Investigative case management involves procedures for tracking investigations and their materials. Software can assist with generating, storing, and retrieving information. Case numbers are assigned, data is recorded, and physical evidence is stored. Supervisors review files and information sharing allows for linking related cases and identifying people of interest. Computer programs streamline the process and provide multiple filing and sorting systems.
Investigative case management is a set of procedures for keeping track of investigations and the material people generate as they conduct them. Law enforcement agencies, as well as private investigators and lawyers, rely on their case-handling procedures to ensure that material does not fall through the cracks. Many companies produce software to assist people in this process by making it easier for information to be generated, stored, and retrieved during a case investigation.
When people investigate cases, they need to be able to collect and store data in a useful and meaningful way so that they can access it later and to make information sharing available to other people in an office or agency who might be interested in the case. Historically, investigative case management required individuals to initiate paper files to track evidence collection, record the outcome of various lines of investigation, and so on. Today, computers replace much of paper filing, allowing people to quickly record and access data.
In investigative case management, people assign case numbers, recording the number with the evidence they collect so it can be easily found again. They make sure to record data at each stage of the investigation, along with supporting references. Digital images and other electronic material can be stored in a computer file, but it may also be necessary to store physical evidence and provide information to help people find it, such as a note on the location of the data.
People use investigative case management to keep track of materials and also for the purpose of staying focused on the investigation. Each line of inquiry must be pursued and its outcome recorded, making careful data collection and organization very important. Supervisors can review files to see how an investigation is progressing and to make suggestions to help people close the case. Actively sharing information also allows people to do things like link related cases, identify people of interest, and so on.
Computer programs for investigative case management can streamline the process. They usually make data entry very easy so that people have an incentive to enter material as soon as they find it, rather than logging it after the fact at the end of the day or week. Many provide multiple filing and sorting systems to help people organize material in ways they find most useful, and may also interface with computer networks to provide access to law enforcement databases, other files, and general interest materials.
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