Evidence Control Unit Promotes Intergovernmental Communications

2011 NACo Achievement Award Winner

Los Angeles County, Calif., CA

About the Program

Category: Criminal Justice and Public Safety (Best in Category)

Year: 2011

Over the years, the Los Angeles county Coroner has collected and maintained evidence of over 60,000 homicide cases. This evidence belongs to the investigating law enforcement agency with their crime laboratories having the analytical responsibility. With the advent of DNA technology came a renewed interest in analyzing cold case evidence. Newly formed Cold Case Units from police agencies throughout the County have begun inundating the Evidence Control Unit (ECU) with inquiries regarding any evidence still in its custody. These Cold Case Units had no idea that the ECU was holding so much evidence for them, and couldn’t wait to get at it. The problem was that the evidence was booked under the coroner’s case numbers and not necessarily associated with any investigating agency. With only 3 staff, the ECU had to find a creative approach to solving the problem of organizing, inventorying, notifying, and releasing thousands of items of evidence to over 140 law enforcement agencies. The solution required the intimate cooperation of city and county agencies, the assistance from active duty marines, the help of forensic science graduate students, and Coroner personnel on light-duty assignment. In the last 2 years, the multi-agency cooperation has resulted in approximately 41,000 cases being processed.