Law enforcement is increasingly turning to technology to solve crimes. Detective Steve Neururer, who is a twenty-two year veteran of the South Lake Minnetonka Police Department (SLMPD), was instrumental in securing a federal grant to help the SLMPD establish a video forensic lab earlier this year. Through this grant, the SLMPD was awarded a StarWitness Video Pro valued at approximately $30,000. This computer-based forensic tool enhances, restores and reconstructs video evidence. For example, it can sharpen the quality of a suspect caught on camera passing a fraudulent check at a bank or robbing a convenience store. It can also isolate a video image so a still photo can be made or stream together time-lapse video images. A condition of the grant was making this technology available to other law enforcement agencies in the region. To date, the SLMPD has used this technology to help out the Carver County Sheriff’s Office, Chaska Police Department, Deephaven Police Department, Eden Prairie Police Department, Mound Police Department, West Hennepin Public Safety Department and Wayzata Police Department.

Neururer attended a grant funded orientation session on how to use the StarWitness Video Pro. Further training was recommended in order to fully maximize the benefits of this technology. Such a training opportunity became available this past September in North Carolina. The SLMPD training budget was unable to absorb such an expense, so an alternate source of funding was sought. The Executive Board for the South Lake Minnetonka Crime Prevention Fund (Crime Fund) stepped up to the plate. They agreed to defray the cost of sending Detective Neururer to this out-of-state training entitled, “Recovery and Analysis of Video Evidence.” The Crime Fund Board authorized up to $2,000 to cover the registration fee, travel and lodging. Detective Neururer attended this training the second week of September and returned with a much higher level of proficiency with the StarWitness Video Pro.

The South Lake Minnetonka Crime Prevention Fund is a locally based non-profit organization dedicated to raising funds to help the SLMPD advance its mission within the communities of Excelsior, Greenwood, Shorewood and Tonka Bay. The Board is comprised of community leaders and representatives from various service organizations independent of the SLMPD or any of the aforementioned municipalities. The funds are used to offer rewards, enhance the professional development of staff and purchase specific non-budgeted equipment. In recent years, the Crime Fund has paid for nearly $20,000 in tactical gear to help outfit the members of the SLMPD Emergency Response Unit (ERU). Individuals desiring to make a contribution to this worthy cause can send their tax-deductible donations to the South Lake Minnetonka Crime Prevention Fund, Box 461, Excelsior, MN 55331.