Evidence Room Inventory Uncovers More Untagged Evidence
The Del Rio Police Department (DRPD) are in the final stages of sorting through problems in the department’s evidence room. The evidence room inventory is 98 percent complete. So far DRPD has had to catalog over 50,000 items, hundreds of which were found untagged, unidentified and unmatched to any case.
As a final sweep of the evidence room area, a sealed shipping container included in the initial transfer of evidence in 2010 from the old DRPD station in downtown Del Rio, was opened earlier today. The container exposed the same problems that have been encountered throughout the evidence room audit; unmarked evidence of money and drugs, to include over 50 pounds of marijuana covered with dangerous mold from improper initial storage.
“Not only were we surprised to once again find more untagged evidence, we continue to be disappointed in how these sensitive items were handled. We will not stop until 100% of the evidence is inventoried and accounted for,” commented DRPD Chief James Debrow III. “Although we have been troubled, disappointed and angered by the misguided judgments and actions of past officers who are no longer with the department, our current officers do their jobs with integrity and dedication, without fanfare and often very little public recognition. These officers are held to a high standard and are accountable for their actions. The City of Del Rio has a dedicated police force, they do their job with pride and dedication, and they deserve your trust and confidence.”
When the problem was uncovered 2012 new evidence room procedures were implemented to guarantee the integrity of all evidence collected and stored. At the same time the DRPD started performing a 100 percent inventory of evidence already on hand that had been compromised by previous mishandling procedures.
City Manager Robert A. Eads stated “Once it was exposed to me, the necessary steps were quickly taken to correct the situation. I am extremely disappointed in not being made aware of these grave issues by previous police leadership. This problem has been years, if not decades in the making, but I refuse to allow this to happen under my watch. Although this has been a long tough process, Chief Debrow and I chose to face this situation head on. We will not be stopped until our mission is complete. Finally, we have clear and open dialogue with our police department so that we can take a highly visible approach to checks and balances. No longer will the police department be allowed to work solely within the confines of their walls; we are all one team, we are all one community.”
