As a young police officer in 1968, I was taught to take off the grips and place my initials and the case number on the frame where it was inconspicuous but could be located if necessary to prove, in Court, that this was the gun I'd seized, recovered, etc.

I thought it no big deal to mark them there.

Then, I was involved in an "incident" where my supervisor had to take my gun, hold it for evidence, etc. When the aftermath was over and the gun returned, my nice Model 19 was all scratched up under the grips with names, case number, dates.

I was irritated, but grateful, at least, the marks weren't readily visible.

Fast forward past law school, becoming a prosecutor, teaching at the Academy, etc.

Our Florida law is pretty clear. The defense attorney MUST allege tampering with the evidence to challenge the chain of custody on MOST items. Guns, knives, hammers, bats, etc. fall under this case law.

That means the defense attorney must have some fact(s) that suggest tampering before he can start hammering the witness about whether this is really the gun, knife or....

So, we now teach that there is no need to mark the item IF it can be readily identified by the officer if challenged. A serial number, for example, recorded in the officer's report, the log where the item is placed in evidence, then taken out for testing, then returned to evidence and then brought to Court will suffice to win any challenge to the chain.

Hair, DNA, blood and other evidence still needs a chain, but the above illustration still will easily suffice in Florida.

Bob