Anti Federalist
03-04-2012, 04:19 PM
Stolen electronics put to use at Orlando Police Department
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-orlando-police-seized-electronics-20120302,0,5494326,full.story
By Bianca Prieto, Orlando Sentinel
6:42 p.m. EST, March 2, 2012
Stolen flat-screen TVs, cameras and iPads seized by Orlando police are being used by officers, investigators and even Chief Paul Rooney.
All of the property was seized after a controversial shooting in a crowded Target parking lot more than a year ago, when police fired at three unarmed men accused of buying the merchandise with stolen credit cards.
Suspect Rogelio Cortes was shot multiple times, but all the charges against him were ultimately dropped, and he's now planning to sue the city. Nearly a year after the shooting, the other two suspects pleaded guilty to possession of a stolen credit card and fraudulent use of a stolen credit card.
Once the case was resolved, the department no longer needed to hold on to the seized, unclaimed evidence. So it began farming out costly electronics to officers, command staff and those in specialty units.
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Oscars 2012 - Check out pictures from the red carpet.
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It's not illegal — or even improper — to do this. And Rooney says the valuable items are enabling his department to make use of the technology without spending public money to buy it.
"Why not do this?" Rooney said. "Our policy says to utilize forfeitures to the fullest extent possible."
But a day after the Orlando Sentinel began questioning the department about the distribution of the electronics last month, Economic-crimes Detective Michael Stevens wrote an internal email to his boss and others explaining what was done with the evidence seized from this high-profile case.
"All of the items we have taken control of for agency use, we were unable to determine true ownership of the items. In other words, who the actual victim is?" Stevens wrote. "… Could they be stolen? Sure. Could they be from credit card fraud? Sure."
His email goes on to say "...credit card companies take losses all the time in fraud ... the credit card companies were informed by the victims of the fraud and covered the victims' loss."
Items used to 'fight crime'
Days after the criminal case over the stolen credit cards was resolved in October, officers began submitting written requests for the expensive items.
The police press office received a 55-inch Samsung LED TV with an estimated value of more than $2,000. Ten iPads, worth up to $600 each, were handed out to the training, crime-scene and crisis-negotiation units, and the chief.
Three professional-grade Nikon cameras and two point-and-shoot cameras were given to crime-scene investigators. A Sony Vaio laptop computer was given to the computer-forensics lab.
Experts say converting seized evidence for departmental use can create the perception in the public of a department that uses items taken from criminals for its own gain, rather than auctioning the items or donating them to charity.
"This could be perfectly legitimate and legal to do, but what does it look like [to the public]," said Doug Ward, director of the Division of Public Safety Leadership at John Hopkins University in Maryland. "On the face of it, it creates a lot of questions, and the police department owes the public an explanation."
Rooney said the practice is nothing new and has many benefits.
Detectives tried to return the property to Target and Best Buy, where the items were illegally purchased, but the stores wouldn't accept it. Instead of letting the items collect dust in the property and evidence room that is "bursting at the seams," Rooney said, it is being used to help officers "fight crime."
Rooney said the iPad has helped him respond quickly to emails, review crime stats and read important meeting minutes, ultimately saving him time. Instead of buying the tablet with taxpayer money, Rooney said, he opted to use what was available in the evidence room.
http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/local/breakingnews/os-orlando-police-seized-electronics-20120302,0,5494326,full.story
By Bianca Prieto, Orlando Sentinel
6:42 p.m. EST, March 2, 2012
Stolen flat-screen TVs, cameras and iPads seized by Orlando police are being used by officers, investigators and even Chief Paul Rooney.
All of the property was seized after a controversial shooting in a crowded Target parking lot more than a year ago, when police fired at three unarmed men accused of buying the merchandise with stolen credit cards.
Suspect Rogelio Cortes was shot multiple times, but all the charges against him were ultimately dropped, and he's now planning to sue the city. Nearly a year after the shooting, the other two suspects pleaded guilty to possession of a stolen credit card and fraudulent use of a stolen credit card.
Once the case was resolved, the department no longer needed to hold on to the seized, unclaimed evidence. So it began farming out costly electronics to officers, command staff and those in specialty units.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Oscars 2012 - Check out pictures from the red carpet.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
It's not illegal — or even improper — to do this. And Rooney says the valuable items are enabling his department to make use of the technology without spending public money to buy it.
"Why not do this?" Rooney said. "Our policy says to utilize forfeitures to the fullest extent possible."
But a day after the Orlando Sentinel began questioning the department about the distribution of the electronics last month, Economic-crimes Detective Michael Stevens wrote an internal email to his boss and others explaining what was done with the evidence seized from this high-profile case.
"All of the items we have taken control of for agency use, we were unable to determine true ownership of the items. In other words, who the actual victim is?" Stevens wrote. "… Could they be stolen? Sure. Could they be from credit card fraud? Sure."
His email goes on to say "...credit card companies take losses all the time in fraud ... the credit card companies were informed by the victims of the fraud and covered the victims' loss."
Items used to 'fight crime'
Days after the criminal case over the stolen credit cards was resolved in October, officers began submitting written requests for the expensive items.
The police press office received a 55-inch Samsung LED TV with an estimated value of more than $2,000. Ten iPads, worth up to $600 each, were handed out to the training, crime-scene and crisis-negotiation units, and the chief.
Three professional-grade Nikon cameras and two point-and-shoot cameras were given to crime-scene investigators. A Sony Vaio laptop computer was given to the computer-forensics lab.
Experts say converting seized evidence for departmental use can create the perception in the public of a department that uses items taken from criminals for its own gain, rather than auctioning the items or donating them to charity.
"This could be perfectly legitimate and legal to do, but what does it look like [to the public]," said Doug Ward, director of the Division of Public Safety Leadership at John Hopkins University in Maryland. "On the face of it, it creates a lot of questions, and the police department owes the public an explanation."
Rooney said the practice is nothing new and has many benefits.
Detectives tried to return the property to Target and Best Buy, where the items were illegally purchased, but the stores wouldn't accept it. Instead of letting the items collect dust in the property and evidence room that is "bursting at the seams," Rooney said, it is being used to help officers "fight crime."
Rooney said the iPad has helped him respond quickly to emails, review crime stats and read important meeting minutes, ultimately saving him time. Instead of buying the tablet with taxpayer money, Rooney said, he opted to use what was available in the evidence room.