Crime Scene Preservation
Crime scene preservation should be the most important step to any first responder. This protocol should continue to be followed by anyone who processes the scene. From the moment the first responder arrives at the scene, he/she should exercise a pertinacious attitude to insure that curious onlookers and personnel who are not involved in a task related to the scene, remain outside the cordoned perimeter. Without this first step, evidence found at the scene can be compromised or worse destroyed which could result in possibly ruining any opportunity to create a strong case to arrest and convict a suspect. Once secured, the crime scene can be processed.
There is a basic protocol that all investigators follow and even though each crime scene is different with a vast array of circumstances the basic procedures remain the same. These functions are: interviewing, examining, photographing, sketching, and processing. Each function has its own set of rules and challenges in its own right and I will attempt to demonstrate what each function is and the challenges that an investigator may encounter.
Interview:
This would be the first task to perform. The investigator would interview the first responder and gather as much information from him/her as possible. Some important points would be the type of crime that was committed, in what area it was committed, and how it might have been carried out. Other people who would be interviewed would be the victim, neighbors, passersby, anyone who may have seen and/or heard anything that would assist the police in apprehending the perpetrator. Some of the challenges confronting an investigator during this phase could be, the victim not willing to discuss his/her ordeal, neighbors giving conflicting information regarding what was seen or heard, finding those individuals who were in direct proximity of the crime scene prior to and immediately after the crime was committed, or not having any witnesses at all.
Examine:
To examine
There is a basic protocol that all investigators follow and even though each crime scene is different with a vast array of circumstances the basic procedures remain the same. These functions are: interviewing, examining, photographing, sketching, and processing. Each function has its own set of rules and challenges in its own right and I will attempt to demonstrate what each function is and the challenges that an investigator may encounter.
Interview:
This would be the first task to perform. The investigator would interview the first responder and gather as much information from him/her as possible. Some important points would be the type of crime that was committed, in what area it was committed, and how it might have been carried out. Other people who would be interviewed would be the victim, neighbors, passersby, anyone who may have seen and/or heard anything that would assist the police in apprehending the perpetrator. Some of the challenges confronting an investigator during this phase could be, the victim not willing to discuss his/her ordeal, neighbors giving conflicting information regarding what was seen or heard, finding those individuals who were in direct proximity of the crime scene prior to and immediately after the crime was committed, or not having any witnesses at all.
Examine:
To examine
References: Crime Scene Processing Protocol. (n.d.). Retrieved Oct. 26, 2008, from http://www.feinc.net/cs-proc.htm. Forensic Evidence.com: Identification Evidence/Court Excludes Fingerprint Critic 's Testimony as "Junk Science". (n.d.). Retrieved Oct. 26, 2008, from http://forensic-evidence.com/site/ID/Cole_junksci.html. Searching in Stages to Prevent Destruction of Evidence at Crime Scenes. (n.d.). Retrieved Oct. 26, 2008, from http://www.crime-scene-investigator.net/SearchingStages.html.