Nebraska State Patrol FY19 ICAC Forensic Capacity Hiring Program

The National Internet Crimes Against Children (ICAC) Task Force Program consists of State and local law enforcement task forces dedicated to developing effective responses to online enticement of children by sexual predators, child exploitation, and child obscenity and pornography cases. Each State and local task force that is part of the national program 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, educators, prosecutors, law enforcement, and others concerned with Internet crimes against children; 4) develop multijurisdictional, multiagency partnerships and responses 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 established 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 the 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 for ICAC task force lead agencies and affiliate agencies; 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.

Awards under the ICAC: Enhancing Forensic Capacity Hiring Program for Wounded Veterans will assist ICAC task forces to meet the demand for effective and efficient forensic examinations to support investigation and prosecution of online enticement and exploitation of children by sexual predators and child pornography. With this support, the Nebraska ICAC Task Force will both reduce its investigation backlog and increase its capacity to meet the growing need for computer forensic examinations. The new Computer Forensic Analyst will investigate seized electronic devices that were utilized in child exploitation cases. This position provides technical assistance and training to local task force affiliates in addition to Nebraska State Patrol (NSP) investigators. The goal of this project is to allow the Nebraska ICAC Task Force to maintain an effective response to cyber-enticement and child pornography by identifying, detecting, arresting, and prosecuting offenders. Project success will be measured by the reductions in the backlog of cases and the number of forensic examinations conducted. (CA/NCF)