In fact, no law-enforcement agency in Anderson County, Texas, was equipped with such a skilled professional.
Until now.
Palestine Police Detective Corporal James Heavner recently returned from a five-week course at the U.S. Secret Service National Computer Forensics Institute in Hoover, Alabama.
A detective for four of his more than six years on the force, Heavner told the Herald-Press he applied for the exclusive training for more than three years, before getting in.
“There are very limited spots in the class,” Heavner, 31, said. “They selected only 24 students from the entire country.”
Computer forensics is the science of extracting and analyzing data evidence from computers and other storage media, such as flash drives, or even cellular phones.
The data must extract in such a way that none of it is changed or corrupted by the removal or copying process. If any corruption occurs, the court can deem the evidence inadmissible.
“The data changes on a flash drive, simply by plugging it in to another device,” Heavner said. “What we have to do is make an exact image of the drive, so we can analyze it without changing or damaging the original.”
Last year, Texas was second only to California in the number of reported victims of Internet and cyber-crimes. With more than 21,000 reported cases, Texans lost nearly $80 million to Internet crime alone.
In Palestine, detectives face hundreds of computer and Internet-based crimes, such as scams attempting to acquire personal information, and money, every year.
“We were already investigating Internet scams in-house,” Heavner said. “Now we have more tools and capabilities for tracking suspects.”
Heavner said he expects most cyber-cases to relate to child-victim crimes and fraud.
Child pornography, identity theft, forgery and counterfeiting are some of the more common crimes that use computer forensics. Heavner's newly acquired skills, however, can help solve crimes beyond the usual computer-based variety.
“Nowadays, there's some sort of technology at every crime scene,” Heavner said. “Depending upon the nature of the crime, data from these devices can be used as evidence, or even help solve a case.”
In the past, this evidence was typically sent to the Department of Public Safety crime lab for analysis. Due to protocol, as well as a backlog of cases, departments such as the PPD could wait for up to two years for results.
“This is definitely going to speed up our process,” Heavner said. “Plus, we'll be able to help other nearby agencies with their forensic computing evidence, as well.”
In addition to graduating the class with a certificate in basic computer evidence recovery, the Secret Service also provided Heavner with thousands of dollars in computing equipment, specifically designed for forensic computing.
The training also provided partnerships and connections.
“I have a network of professionals I am in contact with now,” Heavner said. “We can contact each other for help, questions, and advice. That's invaluable.”
Detective Heavner is the only computer evidence recovery technician in Anderson County, and one of the few in in East Texas.
“This is part of the Palestine Police Department becoming more of a modern department,” Chief Andy Harvey told the Herald-Press. “This is great, not only for Palestine, but for East Texas.
“To have someone like Detective Heavner, with his capabilities, is simply extraordinary.”
Said Capt. Mark Harcrow, commander of the criminal investigations division: “Detective Heavner's skill set and training bring tremendous value to our community. This is a game-changer for crime fighting and investigations in our city.”
©2018 the Palestine Herald-Press (Palestine, Texas) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
