Technical Services
| Communications | Building & Fleet | Property & Evidence |
| Records | ||
Communications
PSC is the focal point of all department activity. It operates 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. We are often the first point of contact the public has with the Police and Fire departments. The section is equipped with an 800 MHz radio system, Computer Aided Dispatch (CAD) system to monitor officer activity, Automatic Vehicle Locator (AVL/GPS) global positioning satellite that tracks the location of every patrol car, and an FCICII/NCIC 2000 system.
Public Safety Communications Operators (PSCO) perform a full range of radio and telephone operational duties during their shift. Call takers are required to process and prioritize incoming calls for law enforcement and fire service. Each of our PSCOs has completed an intensive in-service training program under the guidance of certified and experienced Communication Training Officers (CTO), which begins with a six-week training academy. New PSCOs are cross-trained through the four positions in the PSC section. The progression is normally completed within a year, but is flexible to compensate for varying abilities and situations.
Many PSCOs describe their job as "an octopus taking a roller coaster ride." The nature of their job requires them to perform multifunctional tasks while responding to callers who are often panic-stricken, scared, or angry. It is the job of the call takers to obtain critical information as accurately and quickly as possible to officers or fire fighters. The job can be challenging and stressful, but is also very rewarding. Many derive a great deal of satisfaction knowing that every day they are able to be a part of helping people resolve difficult circumstances in their lives. Knowing that by giving 100% they make a difference.
Records
The central repository for official police reports and documents is the Records Management section. These reports include offense reports, field interviews, trespass warnings and accidents. Records Management is also responsible for processing uniform traffic citations. The section is comprised of four specific functions:
- Customer Service Assistance which assists customers, external and internal, with phone, walk-in, and mail requests for reports. This also includes background checks for law enforcement agencies;
- Records Technicians are responsible for processing, analyzing, and entering reports into the Records Management System database. This data is used by investigators and for the FBI/FDLE Uniform Crime Report (UCR);
- Microfilm is responsible for report archives, scanning/imaging, and micro-filming police documents. These functions are performed in accordance with Florida State Statutes regarding report retention and destruction. This unit is also responsible for processing court-ordered seals and expungements; and
- Report Intake is responsible for the intake of and retrieval of all submitted reports to the Records Management Section. This includes quality control and report tracking to ensure that reports have been received correctly and all accompanying documents are included, i.e. arrest tickets, supplements.
The following is the average activity for just one month in the Records Management Section:
- 1180 walk-in customers assisted
- 1819 phone calls (1465 processed for requests)
- 2400 citations processed
- 900 accidents processed
- 25,000 pages microfilmed
- 25 court ordered seals and expungements processed
- 2400 offense reports received
- 340 trespass warnings received
- 200 field interview reports received
- 3048 piece of incoming mail
- 825 pieces of outgoing mail
Building & Fleet
The Building and Fleet maintains 93,000 square feet of facilities space situated on 7 acres of land. They are also responsible for working with City Fleet to see that all of the department's 485 vehicles assigned to the agency are serviced, operational and meet requirements for utilization.
Property & Evidence
The mission of the Property & Evidence Section is to receive, log, maintain, distribute and have readily available all property and evidence impounded. The Property and Evidence Section ensures the accurate inventory of all items until disposal according to Police Department policy, state statute or city ordinance. In 2004, the Property & Evidence's section received over 20,900 items, and disposed of over 14,600 items. Over 5200 drug items were destroyed, over 150 firearms were turned over to Leon County Sheriff's Department for disposal, and over 260 items were given to City of Tallahassee Warehouse for surplus. The Property & Evidence Section has a diverse and ever-changing inventory of evidence used in felony and misdemeanor crimes, including illegal drugs, firearms, biological materials (i.e. blood, hair, etc.), and many other types of items.