Criminal Investigation Research Paper

perimeter, making the scene smaller or larger. The whole purpose of setting up a perimeter around a crime scene is to protect potential evidence within.

The third step in a criminal investigation is initiating a preliminary survey. This step is basically an initial walk through of a crime scene. What investigators are looking for in this step is obvious evidence. This stage can be different for each type of crime scene. For an indoor crime scene the investigator will be looking for an entry way. This entry way could be many things like an open window, broken down door, or even a ladder on the side of a wall, the investigator is just trying to find simple evidence that shows how the person broke indoors to commit the crime they did (Penven,
Once the investigator has found the evidence, they must record what they found and where, and then collect it using gloves and packaged carefully. This step can be done either when evidence is found or after, as long as the evidence is collected and recorded. If this stage is not done correctly, then the evidence can be contaminated or just made useless, putting the investigators at a disadvantage when it comes to solving the crime (Penven, Don).

The tenth step in a crime scene investigation is to conduct a final survey. The investigator must do one last run through of the scene to make sure they did not miss any evidence. Investigators must make sure all the evidence that was found is recorded and packaged correctly. Also, the investigator must be sure that all notes and pictures are as accurate as they can be. This step is just a run through of all the other steps to make sure everything the investigator could have done, is done.

The eleventh and final step is releasing the crime scene. Once the investigator is sure everything that could have been done is done, they release the crime scene to be cleaned up and given back to the owners, or communities. It is noted that investigators should not be rushed into this stage by any means, if the investigator thinks the investigation is not done, it is not done (Penven,
Different investigators may have their own version of the steps, but all of the steps are still there. While the stages of a crime scene are called steps, it is important to note that multiple steps may happen at the same time, or throughout the whole process of the investigation. Without the basic steps to a crime scene investigation, crimes could not be solved.

Criminal Investigation is no easy process, between the different types of crime scenes, and the multiple steps of an investigation, detectives do not have an easy job. Criminal Investigation is how crimes are solved and brought to court in this century. Without Criminal Investigation, crimes would never be