Location: 4010 E. Alki, Spokane, WA 99202

Public Hours of Operation: Monday/Wednesday/Friday from 9:30am to 12:00pm; 1:00pm to 4:30pm

Phone Number: 625-4130  (This phone number is manned by an Evidence Technician during the public hours of operation listed above.)

The Evidence Unit of the Spokane Police Department is a joint unit responsible for maintaining the integrity of evidence and chain of custody of all property that comes into their possession in accordance with state laws, city ordinances, and departmental policies and procedures. The current property facility stores over 225,000 items classified as evidence, safekeeping, or found property collected from the Spokane Police Department, Spokane Valley Police Department, and Spokane County Sheriff’s Office.

The City was recently able to purchase and renovate a building to serve as the new property/evidence buildling without adding costs to the Police Department budget.  The City gave up leased space in a couple of different buildings, and will use the savings to pay debt service, most remodeling costs, and annual operational expenses at the new facility.

The project for the new property/evidence facility began around five years ago, and the grand opening was held on October 5th, 2011.  The previous facility was 17,000 square feet.  The new facility is nearly three times that size at a little over 60,000 square feet.

From the initial placement of a property item within the facility, through all the transactions thereafter leading to either release, auction, or destruction the personnel of the Evidence Unit monitor and control the activity through the use of an automated warehouse management system. The Evidence Unit is placed organizationally in the Operations Support Bureau and is staffed with civilian employees consisting of a Police Evidence Supervisor and six Police Evidence Technicians. 

Examples of Evidence Unit activity include:

• Processing of all property and evidence entered into the system.
• Response to crime scenes, when requested, to take custody of collected evidence.
• Maintenance and disposal of property and evidence in accordance with RCWs, state audit requirements, departmental and accreditation  standards.
• Maintains a record of all property movement transactions within the facility as well as movement to the courts, crime labs, investigations, and property viewings.

 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

• My property was taken during the investigation of a crime, when can I expect to get the property back?

Property taken for investigation is returned to the owner when the investigating detective authorizes release. Items secured for latent prints are normally returned as soon as possible if no prints were available for evidentiary purposes. Property of evidentiary value is secured in the property facility until such time as the case is closed and the prosecuting attorney and investigating detective determine the property is no longer needed. When property is cleared to be released, a letter will be sent to the owner(s) advising them of the proper procedures for receiving their item(s).

• I am unable to pick up my property; may someone else collect my property for me?

This depends on the nature of the property. In some cases, the property release letters will contain instructions regarding notarized release of items. If these instructions are not present, the individual owner must reclaim his/her property in person.

• I found an item and wish to submit a claim of ownership, what should I do?

In accordance with the RCW 63.21.010, individuals may lay claim to found property. Instructions for this procedure may be found at the Washington State Legislature web site http://apps.leg.wa.gov/RCW/default.aspx?cite=63.21.010.

• I just got out of jail, and the property facility doesn’t have my items. Where are they?

The Spokane County Jail also has a property unit which collects the personal items of individuals at the time of booking. These items are stored at the Jail facility and should be returned to the individual upon their release.