Benefits of Document Scanning for Law Enforcement

Saves Storage Space

One of the most obvious benefits of document scanning is that it saves storage space by eliminating the need to store paper records. Because documents are stored electronically, floor space is freed up for other uses. (Check out our other space-saving public safety storage solutions here.)

Improves Efficiency

Paper documents stored in boxes, on shelves, or even at an offsite location can be difficult to locate and access when needed, which can cause delays or obstructions in the execution of justice. And if someone is using a file you need, you may be frustrated, wondering who has it or if it has been misfiled or lost.

Digitizing records eliminates lost and misfiled documents and allows multiple people to view a document simultaneously. Documents are retrieved based on designated search fields established during the design phase.

Increases Security

Storing paper records can be challenging, ensuring the security of confidential documents and controlling access to specific files. Moreover, paper records are vulnerable to damage from water, insects, and other potential hazards. When records are stored electronically, they are safe from the dangers of physical harm. Administrators can designate who is authorized to view certain documents and see who and when they view them, further increasing document security.

Our Document Scanning Process

Prepping

To prepare for the scanning process, we begin by sending an experienced project manager to your facility to survey your scanning needs. Our team can assist you in purging your records according to their retention schedules to ensure that you do not pay to scan unnecessary documents. Our team can also box your records for you; we label each box with a barcode and a tracking number which you can follow online throughout the entire process.

Depending on your security concerns, we’ll work with you to determine the best transportation method to move your boxed records to our secure facility. Once your records arrive, we will inspect them and compare them to the original manifest. Then they will prep the documents for scanning—removing staples and paper clips, smoothing out creases and earmarks, separating triplicate forms, etc.

Scanning

Our high-speed production-class scanner can scan approximately 50,000 images within an eight-hour shift and requires only a single operator. Your documents will be scanned front and back, in color if necessary. Our standard resolution is 300 DPI, which offers high-quality images in a manageable file size.

Let us know if you need to access a file in the middle of a process. Since we track each document throughout the entire process, we’ll be able to locate, prep, and scan the needed file immediately, giving you electronic access to the document within a few hours at most. 

Quality Control

Once scanned, documents are indexed according to your specifications. We conduct 100% quality control to ensure that each image you pay for is high-quality. Our team members will compare each electronic image with the paper page, cropping and rotating images as necessary, removing blank pages so you won’t get billed for them, and rescanning files if necessary at no additional cost.

Delivery

Once quality control is complete, we will deliver your digital files to your existing electronic document management system or save the file to a hard drive and ship them to you, depending on your security preferences.

Our standard upload format for documents is PDF. This format facilitates optical character recognition (OCR), which means that the text of the documents will be searchable, allowing you to locate files by searching for the content of the text.

After completing the process, we typically retain your paper records in secure document storage for 90 days. After this period, we will contact you to ensure everything is satisfactory, and, with your permission, we will conduct a certified shred of the hard copies. Check out our frequently asked questions for additional details about the document scanning process.

Security and Compliance

One of the top concerns of law enforcement agencies is security. We understand this and take every precaution to protect your records throughout the process.

Our services are CJIS-compliant, requiring all team members to pass a background check.

We offer secure transportation of your records to our facility, although you can also choose to have the process done onsite for a higher cost. Our intake and processing rooms are secured by lock and access control and are under 24/7 observation by closed-circuit cameras. Your files will be delivered and stored in a secure location. No one outside of our team will have access to any of your files during the process, and for the duration of the process, you’ll be able to track where each document is and which team members have accessed it. You can find more information about our document scanning process here.

Case Study

We recently implemented a successful onsite scanning and digitization project for the Nebraska State Patrol (NSP). The NSP received a $1.2 million grant to digitize their criminal history record jackets. 

We set up an onsite, closed CJIS-compliant network and brought in a team of 25 certified CJIS-compliant staff members. We developed a unique training program to identify over 14 document types (fingerprints, rap sheets, pardons, etc.). The team matched documents relating to specific arrest dates to instantly allow law enforcement officers to see a complete criminal history. Over 300,000 files and an estimated 6-10 million images were scanned in high-quality color. We saved time by integrating our scanning technology with the NSP’s electronic document management system. After scanning, our team rebuilt and secured paper files for future destruction.

Contact Us for CJIS Certified Document Scanning

Southwest Solutions Group® provides CJIS certified document scanning services to all law enforcement facilities, and our services are available on several federal, city, county, and state contracts. For more information or to speak with a document scanning specialist, call us at (800) 803-1083 or send us a message today.