Community Service Officers

INVESTIGATIONS

INVESTIGATIONS SUPPORT

Crime Scene Technicians

The Crime Scene Technician program includes four officers. Officer Joel Hunt, Officer Terrence Flynn, Officer Willie Goodsell, and Corporal Tom Munns make up this group of both Patrol Officers and Investigators. When on patrol, the officers drive a Chevy Tahoe that is fully equipped to hold all of the equipment needed to properly process any form of crime scene.

Crime scene technicians attend regular training and keep up to date on their skills. Crime scene technicians are trained in crime scene photography, latent print development and recovery, footwear evidence, biological and trace evidence recovery and crime scene reconstruction. Their expertise and training is an invaluable resource for the investigations division as well as the prosecuting attorney.

Property and Evidence

T h e P r o p e r t y a n d E v i d e n c e Technician is tasked with maintaining t h e c h a i n o f c u s t o d y f o r a l l evidentiary items submitted to the Property Room. Documenting the intake, storage, security, release and disposal of all items is the primary focus of property room personnel. The Owatonna Police Department continues to utilize a program called Evidence Tracker to electronically track all items in the property room. OPD Property Room Three Year Trend

Vehicle Forfeitures

Minnesota statutes contain a provision where an offender’s vehicle may be forfeited when the offender has used the vehicle in a driving while intoxicated incident if certain conditions related to offender’s prior drinking and driving record exist. Along with DWI vehicle forfeitures the Owatonna Police Department has seized vehicles associated with criminal crimes and arrests. The intention of vehicle forfeitures is that public safety is served by forfeiting vehicles used in a commission of a crime and to reduce recidivism. In 2010 a total of thirty-five (35) vehicles were subject to forfeiture. Of these vehicles eight (8) were sold at auction, ten (10) were returned to the owner or lien holder, while seventeen (17) vehicles are still in the forfeiture process.