Digital Evidence Management System Automated Integration with Prosecutor/Court eDiscovery Platform

The Spokane Police Department (SPD) implemented a BWC program in 2015 and integrated the program with digital evidence management in 2021 using a centralized, cloud-based system. The current system works well but requires significant staff time to ensure digital evidence is shared with the City of Spokane Prosecutor’s Office in an effective manner. SPD has taken an approach of sharing all misdemeanor-related BWC video based on an integration with Computer-Aided Dispatch (CAD) calls for service. This approach has many advantages including providing evidence quickly, but significant disadvantages in that it shares digital media the Prosecutor’s Office may not need and relies on CAD data which does not directly relate to charge levels (misdemeanor vs felony) or the call for service outcome (arrest, citation, warning, etc.). This proposal seeks to improve video categorization and develop robust software integrations to automate the transfer of evidence from the digital evidence management system to the Prosecutor’s Office/Court software suite. The proposal requests funding through Category 3: Digital Evidence Management and Integration Demonstration Projects of the BWC Policy and Implementation Program solicitation (O-BJA-2023- 171562).

The project has five goals:

Goal 1: Improve BWC categorization to better identify misdemeanor video (for routing to City Prosecutor’s Office) versus felony video (for routing to County Prosecutor’s Office).

Goal 2: Improve BWC video routing by conflating video with call for service outcomes (arrest, citation, infraction, etc.). Reduce the number of videos sent to the Prosecutor’s Office that are not tied to criminal action.

Goal 3: Reduce storage of digital evidence that has met its court and Washington State Public Records Act required retention. This will reduce cloud-hosted storage space and reduce public records liability and the time needed to redact BWC video.

Goal 4: Reduce manual file sharing processes through automation.

Goal 5: Reduce manual review of digital evidence and risk of missing evidence during investigations/case discovery process.

SPD will provide performance measures including a comparison of data shared since 2021 and data shared after completion of the project phases. SPD will also provide a SharePoint site with documentation on project progress, milestones, technical documentation, end-user training, and other items. SPD is currently working to migrate from its current police report/records management system to a cloud-based system fully integrated with the digital evidence management system. That companion project will allow for sharing of project documentation and lessons learned covering both projects.