Crime Investigation and Interviewing Skills - Coursework Example

Brandl (1993) demonstrates the criminal justice system and decision-making behavior are very useful to its actors. The investigation involves a lot of uncertainties and ambiguity. Furthermore, the detectives’ decisions making process is affected by contextual and situational constraints. The effort to uncover information about crimes depends on the effectiveness of the model used by the detectives. A criminal investigation is performed when officers of the law identify a crime and a suspect.

Establishing the motive, which is the reason for committing a crime, is of paramount importance when investigating a crime. More often than not identification of the motive plays a key role in helping catch the criminal in cases like kidnapping and murder. Investigations are undertaken by the police and other official agencies that have been given the authority. The detectives’ task environments and the use of models that utilize organizational and situational factors are also challenging. 

Crime investigation can be reactive or proactive. Proactive investigation detects a crime before it happens, an operation that makes use of intelligence and informants. Reactive investigation occurs when the crime has already taken place and the agencies concerned seek evidence to allow prosecution (Stephen, et al., 2009). The legal system promotes law enforcement and criminal justice by solving crimes. Advancement in technology and science has improved the art of crime investigation, for example in forensics, DNA, etc (Stelfox 2009). According to Stephen, Robin & Miranda (2009) points out; advancement in technology has also produced newer types of crime in recent years such as cyber crimes, exploitation, fraud, internet stalking, terrorism, and homeland security.

These newer crimes have also changed how investigation units operate and are organized as well as the advent of new units of particular expertise. Another new development has seen the private sector investing in crime investigation departments, especially in large corporations. Advances in technology have also helped for example advances in software, geospatial programs, and relational databases, used in investigations to help in building patterns, suspect identification and linking criminal activity common elements.

Bennell, Jones & Melnyk (2009) observes that reactive modes of criminal investigation took part in the 1970s involving the proving points and constructing cases to create a case against a suspect. In the 1980s these traditional methods of investigating crimes were less used. This is because it encouraged bribery in the police departments and the justice system as a whole due to the lengthy process involved (Harfiield, et al., 2008). In the 1990s the legal system had started training detectives on new methods of seeking the truth rather than proving points.

This approach was based on assessing both possibilities of no crime being committed and also being committed, rather than assuming guilt and then investigating to prove it. In essence, truth-seeking needs the investigator to follow the evidence that proves the innocence of the suspect with the same vigor used to investigate the ones that prove his guilt (Findley 2011,). Investigations use modeling which has several meanings. It could mean a phenomenon that is observable when used to emulate scientific principles which are common in forensic work.

In such cases testing the model is done by comparing predictions with the actual occurrences. This model could be representing reality in essence and is acceptable. The model could also be used to mean an idealized template. This leads to the use of checklists and routines in investigations. However, comparison of a crime with a past crime using similar methods cannot derive objective criminal details as some crimes are too complex compared to others. According to(ACPO Centrex, 2005), investigative theory needs to have a standardized structure for prioritization, assessment, and review to make sure that important work is complete and redundant one is discarded.

As Newburn, 2007) points out, no model of investigation is universally applied but its development is continued due to some approaches; researching the work and success of detectives to discover their skills and cultural borrowing. The establishment of an investigative theory depends on studying the effectiveness of the detectives to know what skills they applied and comparing them with their not-so-successful colleagues. It also includes borrowing ideas from other professions, for example, biological and physical sciences.

This is because criminal investigation requires answers to some human uncertainties, evidence testing, communication skills, and crucial decision-making. The medical profession comes in handy in information borrowing (Stelfox, 2009). Detecting a crime is therefore termed an art whose secrets are unknown. The scientific bit is not clearly defined though, for instance, adopting hypothetical methods to move the investigation forward. Bennell, Jones & Melnyk (2009) think that specific methods should be used in investigations as each has various possibilities for providing information.

For every method, a typical investigation involves; a problem statement, hypothesis formation, research design, measurement, collection of data, analysis, and decision-making. However, the formation of a hypothesis and testing is just a stage in the research method but not a scientific method. ACCESS and SARA- ACCESS are two models of investigation used by the police.ACCESS is Assess, Collect, Collate, Evaluate, Scrutinise, and Summarise, and was a model produced by Eric Shepherd (Shepherd, 2008) and taught to police.

SARA (Scanning, Analysis, Response, and Assessment) was a method used to solve problems by police forces in training recruits. ACPO Murder Investigation Manual- this was among the first trials in the UK in producing an investigation theory. It was used in investigating serious crimes including murder (ACPO Centrex, 2005). Both have many similarities but they are limited to crime scenes whose suspects are not identified rather than extending to investigating suspects (Sanders & Young 2007).