605 – Storage of Evidence and In-Custody Property
I. Purpose
The Harris County Sheriff Office (HCSO) will be responsible for the overall security and storage of evidence and or property received by way of in-custody or evidentiary.
II. Policy
HCSO requires that deputies and detention officers maintain care, custody, and control of all property and evidence obtained during the performance of their duties.
III. Property Handling Procedures
A. The arresting deputy will:
1. Log the in-custody property or items obtained from a prisoner on a valuable property inventory form,
2. Place the property or items into a sealed property bag, and
3. Release the prisoner and the in-custody property or items to the booking deputy.
B. The booking deputy will maintain care, custody, and control of in-custody property received from the arresting deputy.
C. Detention officers will follow procedures outlined in Detention Command SOP regarding evidence and property.
IV. Evidence Handling Procedures [Patrol SOP 211 – Property and Evidence Control]
The deputy obtaining evidentiary property will:
A. Seal the property in an evidence bag, if possible, with evidence tape. The deputy will initial and date the areas sealed with evidence tape.
B. Create and attach an evidence barcode label to the article.
C. Place the property into a designated evidence locker located at the patrol substation prior to the end of his or her tour of duty.
D. Transport and release the property to the evidence room located at 4627 Crites Street if the property is too large or valuable to be placed in the secured evidence locker at the patrol substation.
1. If the property room needs to be accessed after normal business hours or a property room transport vehicle is needed, the supervisor on duty will contact the Communications Division to initiate the property room call-out procedure established by the Special Investigations Bureau.
2. Collecting evidence that contains potentially biohazardous substances (such as blood, body fluids, or other biological hazards) will be marked with a biohazard warning. The biohazard warning will be included on the outer packaging and easily identifiable. Additionally, evidence barcode labels for each item will be generated by the collecting Deputy. It may be necessary to place wet biological evidence into plastic packaging for transportation purposes. However, the packaging should not be completely sealed to allow airflow. The evidence will be removed from the plastic and placed into a drying cabinet as soon as possible.
3. Items that contain moisture (blood, body fluids, etc.) will be thoroughly dried, then packaged in paper or another packaging that is otherwise permeable by air to prevent/reduce the growth of bacteria. Evidence drying cabinets are available 24/7 through the Crime Laboratory/Crime Scene Investigations. Drying cabinets are located at:
a. The Crime Laboratory/Crime Scene Investigations Office, at 4627 Crites Street, Houston, TX 77002.
b. The Crime Scene Investigations evidence processing garage at 23828 Tomball Parkway, Tomball, TX 77377.
Resolving initial policy or procedure questions from the scene regarding collecting evidence that contains potentially biohazardous substances will be done by consulting with the HCSO CSI from 7AM to 3PM at 832-927-1200 or with the immediate supervisor. Outside of 7AM to 3PM, or if there is no answer at CSI’s phone line, the immediate supervisor may contact the HCSO CSI on-call supervisor through the HCSO Emergency Dispatch Center (Watch Command). Upon notification, the Crime Laboratory/Crime Scene Investigations personnel will arrange taking custody of the evidence described above. CSI personnel will follow the evidence handling and processing procedures described in detail in the Crime Laboratory / Crime Scene Investigations Standard Operating Procedures, SOP # 100, Section 8.0., “Evidence Handling Procedures,” and Section 9.0. Evidence Processing Guidelines.
E. Place latent prints or crime scene photographs into an evidence envelope, and secure the envelope into the evidence locker designated for prints and photographs. A property tag is required.
F. Digital Photographs:
1. Minimum Standards for Digital Cameras: The HCSO minimum standard for a digital camera is one with a pixel resolution of 3000 × 2000 pixels (6 mega pixels) or higher with optical zoom lens features. In general, crime scene images will be saved to a JPEG format. Crime scene forensic photography can be broken down into two basic categories:
a. Documentation photography (JPEG): Photography that is used to create a record of the crime scene (including injuries, vehicles, articles, structures, etc.) and record the evidence collection process (documenting the recovery of physical evidence at the crime scene), thus aiding in the investigative process. The JPEG format may be used for documentation photographs but not for evidentiary photographs.
b. Evidentiary photography (TIFF or RAW): Photography that is used for comparative analysis, such as impression evidence (including, but not limited to: latent prints, palm prints, footwear impressions, blood spatter, firearms, ballistics, trace evidence, etc.). This evidence is usually photographed by a crime scene investigator (CSI). Evidentiary photography must be captured in TIFF or RAW formats.
2. No crime scene photographs or HCSO work-related images will be captured by use of a personal electronic device.
3. Digital photographs will be uploaded into the digital image management system by the end of the shift. This is accomplished by running the Digital Acquire program on a HCSO desktop computer.
4. The recording of more than one incident for submission on the same memory card is prohibited.
5. Copying or editing images prior to uploading to the digital image management system is prohibited.
6. Any and all images captured during the performance of assigned duties or in the conduct of a criminal investigation are considered to be items of evidence. Under these circumstances, the images will be submitted in their entirety.
7. Photographs captured of crime scenes or incidents will not be uploaded into Mobile Field Reporting (MFR).
G. Attach a property or evidence tag to video media, if any was collected, and place them into the evidence locker designated for video media. Log the entry in the evidence log. Body-worn camera and dashcam evidence must be uploaded and handled in accordance with Policy 618 – Body-Worn Cameras.
H. Secure knives and other sharp objects into knife tubes along with an attached evidence barcode label prior to placing them into the evidence locker.
I. Place firearms in a properly-sealed package separated from any live ammunition. The preferred packaging material for firearms is clear plastic with initials across the heat seal. However, certain special circumstances may require use of an alternate packaging material or method. Attach an evidence barcode label and submit an online service request for evidence processing by accessing the following link: https://hctx.sharepoint.com/sites/HCSO-CSU-ServiceRequests-Extranet/SitePages/Law-Enforcement.aspx.
NOTE: All firearms will be unloaded and have the action strapped open prior to being placed into the evidence locker.
J. Place live and unfired ammunition components into properly-sealed packages with initials written across the heat seal. Attach an evidence barcode label.
K. Generate an incident report documenting all evidentiary property placed into a secured evidence locker.
L. After entry of final judgment in the trial court and final determination of all appeals, attempt to contact the owner of the evidentiary property in accordance with the Texas Code of Criminal Procedures.
V. Procedure – Processing and Storage of Evidentiary Vehicles
Crime Scene Investigations (CSI) personnel will be notified whenever a vehicle is seized for evidentiary processing. CSI personnel will confer with the deputy or investigator to determine processing requirements and which secure location will be used for storage.
• Primary secure vehicle storage: 601 Lockwood Drive print stall
• Secondary secure vehicle storage: 310 Fisher Road and 23828 Tomball Pkwy.
The deputy or investigator seizing the vehicle for evidentiary process will enter an incident report detailing the criminal offense being investigated, the available suspect, victim, and witness information, and include a description of possible forensic evidence to be located during processing of the vehicle.
A. In order to maintain chain of custody, the deputy or investigator will escort the towed vehicle to the storage location.
B. All seized evidentiary vehicles will be held under secured and covered storage whenever possible.
C. The deputy will submit an online service request for vehicle processing prior to the end of the requesting deputy’s shift by accessing the following link: https://hctx.sharepoint.com/sites/HCSO-CSU-ServiceRequests-Extranet/SitePages/Law-Enforcement.aspx
D. Upon completion of processing, the crime scene investigator will notify the deputy or investigator who requested the vehicle processing. The responsible crime scene investigator will complete a supplement report of the processing results. Upon notification, the deputy or investigator will be responsible for having the vehicle retrieved from secure storage and released to the person entitled to the vehicle.
VI. Procedure – Touch DNA Evidence Collection and Submission
Touch DNA evidence may be recovered in order to identify or eliminate suspects during a criminal investigation.
A. Felonies: A limited number of touch DNA evidence items recovered for felony cases will be submitted to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences (HCIFS) for testing and will be based on offenses as shown below:
1. Sexual Assault: Items in sexual assault evidence kits will be processed first.
a. If informative DNA information is obtained, no further testing will be conducted.
b. If the evidence kit results are not informative, then clothing and other items will be processed sequentially.
c. All items will be processed in cases with multiple perpetrators.
2. Homicide: HCIFS’ initial testing and analysis will be limited to ten (10) items chosen by the investigator or the Harris County District Attorney’s Office (DAO).
3. Other crimes against persons: HCIFS’ initial testing and analysis will be limited to five (5) items chosen by the investigator or DAO.
4. Property: HCIFS’ initial testing and analysis will be limited to three (3) items chosen by the investigator or DAO.
5. Known reference samples: Known standards submitted for HCIFS testing and analysis will not count against the number of items submitted for analysis. The lead investigator in consultation with the District Attorney’s Office will determine whether there is a limit on how many will be tested.
B. Misdemeanors: As a general rule, all touch DNA evidence recovered in misdemeanor cases will be submitted to the HCSO evidence and property room for storage and future retrieval by investigators if and when needed in connection with felony cases.
NOTE: The Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences Forensic Genetic Laboratory will no longer accept DNA evidence for testing in misdemeanor cases as of October 21, 2016, unless authorization is given to test cases of unusual or exceptional circumstances.
C. All touch DNA evidence submitted to the HCSO evidence and property room will be retained until the statute of limitations has expired or unless otherwise directed by appropriate authority that the evidence be retained longer for further investigative purposes.
VII. Procedure – Lost, Abandoned, or Found Property [Patrol SOP 211 – Property and Evidence Control]
All procedures of documentation and chain of custody will apply to all items classified as lost, abandoned, or found property recovered by a deputy.
A. Property that is appropriate for HCSO official possession are:
1. Any firearm;
2. Money, jewelry, or other valuables;
3. Personal items with some means of identification, such as driver’s licenses, checkbooks, and credit cards; or
4. Any property with a distinct serial number.
NOTE: Bicycles that are not reported stolen or have no documented owner of record available will be left where found or with the reporting party.
B. The deputy who recovers lost or abandoned property will make every effort to notify the rightful owner or custodian of the property for possible release prior to submitting the items to the property room or generating a report.
C. The deputy will not recover property where there is little or no hope of determining ownership, such as bicycles with no serial numbers and purses or wallets with no means of identification. Such property will be left where they were found or with the reporting party.
VIII. Retention of Evidence
A. Evidence retention and disposal is performed under statute and proper court authorization only.
B. In cases with criminal charges, articles of evidence may be disposed of only with the authorization of an order from the court having jurisdiction over the criminal case.
C. In cases where there have been no criminal charges filed and the statute of limitations has expired, a disposition form may be created by Evidence and Property Room personnel and sent to the appropriate investigation division seeking a final disposition for any article(s) collected during the investigation for a particular case.
The person completing the disposition form may choose to have:
1. Evidence and Property Room personnel dispose of the article(s) by either release for auction, destruction, conversion for Departmental Use (*This selection does not apply to firearms.), or release to the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences- Firearms Lab, in accordance with the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure.
2. Evidence and Property Room personnel send a letter of authorization, via certified mail, for a rightful owner to have the article(s) released to them or,
3. Evidence and Property Room personnel retain the article(s) in accordance with the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure. If this option is chosen, a valid reason must be provided in writing by the person completing the disposition form explaining exactly why the article(s) should be retained.
Revision
This policy has been revised on the below listed dates:
April 21, 2009 October 31, 2018
July 20, 2009 May 20, 2021
June 27, 2012 March 1, 2025
July 29, 2016 March 6, 2025 (Technical Changes)
November 22, 2016