Property & Evidence Div.

Mission Statement:

The mission of Property and Evidence Section is to provide secure, efficient control and storage of property acquired by officers during the conduct of their investigations and to safeguard and properly dispose of all property which comes into its custody under the laws and ordinances of the State of Oregon.

Unless property is contraband or must be presented into court, every reasonable effort will be made to ensure its return to its rightful owner.

Background:

The Property and Evidence Section currently holds over 82,000 items of evidence, found property and property held as safekeeping.  The Property & Evidence Section receives an average of 1,220 items of evidence monthly.  A computerized bar coding system is used to maintain the detailed records necessary for the presentation of evidence in court.

Property which cannot be returned to its owner will be disposed of by auction thru the PropertyRoom.com,www.propertyroom.com or in the case of contraband, by legally destroying it.

Other duties of the Property & Evidence Section include: transporting evidence to the Oregon State Police Crime Lab for processing; testifying in court cases; responding to major crime scene’s; ordering, issuing and maintaining inventory of all police department equipment and uniforms. 

The Property & Evidence Section is currently staffed by 1 Property & Evidence Supervisor, 3 full-time and 1 Latent Print/Forensic Technician.

Information for the return of property:

Releases are made by appointment only and photo ID will be required

Location and Hours of Operation:

Medford Police Department Property & Evidence Section
821 North Columbus Ave
Medford, Oregon 97501
Phone:  (541) 774-2662
Public Hours are: Monday - Thursday 7am-6pm
                                Closed: Friday-Sunday and Holidays

Information on the procedures for claiming property is listed below.  For additional information please call.

Evidence:

All property taken by members of the Medford Police Department as evidence will be available for return to the owner after the Property & Evidence Section has received confirmation that the item(s) are no longer needed as evidence and the case is closed.

Wait 30 days after adjudication of your case to contact the Evidence Section for release information.

Found Property/Finders Claim Information:

Found property with no owner listed is only held for 30 days.

If you are the finder of property you may be eligible to file a finder’s claim (ORS 98.005).  Contact the Property & Evidence Section immediately for additional information.

Visit the website for the Oregon Revised Statutes http://www.oregonlaws.org/ors/98.005 as to the regulations governing the rights and duties of a finder.

Weapons:

Prior to any weapons being released, a background check will be performed to ascertain your eligibility to receive these weapons.

Safekeeping:

Items will be held for 30 days for pick-up by the owner. After 30 days, the items will be destroyed.

**Please note that Property Control does not deal with real estate/property questions or referrals.

For more information, contact: Rhonda Buma – Property & Evidence Supervisor

Phone: (541) 774-2662   

E-mail: rhonda.buma@cityofmedford.org