McMinnville PD uses EvidenceOnQ to manage physical evidence from collection to storage to court to disposal.
conducting analyses, writing reports, and obtaining statistics, all in compliance with accrediting body requirements. In a single system, a user can track case information, documents, quality assurance standards, equipment, inventory, and corrective or preventative actions as well as conduct audits. Since all of this information is housed in one system, with the click of a button, discovery and/or FOIA requests can be fi lled by compiling the information into a PDF. The STARLIMS Fo- rensics platform can also easily identify every sample associated with a reagent, piece of equipment, or personnel. The Abbott Informatics STARLIMS Forensics product is a quality assurance partner. Rather than having a separate system to monitor the expiration date of a material, it is smarter to track that information within the LIMS so if an analyst tries to use the expired materials in their analysis, the system can prevent them from making the mistake. Likewise, the LIMS documents if an instrument is offl ine and unavailable for the analysis at hand. This prevents the examiner from analyzing the sample on an instrument that is not fi t for use.
STARLIMS Forensics is a role-based system that allows users to have access to necessary information and components to ful- fi ll their responsibilities. Information is saved in real time and accessible from anywhere in the world via a secure log-in. Security and up-time are typical issues for law enforcement agencies. In addition to the security offered by the client’s own fi rewall, STARLIMS utilizes a stringent authentication and is used by some of the most security-sensitive agencies in the world. In addition, because STARLIMS is a Web-based appli- cation, the up-time would be equivalent to the up-time of the client’s internal network.
Items that are collected may be evidence or property, so from point of collection through court, return to owner, auction, or destruction, all of the information is collected and maintained so clients have results that are defendable in court. STARLIMS Forensics is easily upgradeable, and because it is
a Web-based system, only the server(s) need to be upgraded rather than specifi c computers. STARLIMS Forensics is easily expanded through the use of a server farm. The technology plat- form is compatible with both SQL and Oracle out of the box. Dr. Robin Gall, Senior Manager of Forensics Informatics at Abbott, reported, “The trends we are seeing include the use of smartphones or tablets, data mining, and the desire for a com-
The Contra Costa Sheriff’s Department uses EvidenceOnQ to manage evidence and complete requests for evidence from storage.
prehensive, unifi ed solution. Users can take advantage of Abbott Informatics mobility features whether on an Android or iOS. In addition, Abbott Informatics Advanced Analytics enables users to interact with their data, meaning rather than a static graph or Excel table, users can click on a graph to drill deeper and look for root causes, turning data into actionable information.” She added that by having a comprehensive solution, there is no need to purchase separate software for the crime scene, lab, property room, quality system, or pre-logging of evidence. This mitigates the need to build and maintain expensive interfaces and eliminates redundant data entry, which in turn reduces transcription errors. STARLIMS Forensics operates on a concur- rent license model, which means you simply purchase licenses for the number of users you expect to be logged in at any given time regardless of what areas they are accessing, which means their clients do not have to pay for more than they actually need.
FileOnQ Inc.
www.fi leonq.com
FileOnQ is the parent company for the apps of EvidenceOnQ and DigitalOnQ, products to manage law enforcement data and records, which can be combined into an integrated seamless system or used independently of each other. FileOnQ not only handles physical evidence but also digital evidence through DigitalOnQ, such things as body cam footage. The evidence is handled from cradle to grave, including the chain of custody, authenticating that the digital footage is from the original source and not altered in any way.
Bruce Adams, FileOnQ Evidence Specialist, pointed out that the trend over the past 8–10 years has moved from the more traditional physical evidence of bloody shoes or a bag of white powder to concerns for storing things from the digital world, body and dash cam footage, surveillance videos, audio and video recordings, and recorded interviews done by every police agency every day.
Film cameras have disappeared and digital photos are now used, their higher resolution requiring storage of larger and larger data fi les. Computer crime, such as child sexual exploi- tation, generates an incredible amount of information when police must seize computers, copy the contents, and do foren- sic investigation of the contents. All of this contributes to the storage issues.
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