Crime Scene Investigation Methodology and Strategies - Coursework Example

Crime scene investigation methodology and strategies Name Subject Professor Date Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 References 9 Crime scene investigation methodology and strategies Introduction Crime is an aspect that is prevalent in different parts of the world. Individuals get involved in crime for various reasons such as poverty, which is in turn as a result of different factors such as lack of adequate education and joblessness. Nonetheless, there is no justification for committing crime since it is associated with negative aspects, including deaths. Crime scene investigation is a crucial step when it comes to dealing with crimes. There are different crime scene investigation methodologies and strategies that could be applied as a way of gathering evidence and dealing with a particular crime occurrence in an appropriate manner. This piece of work gives a critical discussion of various aspects associated with crime scene investigation. Much emphasis will however be placed on the significance of controlling and securing crime scene, the different strategies involved in crime scene investigation as well as the importance of defining the strategies before commencing the search for evidence among other aspects. Controlling and securing a crime scene There is need to control and secure a crime scene. Wyatt (2014, p.446) asserts that the protection of the crime scene is quite a significant factor of collecting and preserving evidence. It helps in keeping the relevant evidence in an uncontaminated status before it is recorded and collected. The state of the physical evidence during its collection greatly influences the prosecution of a case and thus the need to control and secure the crime scene the best way possible. Control and protection of the crime scene starts when the first police officer arrives at the scene and continues until the scene is released from police custody. There is therefore a need for intensive training of all police officers with regard to protecting crime scenes appropriately to avoid contamination of evidence in any way. Strategies of crime scene investigation According to Dutelle (2016, p. 112), there are different strategies of crime scene investigation, each having some benefits and drawbacks depending on a particular situation. Some of the strategies include; communication strategy, forensic strategy, intelligence strategy, pathology strategy, victim and witness strategy, passive data generators and search strategy among others. An appropriate strategy should be chosen depending on the crime case in question. It is important to define the strategies used in a given crime scene investigation right before commencing the search for evidence. This is more so because different strategies lead to different outcomes and are suitable and proportionate to varying cases depending on what is entailed. An investigative strategy is essential since it establishes the most suitable line of enquiry to be pursued as well as the aim of pursuing it. It also determines the investigative actions needed to effectively achieve the objectives and help in the understanding and management of community impact. Documentation of a crime scene Documentation of a crime scene is an essential aspect of the process of crime investigation. This is more so because it acts as evidence and can be used for future reference. It avoids the need to keep each detail in mind, which could even be impossible. It acts as a point of reference that could be useful at different stages of dealing with a particular crime, irrespective of time difference in the occurrence of the crime and its management or dealing with the perpetrators. There are different ways through which crime scene details can be documented. They include taking notes, photograph and videotaping, sketching and taking measurement among others. Detailed notes are essential in describing the scene in court as they indicate the events and observations during investigation. Photography and videotaping are documentations that are essential in the establishment of the physical relations of items that are of interest in a scene of crime for instance bodies, weapons and stains. As they say, a picture is worth a thousand words (Universal Class, 2017). They depict the overall shots of the scene and its surrounding. In particular, a video tape offers an in-person view of the scene and evidence and allow for continuity of the crime investigator narrative. Sketching is also a significant manner when it comes to making detailed observations with regard to a crime scene. A sketch could include details of the overall crime scene such as the relative location of items alongside information regarding the items. This could help in making informed conclusions on the crime cases. Taking measurement is also an important documentation aspect. Some of the techniques of taking measurements include polar coordinates, triangulation, station line and rectangular system. The starting points in any measurement method should be well known and a reference identified (Boots, 2014). Identifying the important area of a crime scene When it comes to any scene of crime, there is need to identify the important area that will lead to effective investigation and management of the given crime. The full extent of a crime scene should be established. The crime scene is not simply the immediate location where a body is found or where an attacker did their activities. It should also involve the access and exit routes as well as means used such as vehicle. The identification of the area could be done in different ways but the most important thing is to get a scene that has adequate details that could in one way or the other help in prosecuting a crime case (Dahle, Biedermann, Lehmann and Gallasch-Nemitz, 2014, p.569). The primary and secondary crime scenes should be identified. Collection, packaging and labelling of evidence Another aspect that is extremely crucial when it comes to crime scene investigation is the collection, packaging as well as labelling of evidence associated with a given crime occurrence. This is more so because these processes help in uniquely preserving the evidence to be used even for future reference. Labelling helps in the easy identification of items or evidence later. It should therefore be done in a strategic manner that allows for the preservation and protection of every detail associated with the crime. Proper collection, packaging and labelling of evidence enhances credibility and control of one’s ability to identify an item of evidence. There are different ways through which crime evidence could be collected, packaged and labelled. Collection entails taking the evidence from the scene of crime. Clean and new papers and bags should be used to avoid contamination. Packaging should be of suitable size and material and each piece of evidence packaged separately. It should then be appropriately labelled, sealed and documented (Warrington, 2013). To maintain the integrity of crime scene investigations, suitable collection, packaging and labelling should be considered. Blood, fingerprints and documents evidence of crime When carrying out investigation of a particular crime scene, there are different items that are considered to be quite essential with regard to providing evidence. Some of them are blood, fingerprints as well as documents such as identification cards and money. This is more so because they provide the investigators with unique information that can easily be used to trace the individuals that were in one way or the other involved in the crime or present at the scene of crime (Hess, Orthmann and Cho, 2016, p. 188). Blood linked to a crime can offer information that could be used to resolve the case. When blood evidence is appropriately collected and preserved, it can easily identify a powerful link between a person and a criminal act. It also had the ability to totally purge an individual as a potential suspect in a given crime (Johnson et al, 2014, p. 738). Fingerprints and personal documents such as passports are also good evidences that could be used in placing a person at the scene of crime because of their uniqueness (Thompson, Tangen and McCarthy, 2014, p.84). Quality and continuity in crime investigation There is need for crime investigators to guarantee the quality and continuity during the investigation of the scene of crime. This allows for effective execution of different actions that surround the crime. Quality and continuity in crime investigation could be enhanced by sticking to quality assurance principles and procedures. Quality assurance processes help in ensuring that the minimum standards that pertain to investigation are observed. Crime investigation standards could also guide the investigators in their work. A clear investigative plan should also be observed to guide the actions involved. Continuity is essential and should always be maintained by documenting or accurately recording any changes that occur with regard to a given crime case. This could include aspects such as the movement or transfer of a piece of evidence from storage for any reason (Wallace, Cunningham, and Boggiano, 2015, p. 16). Continuity clears any doubts that may arise especially later in solving the case. Conclusion From the above discussion, it is apparent that crime scene investigation is a crucial process when it comes to dealing with crime and the search for justice. There is need to control and secure a crime scene as a way of preserving evidence associated with the crime. Different strategies such as communication strategy, forensic strategy and intelligence strategy are utilized in crime scene investigation and they should all be adequately defined before commencing the search for evidence. The documentation of crime scene should also be done in an appropriate manner that captures all the necessary details. Some of the crucial items of evidence that can be gathered from a scene of crime include blood, documents and fingerprints. Collection, packaging and labelling of evidence should also be done in a proper manner and quality and continuity maintained in all investigation processes. References Boots, K.E. 2014. Crime Scene Diagramming: Back to Basics. [Online] Available from http://www.forensicmag.com/article/2014/01/crime-scene-diagramming-back-basics [Accessed 14 Jan 2017] Dahle, K.P., Biedermann, J., Lehmann, R.J. and Gallasch-Nemitz, F., 2014. The development of the Crime Scene Behaviour Risk measure for sexual offense recidivism. Law and human behaviour, 38(6), p.569. Dutelle, A.W., 2016. An introduction to crime scene investigation. New York: Jones & Bartlett Publishers. Hess, K.M., Orthmann, C.H. and Cho, H.L., 2016. Criminal investigation. New York: Cengage Learning. Johnson, D.J. et al, 2014. A molecular method to correlate bloodstains with wound site for crime scene reconstruction. Journal of forensic sciences, 59(3), pp.735-742. Thompson, M.B., Tangen, J.M. and McCarthy, D.J., 2014. Human matching performance of genuine crime scene latent fingerprints. Law and human behaviour, 38(1), p.84. Universal Class. 2017. CSI: Scene Documentation. [Online] Available from https://www.universalclass.com/articles/law/csi-scene-documentation.htm[Accessed 14 Jan 2017] Wallace, E.W., Cunningham, M.J. and Boggiano, D., 2015. Crime Scene Unit Management: A Path Forward. New York: Routledge. Warrington, D. 2013. Properly packaging evidence. [Online] Available from http://www.forensicmag.com/article/2013/02/properly-packaging-evidence[Accessed 14 Jan 2017] Wyatt, D., 2014. Practising crime scene investigation: trace and contamination in routine work. Policing and Society, 24(4), pp.443-458. Read More