Revere Police Department Crime Lab Project

The Revere Police Department is aware that limited in-house forensic science test capabilities coupled with evidence analysis backlogs create public safety issues for the local community and creates delays in resolutions for victims and their families. The Department is dedicated to increasing the current crime lab abilities and the manner in which forensic science evidence is handled and analyzed. This will also increase the abilities of the Department’s Criminal Investigation Division to solve crimes in a more time efficient manner and get violent offenders off the street.

The Revere Police Department will utilize Paul Coverdell Forensic Science Improvement Grant funds to enhance crime lab abilities and competencies through the acquisition of equipment that will be used to expand the Department’s current crime lab at Department headquarters. The Department lacks the proper forensic science analysis resources needed to conduct timely forensic science analysis. The primary goal of the proposed project is to improve current crime lab operations so as to increase the timeliness and quality of forensic science services in Revere, and improve public safety within the local community.

The Revere Police Department will work to enhance the current dedicated crime lab space within the Department headquarters located at 400 Revere Beach Parkway through the purchase of the following forensic science equipment: Automated Fingerprint Identification System (AFIS), Mini Crime Scope Forensic Light Source System, two DrySafe Forensic Evidence Drying Cabinets, DFO Developmental Control Chamber, and a ShirchSTAND Forensic Photography Stand and Lab Digital Camera kit. Specifically, the AFIS will improve the turn-around time on evidence from months to days, allowing the Criminal Investigation Unit to solve crimes in a much shorter period of time, and in turn remove perpetrators from the streets, and decrease the backlog of evidence at the State level. As previously mentioned the Department does not have any AFIS capabilities at this time and has to send all fingerprint evidence out to the Massachusetts State Police Crime Lab. The AFIS will enable the Revere Police Department to conduct its own fingerprint analyses, without having to send such evidence samples to the State Crime Lab.

ca/ncf