Power of Attorney Procedures (Property Room)
Power of Attorney (POA) Issues & Releases:Persons who have a valid Power of Attorney to obtain property from the Property Room shall begin the process in one of three ways:
1)
Submit In Person: A person may present a signed and notarized Power of Attorney, the property release letter, and valid ID (see Accepted Forms of Identification section) to the Property Room located at 724 E. Woodrow Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43207; or
2)
Submit Via Email: A person may call the Property Room at (614) 645-4736 for instructions on how to submit a signed and notarized Power of Attorney, the property release letter, and a valid color ID (See Accepted Forms of Identification section) via email; or
3)
Submit Via Mail: A person may present a signed and notarized Power of Attorney, the property release letter, and valid color ID (see Accepted Forms of Identification section) to the Property Room located at 724 E. Woodrow Ave., Columbus, Ohio 43207.
Regardless of the submission method, a person must present the original signed and notarized Power of Attorney upon retrieval of the released property room items.
In general, a person should expect the verification process to be complete and the property to be available for release approximately two weeks from the submission date. To inquire on the status update, please contact the Property Room at (614) 645-4736.
NOTE:The valid ID presented to the Property Room when the property is available for release MUST be the same valid ID that was emailed to the Property Room.
Sample Power of Attorney:Below is generic Power of Attorney that can be downloaded for convenience.
Sample Power of Attorney FormProbate (Owner of items retained in the Property Room is deceased):When the rightful owner of property stored in the Property Room is deceased, the Property Room is prohibited by law from releasing those items without a valid court order issued by Probate Court. Below is printable PDF document to guide persons through the process of retrieving items from the Property Room when the owner of the property is deceased. Once a probate court order is issued, please contact the Columbus Police Property Room in advance, and a Property Room Clerk will ensure you have the necessary information before arrival at the Property Room. This is especially true of the probate order is issued out of state.
Hours of operation are M-F, 8:30am-5:30pm. (614) 645-4736.
A guide to retrieving a Decedent’s Property Link (Division Form # I-20-116)Note: Probate Court Orders
MUST list the item(s) to be released along with the corresponding PR# listed on the property release letter.
Firearm Background Check
If property belonging to or associated with the owner is any type of firearm, please be advised that the timeline for property release/retrieval will be extended. For safety and security reasons, a background check will be completed on the owner and/or the person designated as Power of Attorney. The background check will NOT be completed on the same day as the owner's/Power of Attorney's first visit to the Property Room. If any firearm has been identified among your property, please provide the Property Room with sufficient individual information about yourself and/or the individual with Power of Attorney authority to complete the background check. If the background check determines either that the owner or the Power of Attorney is prohibited by law from possessing a firearm, it will not be released. This process should generally extend the release or retrieval time by a few days.
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