Continuation of the West Virginia ICAC Task Force

The West Virginia State Police will utilize OJJDP funds to support overtime and fringe expenses for investigators working ICAC-related cases; travel to national and in-state training on forensics and investigative techniques; purchase of equipment including Cellebrite UFED and Cellebrite Physical Pro, police trauma kits and ballistic raid vests; and annual subscriptions/renewels for AccessData Lab SMS, AccessDataFTK, Cellebrite Cell Phone System, or similar software needed for effective forensic analysis.

Pursuant to Section 104 of the PROTECT Act, the ICAC Task Force shall 1) consist of State and local investigators, prosecutors, forensic specialists, and education specialists who are dedicated to addressing the goals of the task force; 2) engage in proactive investigations, forensic examinations, and effective prosecutions of Internet crimes against children; 3) provide forensic, preventive, and investigative assistance to parents, educator, prosecutors, law enforcement, and other concerned with Interne crimes against children; 4) develop multijurisdictional, multiagency responses and partnerships to Internet crimes against children offenses through ongoing informational, administrative, and technological support to other State and local law enforcement agencies, as a means for such agencies to acquire the necessary knowledge, personnel, and specialized equipment to investigate and prosecute such offenses; 5) participate in nationally coordinated investigations in any case in which the Attorney General determines such participation to be necessary, as permitted by the available resource of such task force; 6) establish or adopt investigative and prosecution standards consistent with norms, to which such task force shall comply; 7) investigate, and seek prosecution on, tips related to Internet crimes against children, including tips from Operation Fairplay, the National Internet Crimes Against Children Data System, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline, ICAC task forces, and other Federal, State, and local agencies, with priority being given to investigate leads that indicate possibility of identifying or rescuing child victims, including investigative leads that indicate a likelihood of seriousness of offense or dangerousness to the community; 8) develop procedures for handling seized evidence; 9) maintain reports required by OJJDP and other reports and records as determined by the Attorney General; and 10) seek to comply with national standards regarding the investigation and prosecution of Internet crimes against children, as set forth by the Attorney General, to the extent such standards are consistent with the law of the State where the task force is located. NCA/CF

The West Virginia State Police will enhance its detection, investigation, apprehension and prosecution of technology-facilitated sexual exploitation of children through basic and advanced training for investigators and computer forensic examiners. In addition, the West Virginia Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force will be significantly upgrading their computer forensic capabilities by purchasing several different software licenses (Cellebrite, FTK, etc.). The task force will also continue to build their digital forensics capacity through remote forensics capabilities on their statewide Digital Forensics Network. This will help them reduce their ever growing case backlog by streamlining all processes involved in an analysis. Finally, the West Virginia ICAC will begin enhancing their officer wellness efforts through their Employee Support Program.

Pursuant to Section 104 of the PROTECT Act, the ICAC Task Force shall 1) consist of State and local investigators, prosecutors, forensic specialists, and education specialists who are dedicated to addressing the goals of the task force; 2) engage in proactive investigations, forensic examinations, and effective prosecutions of Internet crimes against children; 3) provide forensic, preventive, and investigative assistance to parents, educator, prosecutors, law enforcement, and other concerned with Internet crimes against children; 4) develop multijurisdictional, multiagency responses and partnerships to Internet crimes against children offenses through ongoing informational, administrative, and technological support to other State and local law enforcement agencies, as a means for such agencies to acquire the necessary knowledge, personnel, and specialized equipment to investigate and prosecute such offenses; 5) participate in nationally coordinated investigations in any case in which the Attorney General determines such participation to be necessary, as permitted by the available resource of such task force; 6) establish or adopt investigative and prosecution standards consistent with norms, to which such task force shall comply; 7) investigate, and seek prosecution on, tips related to Internet crimes against children, including tips from Operation Fairplay, the National Internet Crimes Against Children Data System, the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children's CyberTipline, ICAC task forces, and other Federal, State, and local agencies, with priority being given to investigate leads that indicate possibility of identifying or rescuing child victims, including investigative leads that indicate a likelihood of seriousness of offense or dangerousness to the community; 8) develop procedures for handling seized evidence; 9) maintain reports required by OJJDP and other reports and records as determined by the Attorney General; and 10) seek to comply with national standards regarding the investigation and prosecution of Internet crimes against children, as set forth by the Attorney General, to the extent such standards are consistent with the law of the State where the task force is located.

NCA/CF