Okaloosa County BOCC — March 18, 2014 — Sheriff's Office Request for Grant Application — reading text

Identification (IAI). The CLPE will oversee the development of policies and procedures, mentor current staff while they go thru the training and certification process, and to perform quality assurance measures on their work product. The agency will also purchase grant-funded equipment to make latent comparisons. The equipment will be compatible with that used by other counties in the region, thus allowing for a regional database and print-sharing system to compare case files and new prints on a near-real time basis (24-hours). Backlog will therefore be reduced from 60 days to two days within this agency, and will reduce the workload of the regional state lab by over 600 examinations per year. Federal funds will used to purchase equipment comparable to MorphoTrak, which is in use in other counties in our region. The agency’s own investment consists of hiring a Certified Latent Print Examiner and assigning three current employees to be trained and certified as latent examiners and to perform such duties with oversight by certified examiner. Any modifications to facilities necessary for the equipment or processes will be performed at the agency’s expense. There will be no new facilities constructed. Performance measures contained in the grant guidance will be monitored through existing evidence tracking database system that tracks type, time/date, and chain of custody of evidence submissions. U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Part 5: Please indicate whether OJP has permission to share the project abstract If the applicant is willing for the Office of Justice Programs (OJP), in its discretion, to make the information in the project abstract above publicly available, please complete the consent section below. Please note, the applicant’s decision whether to grant OJP permission to publicly release this information will not affect OJP’s funding decisions. Also, if the application is not funded, granting permission will not guarantee that information will be shared, nor will it guarantee funding from any other source. ) Permission not granted Permission granted (Fill in authorized official consent below.) On behalf of the applicant named above, I consent to the information in the project abstract above (including contact information) being made public, at the discretion of OJP consistent with applicable policies. | certify that | have the authority to provide this consent. Date Signature AO Name Charles K. Windes, Jr Title Chairman Organization Name Okaloosa County Board of County Commissioners Phone Number 850-651-7105 Email Address kwindes@co.okaloosa.fl.us Note: This document is to be submitted as a separate attachment with a file name that contains the words “Project Abstract.” U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Certification as to Plan for Forensic Science Laboratories— Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office On behalf of the applicant agency named below, I certify the following to the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice: This Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office has developed a plan for forensic science laboratories under a program intended to improve the quality and timeliness of forensic science or medical examiner services provided by the laboratories operated by the applicant unit of local government and any other government-operated laboratories within the State that will receive a portion of the grant amount. I acknowledge that a false statement in this certification or in the grant application that it supports may be the subject of criminal prosecution, including under 18 U.S.C. § 1001 and 42 U.S.C. § 3795a. I also acknowledge that Office of Justice Programs grants, including certifications provided in connection with such grants, are subject to review by the Office of Justice Programs and/or by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General. I have authority to make this certification on behalf of the applicant agency (that is, the agency applying directly to the National Institute of Justice). Signature of Certifying Official Charles K. Windes, Jr Printed Name of Certifying Official Chairman Okaloosa County Board of County Commissioners DATE: Certification as to Generally Accepted Laboratory Practices and Procedures On behalf of the applicant agency named below, | certify the following to the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice: The forensic science laboratory operated by the Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office (the entity covered by this Coverdell Grant application) that will receive any portion of the grant amount uses generally accepted laboratory practices and procedures, established by accrediting organizations or appropriate certifying bodies. | acknowledge that a false statement in this certification or in the grant application that it supports may be the subject of criminal prosecution, including under 18 U.S.C. § 1001 and 42 U.S.C. § 3795a. | also acknowledge that Office of Justice Programs grants, including certifications provided in connection with such grants, are subject to review by the Office of Justice Programs and/or by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General. | have authority to make this certification on behalf of the applicant agency (that is, the agency applying directly to the National Institute of Justice). Signature of Certifying Official Charles K. Windes, Jr Printed Name of Certifying Official Chairman Okaloosa County Board of Commissioners DATE: Certification as to Use of Funds for New Facilities On behalf of the applicant agency named below, I certify the following to the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice: No new facilities will be built for the program requested. The amount of the grant (if any) used for the costs of any new facility or facilities to be constructed as part of a program to improve the quality and timeliness of forensic science and medical examiner services will not exceed the limitations set forth at 42 U.S.C. § 3797m(c) and summarized in the FY 2014 Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program Announcement. I acknowledge that a false statement in this certification or in the grant application that it supports may be the subject of criminal prosecution, including under 18 U.S.C. § 1001 and 42 U.S.C. § 3795a. I also acknowledge that Office of Justice Programs grants, including certifications provided in connection with such grants, are subject to review by the Office of Justice Programs and/or by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General. I have authority to make this certification on behalf of the applicant agency (that is, the agency _ applying directly to the National Institute of Justice). Signature of Certifying Official Charles K. Windes, Jr Printed Name of Certifying Official Chairman Okaloosa County Board of Commissioners DATE: FY 2014 Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program Certification as to External Investigations On behalf of the applicant agency named below, | certify the following to the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, U.S. Department of Justice: A government entity exists and an appropriate process is in place to conduct independent external investigations into allegations of serious negligence or misconduct substantially affecting the integrity of the forensic results committed by employees or contractors of any forensic laboratory system, medical examiner's office, coroner's office, law enforcement storage facility, or medical facility in the State that will receive a portion of the grant amount. | personally read and reviewed the section entitled “Eligibility” in the Fiscal Year 2014 program announcement for the Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program. | acknowledge that a false statement in this certification or in the grant application that it supports may be the subject of criminal prosecution, including under 18 U.S.C. § 1001 and 42 U.S.C. § 3795a. | also acknowledge that Office of Justice Programs grants, including certifications provided in connection with such grants, are subject to review by the Office of Justice Programs and/or by the Department of Justice’s Office of the Inspector General. | have authority to make this certification on behalf of the applicant agency (that is, the agency applying directly to the National Institute of Justice). Signature of Certifying Official Charles K. Windes, Jr Printed Name of Certifying Official Chairman, Board of Commissioners Okaloosa County Board of Commissioners DATE: Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office Program Narrative Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grants Program Okaloosa County Sheriff’s Office March 10,2014 Okaloosa County Sheriff's Office Paul Coverdell Grant Proposal Abstract The Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office (via the local unit of government, Okaloosa County Board of Commissioners) is requesting $175,000 in Coverdell grant funds to establish a latent fingerprint examination and comparison capability using the Automated Fingerprint Identification System database. No such capability currently exists within the agency, and all latent comparisons have to be requested thru a state laboratory. There is an historic backlog of approximately 60 days for requests sent to the state laboratory. Additionally, there is no current means for comparing newly fingerprinted persons to case prints on file. The agency will hire a Certified Latent Print Examiner (CLPE) to begin the program, and will train Existing Crime Scene staff according to standards of the International Association for Identification (IAI). The CLPE will oversee the development of policies and procedures, mentor current staff while they go thru the training and certification process, and to perform quality assurance measures on their work product. The agency will also purchase grant-funded equipment to make latent comparisons. The equipment will be compatible with that used by other counties in the region, thus allowing for a regional database and print-sharing system to compare case files and new prints on a near- real time basis (24-hours). Backlog will therefore be reduced from 60 days to two days within this agency, and will reduce the workload of the regional state lab by over 600 examinations per year. The agency’s own investment consists of hiring the CLPE, assigning three current employees to be trained as latent examiners and to perform such duties with oversight by the certified examiner, and to pursue examiner certification in accordance with IAI standards. Any modifications to facilities necessary for the equipment or processes will be performed at the agency’s expense. There will be no new facilities constructed. Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office Paul Coverdell Grant Proposal Performance measures contained in the grant guidance will be monitored through existing evidence tracking database system that tracks type, time/date, and chain of custody of evidence submissions. Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office Paul Coverdell Grant Proposal Table of Contents Main Body..... 2... ccc cce eee cece cere nee need eee ee eee nee e eee e eee een ete Ease ee EE EER REE ES 4 Statement of the Problem............... cece cece ence eee ee eee eeeeeeteeeeneenenees 4 Project/Program Design and Implementation................cccccece eee eeeees 4 Capabilities/Competencies............ ccc cccceeeeeeee ence ec eneeeeeeeteseneeneens 6 Impact/Outcomes and Evaluation...............ccceceeee cece eee eeeeneeaenees 7 Other / Part 1 violent crimes data.............. veccuusecevsseestsesenseversevaes 7 Plan for Collecting the Data Required for Performance Measures ................. 8 External Investigations Narrative..............ccceccecc ence eee eeeeeeeeeeeeeueeenennees 8 Okaloosa County Sheriffs Office Paul Coverdell Grant