Article Submission Criteria

The Evidence Log provides an excellent outlet for your written communication. It is a magazine for the law enforcement community and we welcome your contributions. Any feedback concerning the magazine is also appreciated.

Articles: three to five pages, typed, double spaced.

Case Reports: mini articles on the handling of special situations, unique approaches to challenging problems, etc. Submit one to three pages, typed, double spaced.

Submitted items may include photos or graphics that add to the article. The preferred format is MSWord, as an email attachment with images in .jpg or .gif format. When submitting an article, please include a brief personal biographical history.

Information on any property topic will be accepted with priority given to topics of general interest, such as:

  • Changes in Bio-Hazardous Disposal
  • DNA and the Property Function
  • Environmental Issues
  • Forensic Labs; Evidence Intake
  • Keys to success in Property and Evidence
  • Layout
  • Legal changes in your state; What Now? What Next?
  • Purging & Disposition
  • Relocating the Property/Evidence Room
  • Security
  • Technology

Evidence log Excerpts

  • The Storage of Handguns

    By Steve Berdrow - In my 25 plus years in law enforcement, I have seen many different ways of storing hand guns for evidence purposes. Because of their various sizes and shapes, it is difficult to find one system that works well for all.

    Our primary consideration is to protect the evidentiary value of the weapon. This means protecting it from incidental damage during storage, and storing it where it can be found when needed...

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  • Storing Odd Shaped Items of Evidence

    By Steve Berdrow - At the Burbank Police Department, our Property Section had a problem storing certain oddly shaped items, such as baseball bats, steering wheel locks, hockey sticks, bolt cutters, etceteras, ad infinitum. We would stack them up in a comer, or put them in a barrel, but trying to find a specific item was very difficult...

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  • Evidence Depository Lockers

    By Steve Berdrow - This article will present some thoughts regarding evidence depository lockers that we developed during the design development phase of our new police building. These ideas came from numerous site visits as well as our own experience...

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  • Property Room Design

    By Steve Berdrow - In this edition of the Design Comer we will take a look at some considerations to keep in mind when designing a Property Room, whether from scratch or a remodel.

    It is recommended that the Property Section be housed in the main police station because of security and employee safety concerns. This is not to say that remote storage facilities...

  • Storing Small Items of Evidence

    By Steve Berdrow -The majority of items of evidence that come into a police department's property room are small, but in spite of their small size, their number gives them a tremendous impact on storage needs. There are probably as many different ways of storing them...

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IAPE invites contributions and articles from any property and evidence room professional. Click here to review all article criteria.

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