Tag Archives: investigation software

Old West crime meets New Age technology

Billy the Kid carved his name into history through his exploits during and after the Lincoln County War.  In a career filled with almost impossible escapes and daring acts in battle, the “Kid” nevertheless found himself on the losing side of the war and, in its aftermath, was branded the West’s most notorious and wanted desperado.

Cold West Investigations uses advanced software to breathe new life into old west cases such as Billy The Kid (pictured)

Reportedly killed by Sheriff Pat Garrett in 1881, rumors persisted that the Kid survived, and new evidence developed by Cold West Detective Agency may prove that the Kid lived well into the Atomic Age.

Cold West Detective Agency takes a different and unique approach to history. While historians like to ‘study’ it, Cold West detectives actually ‘investigate’ it as a cold case.  Working with law enforcement, Cold West detectives bring distinctive and rare expertise to the investigation of historical cold cases.

Blending old-west footwork with leading-edge investigation case management technologies from Texas-based Case Closed Software, Cold West detectives perform robust investigations at these century-old crime scenes.

Cold West picks up where history left off, and that can make some historians uncomfortable.  It’s been said that “dead men tell no tales”, but when Cold West’s group of hardened investigators combine their expertise and curiosity with Case Closed Software, these investigations come back alive, and history begins to speak its secrets.

Cold West uses the “posse method”, utilizing experts from any and every field required to move the case forward.  They work hand-in-hand with local Sheriffs, police, tech experts, federal agents, historians, and other experts, using cutting edge modern crime scene investigative methods (CSI) to develop never before seen and court-accepted evidence that changes history.

“Case Closed Software has been a game-changer for us”, said Steve Sederwall the co-founder of Cold West and former federal criminal investigator. “Our ability to blend all of our new investigation findings with all of those historical records helps us identify and develop new tips on our historical cases.”

Read a cool BuzzFeed feature on Steve Sederwall and Cold West HERE.

Recently, Cold West – in the midst of investigating another famous old west crime – used Case Closed to develop previously unknown information that could completely change history’s view of the case.  That investigation continues today.

“I like to think about how Jesse James or Billy The Kid would react to seeing how the accepted narrative of their demise is being changed through the work of Cold West detectives using modern and leading-edge technology”, added Case Closed Software’s president Douglas Wood.

Case Closed Software Announces Advances in Investigation Software

Crime Technology Solutions, LLC has deployed a new global release of its Case Closed Software that focuses on helping organizations better manage complex, multi-jurisdictional investigations.

“Case Closed Software is widely recognized as the only true investigation software for multi-jurisdictional investigative agencies”, said the company’s CEO and founder Douglas Wood. “With our latest version, we expand even further into solving the unique problems faced by task forces, global organizations, and other more specialized investigation units”.

New features of Case Closed Software include:

  • Multi-Language Support, which enables Case Closed Software users to interact with the application in any language they choose. All data is translated in realtime so users who speak different languages can share intelligence and case information.
  • Integrated Operations Plan gives organizations the ability to plan and execute strategic investigative operations across jurisdictions. With Case Closed Software’s Operations Plan, users are all executing their initiatives in sync, and everyone is on the same page in terms of strategy and tactics.
  • Improved data entry options, making it easier for investigators to quickly get relevant information into the system. The new system allows administrative re-naming of fields for localization, enhanced drop-down menu functionality, and the ability to remove unused fields completely from the interface.
  • Case Visualization allows users to quickly visualize the elements of their case. Entities such as people, locations, and vehicles are displayed in a simple ‘tree format’ that allows users to click through information related to those entities. With this feature, users can easily view where else their case entities exist within the system across cases and across jurisdictions.
  • Google Location Integration, allowing critical addresses and locations to be entered quickly and accurately. Not all locations are addresses, and the new Case Closed Software features allow users to pin locations on an integrated map. Lat/Long, country, province/state, etc are all auto-populated.

“With global customers like Humane Society International, Exodus Road, and others it is important to continually strive to keep our Case Closed Software at the head of the class. Our latest version is another step in our endless march to remain the go-to solution for investigation case management.”

Download the Case Closed Software product sheet for Multi-Jurisdiction Investigations.

Or, for more information about Crime Technology Solutions, LLC and Case Closed Software, visit https://www.caseclosedsoftware.com

Authorities Suspect There Are 150 Secret Dog Fighting Rings In Australia

Humane Society International’s (HSI) senior specialist in global anti-dog fighting, Janette Reever, says that the popularity of dogfighting is increasing and is often linked to domestic violence incidences.

See the full story HERE.

Editor’s Note: HSI utilizes Case Closed Software to investigate and help prosecute cases of dogfighting and other forms of animal abuse. 

Task force commander says Rossville drug bust took quarter-million dollars worth of drugs off the street

The Lookout Mountain Judicial Circuit drug task force seized nine pounds of meth and arrested two people. The task force also confiscated eight ounces of heroin, 24 grams of psilocybin (mushrooms), a firearm and $1,300 cash.

Methamphetamine is often sold in bags that each contain 3.2 grams of the drug. The packet is known as an 8-ball. 

See the full story HERE

Year long Ohio drug task force investigation leads to arrests on drug and weapons charges

According to Commander Justin Conley of the Brown County Drug and Major Crimes Task Force, the people arrested are allegedly responsible for distributing more than 100 pounds of methamphetamine and several firearms in the area.

Read the impressive story HERE.

With Case Closed Software, The Lookout Mountain Drug Task Force just made a major drug seizure

“The Drug Task Force will continue to proactively and aggressively combat drugs in our community. We appreciate the support of so many and cooperation with all the agencies the Drug Task Force serves.”

LMJCDTF uses Case Closed Software to manage task force cases. Read the story HERE

No safe consumption site for Manitoba in Drug Task Force report

The Illicit Drug Task Force report was commissioned with a view to identifying recommendations to reduce the use and effects of illicit drugs in Manitoba communities. The recommendations focus on increasing safety through prevention, education, treatment, and enforcement and disruption of supply.

“The purpose of this (task force) was to really amplify the sense of urgency and actions by all levels of government”

The key recommendations included:

  • Develop and promote community safety networks.
  • Use a Crime Stoppers campaign to target information on illicit drugs and dealers, with funding for cash rewards.
  • Develop accessible, culturally appropriate recreation opportunities for children and youth.
  • Seek business support to create employment opportunities.
  • Create safe spaces with extended hours, ideally operating 24/7.
  • Expand the Winnipeg Drug Treatment Court and add other drug treatment courts outside of Winnipeg and identify affordable housing for participants.
  • Create “enforcement and disruption teams” through law enforcement to combat the illicit drug trade.
  • Establish a co-ordinated approach to detoxification, medical transition, treatment and supportive housing.
  • Increase hours at rapid access to addictions medicine clinics and increase spaces for treatment they refer to.
  • Increase emergent telehealth services for adult and youth mental health and addictions services.
  • Add withdrawal management services and amend the Intoxicated Persons Detention Act to address meth addiction and withdrawal challenges.
  • Create centralized needle distribution.
  • Create an alert system to share information on emerging issues.

See the full article HERE.

(Posted by Case Closed Software – the leading solution for law enforcement task force use)

Case Closed Software to sponsor annual NNOAC conference

Case Closed Software™ has announced that the company is sponsoring the annual National Narcotics Officers’ Associations’ Coalition (NNOAC) conference in Washington, DC. The conference, attended by hundreds of narcotics officers and agencies across the country, is happening February 2 – 6, 2019.

NNOAC_logo-300x218

Case Closed is powerful Investigative Case Management Software designed and developed BY Drug Task Force investigators FOR Drug Task Force investigators. Case Closed Cloud is the industry’s only fully integrated web-based Law Enforcement Task Force software for managing investigations, evidence, intelligence, informants, and much, much more.

Built using the very latest technologies, Case Closed Cloud is NIBRS-ready, and can be accessed on any device at any time. Case Closed Cloud is accessed from our ultra secure, CJIS-Compliant cloud servers via any browser on any device. With a full feature set including:

• Designed for Multi-Jurisdictional DTF Use
• Tracks all Cases and Case Types
• Manages Incidents and Case Actions
• Mobile-Friendly for Field Use
• 100% C)IS Compliant
• NIBRS Ready Architecture
• Physical Evidence Management
• Stores all Document Types by Case
• Manages Statutes and Charges through Court
• Manages Confidential Informants
• Manages Tips and Leads
• Provides Internal Messaging and Reminders
• Tracks Gangs, Members, and Events
• Delivers ad hoc Reporting Tools
• Tracks all Persons/Places/Vehicles across Cases
• Creates Master Case File for DA Use

CaseClosedMain (2)Case Closed Software will show Drug Task Forces how they can FINALLY stop trying to manage with spreadsheets, paper files, antiquated systems, or poorly-designed RMS software.

Case Actions: The Baseline for Productive Investigations.

Let’s face it… RMS software, by and large, is not designed for managing major cases. Agencies know it, and the RMS vendors know it. For them, the notion of managing the complexities of major case investigations is an afterthought at best.

(The answer I give to these inquiries, by the way, is that any good investigation management software should have capabilities to ingest data from other law enforcement products, including RMS).

The more important point, however, is recognizing that criminal investigators gather vasts amounts of information during the course of an investigation. Witness statements, interviews, interrogations, tips, leads, informant statements, audio files, video files, photos, and much more. Too often, agents must rely on their RMS systems which, per above, are not purpose-built for investigations. Investigators also rely heavily on paper files and file cabinets full of notes, search warrants, and physical evidence.

Fortunately, there is an alternative… purpose built investigation case management software that utilizes what I call ‘Case Actions’ as the underlying workflow. Case Actions are the individual actions that an investigation unit takes in pursuit of closing a case. Case Actions are expansive in nature, and include:

  • Crime Scene Visits
  • Interviews
  • Interrogations
  • Knock ‘n Talks
  • Surveillance
  • DNA
  • Search Warrants
  • Affidavits
  • Controlled Buys
  • Arrests

… and much, much more. You get the idea, though.

By effectively logging each Case Action in a particular Case, the investigators (and management) are able to quickly and visually recognize the status of the case, and what further actions should be taken. Each Case Action leads to new information… which leads to new Case Actions. And the beat goes on. Hopefully, sooner rather than later, enough information is garnered to close the case. That’s the power of Case Action based workflow.

WIth the Case Action based approach, each Case Action is tied to Persons, Locations, Vehicles, etc. As a result, robust dossiers of these things are built without the individual agent(s) even realizing it.

By utilizing an investigation case management solution that is based upon Case Actions, law enforcement can leverage information from previously-entered data such as telephone numbers, evidence items, addresses, persons, gang members, etc. The Case Actions feed themselves – and each other – to build a valuable repository of investigative information.

An example: A detective has received a tip that Doug Wood is involved in a particular criminal activity. By accessing her Case Action-based system, she quickly learns that Doug Wood has been a Suspect in Case 1 (belonging to an entirely different investigator), and a Witness in Case 2 (belonging to a third investigator).

She also learns (via Case Actions performed by the Gang Unit) that Doug Wood shares an address with a confirmed Gang Member and goes by the nickname ‘Woody’. She also sees Doug’s previous addresses, telephone numbers, work history, social media accounts and so on… each of which has been logged as part of completely unique Case Actions.

That is the power of Case Actions based investigation management software. Because each previous Case Action involving Doug Wood was logged, the current investigator has a goldmine of information at her fingertips.

Case Closed Software is the leading provider of Case Action based investigation case management software for law enforcement. Contact Us for a demo today!

Managing Major Cases Part Two: What puts the ‘Major’ in Major Cases?

In Part One of this series, I provided my definition of Major Cases and went into some detail about some of the attributes that differentiate a Case from a Major Case. Moving ahead now, I want to take a look at the different ‘types’ of Major Cases.

One of the problems in dealing with Major Cases is that, because of the varying types of cases, there’s no firm blueprint for investigating them. Major Cases move in real time, and – based upon interviews I have conducted with Major Case Investigators – can generally fall into one of two categories – Single Incidents and Multiple (serial) Incidents.

This article tackles Single Incident Major Cases.

Single incident Major Cases are defined by one single criminal act so abhorrent to the socio-economic environment, that it alone creates intense pressure to apprehend the perpetrator(s). What makes the incident so abhorrent ranges from factors such as:

The identity of the victim: In September of 1996, at the height of tensions between The Bloods and The Crips, a 25 year old African American man is shot in a drive-by shooting on the streets of Las Vegas and dies a few days later. Unfortunately, young black men die far too frequently in times of gang tensions, and few of these cases ever elevate to the status of a Major Case. The victim here, however, was Tupac Shakur.

Tupac was an American rapper and actor who came to embody the 1990s gangsta-rap aesthetic, and was a key figure in the feud between West Coast and East Coast hip hop artists. Simply put… he was famous as hell. Hence, a far-too-routine shooting became a Major Case in the blink of an eye. The case remains unsolved.

The identity of the suspect(s): “We the jury in the above entitled action find the defendant, Orenthal James Simpson, not guilty of the crime of murder.” Thus ended the double murder trial of former NFL player and Heisman Award winner OJ Simpson. In what was deemed ‘The Trial of the Century”, Simpson had been charged with the June 13, 1994 killings of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson, and her friend Ron Goldman.

After weeks of testimony, and a clear nation-wide division between those who believed Simpson to be innocent and those who believed him guilty, Simpson was acquitted of the murders on October 3, 1995.

While the case of two relatively young and affluent Caucasians being killed in the generally safe area of Brentwood may have been newsworthy, it was the identity of the suspect that was the catalyst in this becoming one of the most famous single-incident Major Cases in American history.

The location of the crime: When a half-naked corpse, covered in cuts, bruises and bite marks, is found behind the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York’s Central Park, you have the makings of a Major Case. The corpse was that of 18-year-old Jennifer Dawn Levin. Levin was murdered during the early morning hours of August 26, 1986.

The ‘Met’, as the museum is known, is one of the most-visited and famous museums on the entire planet. Murders don’t happen in world-famous places like this, and the case became the top story on the evening news for months and months. That is one major single-incident Major Case.

After an investigation into what the press dubbed “The Preppie Murder”, college student Robert Chambers was charged and tried for murder. The jury, however, remained deadlocked for nine days and a plea bargain was struck. (Chambers’ defense, you may recall, was that he had killed Ms. Levin during consensual ‘rough sex’.)

The uniqueness of the crime itself: Six year old girls in upscale Colorado neighborhoods aren’t supposed to die. They’re certainly not supposed to be murdered… especially in their own home while the rest of the family slept. Uniqueness has always surrounded the December, 1996 killing of young beauty queen JonBenét Ramsey in Boulder, CO.

On the morning of December 26, 1996, John Ramsey found his daughter’s body with duct tape over her mouth and a cord twisted around her neck in the basement of the family home. John’s wife, Patsy, says she found a ransom note demanding $118,000 for JonBenét’s return – an amount that is purported to match exactly a recent work-related bonus that John Ramsey had received. Despite these odd circumstances, the couple retained lawyers and were not formally interviewed by police for over 4 months. (The case has never been solved, and Boulder Police have cleared the couple of any wrongdoing.)

Tragically, it’s estimated that over 1500 children are murdered each year in America. JonBenét’s case may have been just another number in that truly sad statistic were it not for unique circumstances that surrounded it; it occurred in an upscale neighborhood, the victim was a young beauty queen, the ransom note matching the bonus, a possible crime scene contamination by father John, and ‘seemingly’ uncooperative parents that made this a single-incident Major Case.

In Part Three of this series, we examine some examples and problems associated with Multiple Incident Major Cases.

 

Douglas Wood is CEO of Crime Technology Solutions | Case Closed Software, a leading provider of serious investigation software to law enforcement, state bureaus, DA offices, and other investigative units. Doug can be reached directly HERE.