Problems At The Memphis Fire Evidence Room

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myeyewitnessnews.com
BYLINE: Jeni DiPrizio, Email:
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Memphis, TN

MEMPHIS, TN - We’ve found another problem at the Memphis Fire Department. This time it has to do with the room where evidence is kept for arson cases.

According to a 2008 report, the evidence room has been a mess for years. Pictures show cans of flammable items rusting away. The report found the fire department was violating its own fire codes by improperly storing material.

It says a number of items in storage have started to deteriorate causing a toxic environment.

The problem is now on City Councilman Jim Strickland’s radar. Strickland says “I don’t want to risk prosecution of individuals because of the faulty storage of evidence.”

For more than a year, evidence has been sitting inside storage containers next to the evidence room, while the city has been renovating the building to get the room up to code. All those combustible materials are sitting together in a storage container during hot Memphis summers and cold winters. Memphis Fire insists the metal storage containers are climate controlled.

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International Association for Property and Evidence
"Law Enforcement Serving the Needs of Law Enforcement"
www.IAPE.org