Dear IAPE Member,

Summer may have ended, but the I.A.P.E. is continuing to blossom. The last Board of Directors meeting disclosed that our membership has now swelled to over 900 proud property and evidence professionals who seek to improve the quality of services they provide to the public.

This significant increase in membership may be attributed partly to the lack of quality professional training offered in this field; it may be because there are more informed and motivated property and evidence personnel; or, it may be because I.A.P.E. is doing a good job of disseminating much needed information. I believe all are true.

The I.A.P.E. has recently concluded classes in Murfreesboro, Tennessee and Orlando, Florida. Each class brings with it unique personalities with regional problems; however, we all have certain concerns in common. We all have over-zealous officers who seize or store items that have limited evidentiary value, and administrators who have never worked in this field and don't understand our plight. Learning to implement a system for controlling inflated inventory is solution step number one.

The media continues to focus on negative examples of our system gone awry, and recent examples emphasize why redundant checks and balances and the "rule of two" are needed. Property and evidence professionals cannot eliminate corruption, but a properly designed system will discourage the dishonesty and criminal behavior associated with the storage of narcotics, currency and weapons.

On a slightly different topic, I would like to illustrate the value of professional organizations on a statewide level. In California, there is a need for legislation to authorize property held for safekeeping to be disposed of in a timely basis. The lack of legislative authority exposes law enforcement agencies that dispose of personal property with civil liability. This means that any California law enforcement agency that arrests a transient and disposes of his/her property, regardless of value, after a reasonable period of time will probably pay unspecified damages if a claim is filed. This is not good.

SB 1707, sponsored by State Senator Richard K. Raney, seeks to correct this by requiring public agencies to notify owners to claim property within 60 days. The bill passed both houses without significant opposition, and was signed into law by the Governor in September. I was asked by the California Association for Property and Evidence (C.A.P.E.) to provide expert information to legislators and lobbyists in order to document the need for this bill. Please do not underestimate the benefits and influence a professional organization can have upon such issues, even without a large infusion of money! The I.A.P.E. strongly encourages property and evidence professionals to form local organizations in your own states.

In I.A.P.E., former Vice-President Steven Berdrow has assumed the Presidency following the resignation for personal reasons of President William Smith. Gordon Bowers was elected Vice President, and his Board vacancy has been filled by Lori Tate. Lori is the Property Officer of Simi Valley (CA) Police Department, an outstanding role model and spokesperson for our profession, and a Past President of the California Association for Property and Evidence. Welcome, Lori!

I also would like to focus your attention upon the I.A.P.E.'s recently opened web site. Please see the article on page 9 of this issue for a description of this wonderful new benefit provided by our Association. Welcome to the future, and to http://www.iape.org/