Chain of Custody

Any piece of physical evidence that is going to be used in a criminal trial and that has been collected by a law enforcement body has to have a chain of custody attached to it. This chain of custody ensures that the evidence has not been tampered with or planted to make a person look guilty. As a consequence, a piece of physical evidence that cannot be accounted for between collection at the crime scene and the start of trial may be tossed out of court.

Physical evidence is evidence that can be touched, handled, or tested for certain things. At a crime scene, it can be strands of hair, a murder weapon, casings from bullets, or anything else that happens to be in the room and is used, through testing or other methods, to link the suspect to the scene of the crime or to the crime itself.

Some pieces of evidence, once collected from the crime scene or other locales, are then sent off to a crime lab for testing. Items that are sent off to the crime lab have to be signed for on both ends when they are sent and received. This process must be repeated with every piece of evidence so that its location can be checked through the chain of custody to ensure it was never in a situation where tampering was possible.

Because of the procedures associated with physical evidence, many police departments try to keep the number of transfers of a particular piece of evidence as low as possible. If there is not an accurate chain of custody, that piece of evidence can be discarded.

Contact a Las Vegas Criminal Defense Lawyer

If you have been accused of a crime and are in need of strong, capable legal defense, contact the Las Vegas criminal lawyers of William Palmer & Associates, P.C. at 702-888-2222.