On July 17th 2009 the Southern Oregon High-Tech Crimes Task Force attained the prestigious American Society of Crime Laboratory Directors Laboratory Accreditation Board (ASCLD/LAB) Accreditation and joined the ranks of some of the most premier digital evidence forensics laboratories in the world.
ASCLD/LAB offers voluntary accreditation to any crime lab that can comply with their large number of standards. Criteria include all aspects of operations such as management, personnel training and qualifications, health and safety, evidence handling, proficiency testing, lab security, and forensic practices. Part of the accreditation process is an onsite inspection by ASCLD/LAB trained professionals who inspect the laboratory, interview personnel, and review case files and practices. As of September 13th 2009, there are 366 crime labs accredited by ASCLD/LAB worldwide.
After over a year of dedicated hard work and preparation, the Southern Oregon High-Tech Crimes Task Force (SOHTCTF) achieved their accreditation for the Digital and Multimedia Discipline in both the computer and video forensic sub disciplines. There are 97 different quality standards applicable for digital forensics laboratories that are rated as Essential, Important or Desirable. The task force complied with 100% of the Essential, 92% of Important (only 75% required), and 94% of Desirable (only 50% required).
The SOHTCTF is the only standalone local law enforcement digital evidence forensics laboratory to be accredited by the ASCLD/LAB legacy program in the world. The SOHTCTF joins only 54 other laboratories in the world that are accredited to perform some aspect of forensic analysis on digital evidence.
According to a letter announcing the SOHTCTF’s accreditation, ASCLD/LAB Chair Jami St.Clair wrote, “Accreditation is granted only after a thorough evaluation of a laboratory’s management practices, personnel qualifications, technical procedures, quality assurance program and facilities. Accreditation is the result of extensive commitment of resources and much preparation by the management and personnel in your laboratory.”
Accreditation provides reassurance that the task force’s work is of the highest quality and the laboratory and personnel have gone through an external review by an independent organization.
Background on the Southern Oregon High-Tech Crimes Task Force
The SOHTCTF was first created by the City of Central Point Police Department in 2005 and in 2007 was joined by personnel from the City of Medford Police Department. The SOHTCTF is a regional, multijurisdictional task force performing cyber crime investigations and digital evidence forensics for approximately 30 federal, state and local law enforcement agencies throughout Oregon. Some of the agencies include the FBI, DEA, ICE, BLM, DOJ, Oregon State Police and multiple agencies in Jackson, Josephine, Douglas, Curry and Klamath Counties. While the task force typically provides services throughout Oregon, it has assisted in investigations in the States of Washington, California, Idaho, Montana and Texas.
The SOHTCTF performs forensic examinations on digital evidence such as computers, cellular phones, servers, removable media, digital cameras and other peripheral devices to support criminal investigations such as homicides, terrorism, child sexual exploitation, white collar crimes, and other felony crimes. In addition, the task force conducts proactive undercover Internet investigations and a large amount of public education courses. To date the task force has provided 218 hours of training to over 1800 people nationwide.
The examiners within the task force are highly trained and certified and have all been qualified as expert witnesses in digital forensics in both state and federal court on numerous occasions. The SOHTCTF examiners are recognized nationwide and frequently called upon to teach across the nation for organizations such as the National District Attorney’s Association, National Center for the Prosecution of Child Abuse and the National Association of Attorneys General, teaching how to investigate and prosecute technology based crimes against children.
The SOHTCTF has seen a 28% increase in cases submitted and an 8% increase in the amount of evidence submitted for forensic analysis from just last year. As electronic evidence continues to play a very important role in nearly every criminal investigation, becoming accredited is more critical than ever.
Public Ceremony
On October 8th 2009 at 7:00 p.m., a public ceremony will be held during the normal City of Central Point City Council Meeting where a representative from ASCLD/LAB will present members of the Southern Oregon High-Tech Crimes Task Force with their certification of accreditation and speak about the accreditation process.
The public and media are invited to this ceremony, which will also include an open house of the digital evidence forensics laboratory, and refreshments will be served. The ASCLD/LAB representative and the members of the task force will be available for media interviews at the conclusion of the ceremony.
The ceremony will take place at the City of Central Point Council Chambers located at 140 South Third Street, Central Point, Oregon 97502. For further inquires please contact the SOHTCTF at (541) 423-1315 or info@hightechcops.com
For further information about ASCLD/LAB please visit www.ascld-lab.org.
For further information about the SOHTCTF please visit www.HighTechCops.com.