The Leon County Sheriff’s Office Crime Scene Unit is comprised of Crime Scene Detectives, a Latent Print Examiner, Evidence Custodians, a Finger Print Technician, and support personnel tasked with collecting, processing, and preserving items for the identification and prosecution of persons engaged in criminal activity.
The Crime Scene Detectives are responsible for responding to calls for service from residential Burglaries to Homicides. Crime Scene Detectives process scenes for evidence by collecting latent prints, biological / DNA evidence and items from scenes to be processed in the Crime Scene Laboratory. Detectives have training in many areas in order to carry out their duties. They are trained in utilizing chemicals for processing different types of evidence, utilizing Alternate Light Sources for developed latent prints to appear, along with a variety of different processing techniques. Detectives are also trained in Digital Photography. Detectives also have specialized training, to include Bloodstain Interpretation, Shooting Reconstruction, Techniques Involving Surface Skeletons and Buried Bodies, and Advanced Chemicals for Processing. The Latent Print Examiner reviews latent prints recovered from scenes by Deputies and Detectives. The Crime Scene Unit is equipped with an AFIS (Automated Finger Print Identification System) and LIVESCAN terminal which are linked to the state database at the Florida Department of Law Enforcement. The latent prints are examined for comparison quality and AFIS quality.
Evidence Custodians are responsible for the intake of all evidence submitted to the Crime Scene Unit. Evidence Custodians log the evidence and store the evidence until it is utilized in court, released or disposed of. They also prepare evidence to be analyzed by outside sources, such as the Florida Department of Law Enforcement.
The Finger Print Technician is responsible for the fingerprinting of citizens and registering Criminal Registrations and Sex Offenders/Predators. Citizens that are required to submit their finger prints for jobs or other reasons can also be fingerprinted at the Sheriff’s Office. Criminal registrations consist of convicted felons and career offenders, registering when they are released from prison or when they move into Leon County from another jurisdiction. Sex Offenders/Predators are required to register at required intervals by Florida Statute.
Criminal Registration and Fingerprinting Schedule