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CRIME: CSI Niagara Falls

New Crime Scene Unit van will help Falls police gather evidence and crack cases
By Rick Pfeiffer/pfeifferr@gnnewspaper.com
Niagara Gazette

Falls Police Captain John DeMarco may have said it best when he explained why the department desperately needed a new Crime Scene Unit van.

“My God,” DeMarco said, “(the current CSI van) is older than some of the (officers) we have on the force.”

True enough, the van currently used by the Crime Scene Investigation Unit first hit the road in 1985. The rusting vehicle, with a frame described as “barely holding together,” looks more like what a fly-by-night contractor would use, not cutting-edge crime fighters.

So, thanks to $100,000 in federal Homeland Security funding, Falls cops took delivery three weeks ago of a new state-of-the-art vehicle, It’s currently parked on the east side of police headquarters, if you want to take a look.

“I can’t even begin to explain to you what this means (for criminal investigations),” DeMarco said. “It’s a big improvement.”

Detective Lt. Nick Paonessa, who commands the CSI Unit, said the van was specifically designed for his team of investigators.

“This wasn’t bought off the shelf,” Paonessa said. “This is really going to raise our capabilities.”

Paonessa said it’s more important than ever for crime scene investigators to stay mobile and respond quickly to crime scenes. That wasn’t always possible with the old van, which was frequently in the city garage for repairs.

“There were times where we’d have to go to the corporation yard first and pick up stuff from the van, put it in other cars and then go to the crime scene,” Paonessa said.

Then, there’s also the issue of size. The old van was small, barely bigger than a family mini or SUV.

The new van can pack pretty close to full lab inside it. Paonessa envisions some day being able to actually do some evidence processing while at a crime scene.

“It’s adaptable, we can expand it,” the detective lieutenant said. “We’ll use this for the next 20 years.”

On the outside of the van you immediately notice the side-mounted flood lights that can be lifted into the air to provide illumination at scenes. In the past, cops sometimes had to call for fire engines to respond to throw some light on their work.

On top of the van, some 12 feet or so in the air, is a platform where investigators can photograph hard-to-get overviews of scenes. Accident reconstruction investigators, who work closely with CSI, were more than happy to see the new van.

“It will provide a great platform for us,” said Traffic Division Officer and Accident Investigator Michael Drake. “It will allow us the overhead views of accident scenes and we’ll be able to work off of (the van roof platform).”

Inside, the van is spacious and equipped with much of what investigators have at their headquarters’ offices.

“We have electrical power for computers, power tools or other equipment,” Paonessa said. “There’s running water, a refrigerator for biological samples like DNA. That’s critical. It’s fully stocked with collection kits, electromagnets, additional specialized lighting sources and even a small underwater camera. That camera will let us go places that a diver can’t get to.”

Investigators tested the camera under the north Grand Island Bridge and were amazed at how well it worked.

“You would not believe the junk that is down there,” Paonessa laughed. “There’s a bunch of wrenches that must have come from guys working on the bridge.”

Paonessa also pointed out a portable tent that can be set up over a crime scene in inclement weather.

“In the past, a lot of times we’d head to a scene and have to guess what we’d need and then, if we needed something else, we had to go back to (headquarters) to get it,” Paonessa said. “Now we’ll have everything with us. The more efficient you are, the better you are at solving crime.”