Job: Evidence Technician

Job Description

Job Type: Full time, Hourly

Wage: $19,70-$30.32/hr.

Location: Florence, CO.

Job Description:

The Evidence Technician is a non-sworn classified position responsible for providing entry-level functions associated with maintaining, disposing and processing evidence collected by officers on a daily basis. This employee must be a self-starter and work under general supervision. This employee has access to sensitive and confidential information and must be able to adhere to strict policies concerning evidence preservation. This employee must be able to communicate effectively with all employees within the City, in addition to law enforcement agencies, vendors, and citizens. The employee, with limited guidance, must be able to prioritize their workload and effectively multi-task. It is necessary for the employee to be knowledgeable in the area of grammar and spelling.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

• Maintains an inventory of drug testing kits and blood testing supplies, evidence packaging supplies.

• Prepares packages for certified and insured mailings associated with evidence functions.

• With guidance, creates reports for incoming evidence and disposal of evidence.

• Represents the organization to department employees, customers, other City departments, other criminal justice agencies, and the general public.

• Composes a variety of correspondence with limited verbal or written instruction.

• Retrieves evidence from patrol evidence lockers, logs evidence into the evidence software, and stores in evidence vault daily.

• Processes, releases, and purges found and safekeeping items per PD Policy.

• Assists in training officers on proper evidence processing and packaging.

• Tracks evidence to be returned, destroyed, donated, or transferred to other agencies in a timely and legal manner.

• With Guidance, coordinates evidence and drug burns at an approved location.

• With guidance, maintain all property and evidence in a secure environment which can be located promptly.

• Send certified mailings to legal owners of property for their return. Keep track of time line on personal property for timely destruction or release.

• Must be capable of testifying in court regarding evidence chain of custody.

• Send copies of evidence to the District Attorney, defendant’s, victims, City of Florence representatives, attorneys, and other Agencies.

• Has a basic knowledge of State Statutes and City Ordinances regarding evidence storage, disposition, and retention.

• Under general guidance handles potentially hazardous materials and stores them properly to ensure employee safety and evidence integrity.

• Handles firearms, drugs, and contaminated items safely.

• Assist in conducting an annual audit of the Evidence room.

• Cleans equipment and identifies equipment needing repairs.

• Under guidance, checks in and out evidence to Colorado Bureau of Investigation for testing.

• Under guidance, checks in and out evidence to detectives and patrol officers for court appearances.

• Maintains evidence storage areas.

• Ensure proper storage of DNA, blood, and sexual assault kits.

• Performs data entry functions.

• Scans documents.

• Responsible for routine management of the digital evidence and records inventory in the data management system, to include monitoring incoming data, routing of data, updating and/or validating video description fields, expungement process, and monitoring hardware inventory.

• Retrieves, reviews, and redacts body worn camera and digital media for distribution to the courts, outside law enforcement agencies, the public and other requestors. Ensures digital media release is in accordance with discovery mandates, subpoenas, policies, procedures, and local, state, and federal laws.

• Ensures digital evidence is appropriately tagged and categorized according to department policy. Monitors and initiates digital evidence disposition upon review of court disposition orders, statute of limitations, and Colorado Revised Statute requirements.

• Categorizes and tags incoming digital videos, and is responsible for monitoring and fulfilling requests for digital evidence in compliance with various laws, rules, codes, and regulations.

• Provides excellent customer service to external and internal customers including but not limited to effectively listening and communicating, providing accurate information, offering solutions, assisting in resolution, and ensuring timely follow up as needed.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities:

• Modern office procedures, techniques, and equipment.

• Software programs such as Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, ITI,

• Proper work ethics and etiquette on the telephone and in person with co-workers, vendors, citizens, visitors, District Attorneys, other law enforcement agencies, Colorado Bureau of Investigations, suspects, and victims.

• Numerical and alphabetical filing systems. .

• Under general supervision, be responsible for the function and operation of the physical evidence section.

• Follow precise directions given by supervisors and working under general supervision.

• Work in an enclosed environment.

• Understand clerical support operations.

• Be a skilled problem solver to achieve logical solutions.

• Use resources effectively and efficiently.

• Maintain confidentiality of very sensitive information.

• Discern difference between original and duplicate documents.

• Anticipate and identify needs of the department and advise supervisor.

• Be a team player and to establish and maintain an effective and responsive working relationship with peers.

• Maintain a professional demeanor in and out of the office.

• Work on projects with brief deadlines, exercising sound judgment when prioritizing work.

• Operate a City vehicle for transporting evidence.

• Handle hazardous materials such as syringes, blood, razor blades, ammunition, firearms, drugs, knives, and other weapons in a safe manner.

• The theory, principles, practices, and methods of evidence collection, storage, transportation, and chain of custody rules.

• Knowledge of the principle and processes relative to public records requests related to criminal justice records.

• Knowledge of complex public safety software systems.

• Knowledge of principles and processes for providing excellent customer service. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.

• Skilled in working with digital and/or video evidence software.

• Skilled in compiling, coding, categorizing, calculating, tabulating, auditing, or verifying information or data with a high degree of organization, accuracy, and attention to detail.

• Skilled in records management and filing including archiving records and generating reports

Minimum Qualification(s): Please note, the following are disqualifiers from employment with the City of Florence Police Department:

• Any felony convictions.

• Any misdemeanor crimes involving moral turpitude.

• A fugitive from any jurisdiction.

• Arrest history, despite conviction status, for any crime of moral turpitude.

Education & Experience:

• Two years’ office work experience with customer service experience.

• Criminal Justice experience preferred.

• High School Diploma or GED

• Must possess a valid Colorado driver’s license with a good driving record.

• Must be able to obtain necessary “Property and Evidence” certifications within one year of employment.

Physical Demands:

• Sit for extended periods of time; perform job functions positioned in front of various computer workstations for extended periods of time.

• Carryout light physical work to include occasionally handling objects up to 50 pounds and/or up to 15 pounds frequently.

• Reach overhead and bend down to retrieve items and documents from various locations.

• Hear within an acceptable range to carryout conversations and understand relevant facts of an urgent nature over the telephone and in person.

• Reach, stoop, hear, see, bend, and touch within levels that the essential job functions can be accomplished.

• Climb ladders and/or step stools.

• Majority of work time will be indoors with low noise levels.

• Frequent bending, simple grasping, finger/manual dexterity, standing, walking, twisting upper body, stooping, and hearing.

• Occasional climbing on stairs.

Acknowledgement: This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change, or new ones may be assigned at any time with or without notice. 

**Disclaimer: The duties and responsibilities described above are not a comprehensive list and additional tasks may be assigned to the employee, time to time; the scope of the job may change as necessitated by business demands. Click “View Application” below for more detail on this specific job.