Sponsored by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, Body Worn-Training and Technical Assistance Program and CNA, this webinar will focus on BWC footage as a form of digital evidence and how agencies are leveraging and managing large volumes of digital evidence media (DEM) being generated by BWCs. The panel consists of representatives from three police agencies and a researcher. A facilitator will ask specific questions about how agencies are managing large volumes of DEM data; what metrics are being used to measure DEM impact; how tagging and categorizing of footage is being done; how footage is used within a police agency for investigation and training; and how requests for footage from the media and the public are handled. This will be the first in a companion webinar series. A follow-up webinar will focus on how law enforcement agencies are collaborating with prosecutors in leveraging BWC footage to better inform prosecution practices, including charging decisions and presenting digital evidence in court.

When: Thursday, February 18, 2021 
 Time: 1:00 p.m.– 2:00 p.m., ET

Hosted by the National Criminal Justice Training Center, this webinar examines the importance of multidisciplinary team (MDT) case coordination evidence corroboration in the investigation of child abuse cases. Participants will learn how to evaluate evidentiary findings through crime scene images, interviews, and case studies. Participants will also learn about the multidisciplinary team members' roles and responsibilities for protecting child victims and prosecuting offenders and focus on offenders’ use of technology, including the use of sexually explicit images of minors (child pornography) in grooming and manipulation. Finally, participants will learn about a variety of technologies that can be used by investigators during these cases.

When: Wednesday and Thursday, February 17–18, 2021
Time: 10:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. & 2:30 p.m. – 6:00 p.m., ET

Published by the United States Sentencing Commission, this report examines the relatively new and emerging problem of fentanyl and fentanyl analogue trafficking. It summarizes the commission’s related policy work and discusses the continuing policymaking efforts of Congress and the U.S. Department of Justice in this area. Finally, the publication presents data about fentanyl and fentanyl analogue offenses since 2005 and provides an in-depth analysis of the Fiscal Year 2019 fentanyl and fentanyl analogue offenses and offenders.

Published by the National Institute of Justice, this publication discusses cold case investigations and how to better resolve and prioritize cases. In 1965, approximately 80 percent of homicide cases were cleared, according to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reports, but in 2017, only about 60 percent of homicide cases were resolved. An estimated 250,000 unresolved homicide cases exist in the United States, and more than 100,000 have accumulated in the past 20 years alone. In part, limited resources have caused the crisis. Law enforcement agencies are stretched thin and often lack the personnel to adequately work cases as they happen. Cold cases are also difficult investigations, sometimes because of a lack of evidence. If there were easy solutions, resolution would have occurred at the time of the offenses. As time passes, the likelihood of losing case file information, evidence, and witnesses increases. The authors discuss specific cold cases and offer recommendations to increase the number of cases solved. 

Hosted by the National White Collar Crime Center (NW3C) and funded by the Bureau of Justice Assistance, this training addresses the legal issues surrounding mobile digital devices including cell phones and GPS devices. Topics include seizing and searching mobile devices, the process of obtaining both historical and current location information from cellular service providers, and legal process needed to install a GPS unit on a suspect’s vehicle. This is the seventh module of the training series Legal Concerns for Digital Evidence Responders. It can be completed as a stand-alone course or in combination with the other modules.