Assignment
1: Crime Scene Investigation
Crime Scene
Investigation is a practice that encompasses information in law, science, and
logic. A crime scene can bE defined as a
location where a crime has been committed,
and forensic evidence needs to be gathered by relevant law enforcement
personnel to ascertain who the offenders are. The investigation to be taken at the crime scene needs to be
thorough and precise to ensure physical evidence is not tainted and potential
witnesses not overlooked (National Institute of
Justice, 2000). A set of guidelines has
to be adhered to during preliminary
investigation by effective criminal investigators who possess particular
characteristics.
There
are definite procedures that need to be adhered to by
investigators when conducting a preliminary
investigation for any criminal case. The principle of such an assessment is to
facilitate the determination of the incident to be
investigated and the level of investigation
that can be conducted. With such a principle, the policy would be to identify
specific responsibilities and prioritize investigative plans that are in concord with federal and state laws.
The investigators should converse with primary respondents as regards to the
activities that took place. A proper evaluation of safety issues that might
affect personnel engaging in the scene
should be carried out. Search and seizure issues should be analyzed in order to
ascertain the necessity of any consent in the form of a warrant to search the
scene. The investigators need to establish scene boundaries, exit and entry
strategies, a secure area within the proximity, a secure area for temporary
evidence, and the need for additional investigative resources. The crime scene
needs to be properly canvassed, and
preliminary documentation taken in the form of photography (Penven, 2012). Such a set of guidelines
ensures there are coordinated identification, collection, and preservation of
evidence and witnesses’ statements.
After the preliminary
investigation has been conducted, and it
is established that there is a lack of a
substantial amount of solvability factors, then there is a need for a follow-up
investigation. The investigation will ensure that proper
solvability factors can be raised that ensures
the suspect can be brought to book. A
strategy that can be taken in the
follow-up investigation is the
maintenance of contact between the case investigator and the prosecutor. Collaboration
between the two would ensure that a successful
prosecution could be undertaken. The
steps that could be undertaken involve
increased consultations with police, prosecutors, and supervisors (Maureen Malone, 2013). The initiative will
improve preparation procedures for both entities and ensure that sufficient
solvability factors can be raised on the
suspect for successful prosecution.
Examples of major
crimes often reported in the criminal division of the police are burglary and
homicide. Burglary is the infiltration of a physical establishment with the
sole intention of stealing its belongings. Homicide,
on the other hand, is taking away the life of another human being. When
reporting both crimes, there is a need to
photograph and document the scene of investigation. There should be location
and collection of latent fingerprints to establish DNA evidence. In a homicide
crime scene, the dead body needs to be
handled well, and information collected
that shows how the victim was killed.
Relatives of the victim need to be informed,
and credible trails established on who the
suspect might be. In a burglary, eyewitness
accounts are collected, and credible
investigations instigated on the suspects. The stolen items must be noted and sufficient efforts made in
recovering them and capturing those responsible for the crime.
The most effective
criminal scene investigators have defined
characteristics that assist them become better investigators with an inept
resolution to solve criminal cases. During investigations, relevant authorities
utilize specific skills to gather information that is critically analyzed to
arrive at credible resolutions. A characteristic that is quite significant to
investigators is communication and interview skills. Interviews are the
cornerstones of investigations that often involve active interactions with
suspects, witnesses, and victims (National
Institute of Justice, 2000). With such a skill, investigators can ask precise questions and extract as many details that are relevant to the investigations. The investigator needs to be a
good listener and recognize through body language if witnesses are lying or
not. The second characteristic is emotional control,
where investigators need to have effective anger management strategies since an
open expression of anger, might harm the case. A free expression of empathy is good for the case since it creates
a safe environment where relevant details
are enumerated on. The third
characteristic is critical discerning and problem-solving
skills. This is an active skill since it
ensures that the investigator can piece
together evidence and witness statements to come up with a workable solution
and a possible suspect. The skill ensures
that the investigator can consider all solutions without heavily relying on
obvious solutions especially those that have been created by contradictory
witness statements (Maureen Malone, 2013).
These skills are of paramount importance in criminal investigation and have an enormous impact on the admissibility of a
case in a court of law.
There is an argument
that states that criminal investigation process should maintain the balance as
regards to freedom of information through media outlets and privacy rights of
alleged perpetrators of crime. I support
this argument since the practice of one’s right should never impede on another
person’s freedoms and rights. If that is
permitted, then a situation of anarchy might be created where people only focus
on their individual rights and not the rights of other people.
Furthermore, alleged perpetrators are not yet proven guilty and should be
treated as innocent until a court of law declares on their guilt.
References
Maureen Malone, D. M. (2013). Skills & Qualities
Necessary to Be an Effective Investigator. The Nest, pp. 1-2.
National Institute of Justice. (2000). Crime Scene
Investigation: A Guide for Law Enforcement. Washington, DC: U.S Department
of Justice.
Penven, D. (2012). Basic Stages for a Crime Scene
Investigation. Crime Scene Investigator Network, pp. 1-2.
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