them with the information. It’s slow, inefficient, and prone to error.
EMS, on the other hand, allows for real-time data sharing. When evidence is processed, it can be accessed by authorized personnel across different departments— investigation, crime labs, forensic teams, and even attorneys can receive the information they need without delay. The chain of custody is updated in real-time, and every approved user can access the most up-to-date information. This transparency is essential for maintaining integrity and efficiency in investigations.
Access Control: Who Touched What and When?
How many times has a piece of evidence been mishandled or gone missing because of unauthorized access? Without access control, it’s nearly impossible to know who touched what and when. In a paper-based system, anyone who has access to the evidence room can theoretically tamper with or misplace items. This lack of control creates enormous liability, particularly when it comes to high-risk evidence like drugs, firearms, and cash.
EMS systems come with built-in access control. Each time a piece of evidence is handled, it is logged automatically, recording who accessed it, for what purpose, and when. Smart lockers add an additional layer of security, allowing only authorized personnel to access specific pieces of evidence, reducing the risk of tampering or theft.
The Wake-Up Call Law Enforcement Leaders Need
he truth is, many law enforcement agencies are operating with outdated and inefficient evidence management systems that are a liability waiting to happen. From misplaced high-risk evidence to costly legal battles over chain of custody errors, the risks are enormous—and the consequences can be devastating. Modernizing your evidence management department isn’t just about staying organized; it’s about protecting your department, your officers, your reputation, and your community.
FileOnQ understands these challenges. Their evidence management software solutions provide law enforcement agencies with the tools they need to regain control over their evidence. With FileOnQ, you get a system that automates tracking, standardizes packaging protocols, and ensures consistent, legible data entry—all while enabling real-time information sharing across different departments. The days of paper logs, fixed shelves, and missing evidence are over.
Investing in FileOnQ’s evidence management platform means peace of mind, knowing that audits, inventories, and dispositions are handled with precision and that high-risk evidence is stored securely with smart lockers and access control. It’s not just about saving time and space—it’s about reducing liability and protecting the integrity of your investigations.
The wake-up call is clear: Law enforcement leaders can no longer afford to neglect their evidence management departments. With FileOnQ, they can move forward with confidence, knowing that they have the right tools in place to protect both their evidence and their agency’s reputation.
To learn more about FileOnQ’s software solutions for Physical, Digital & Forensic Evidence or our Property and Asset Management platforms, click the links you’re most interested in. To Book a Demo, Visit this page.