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2. Crime-Scene Investigation
- The University Press of Kentucky
- Chapter
- Additional Information
: CRIME-SCENE INVESTIGATION I In crimes of violence and in burglary, the scene of the crime may be the most important aspect of the investigation. When Charles E. O'Hara states in his Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation that "there is not only the effect of the criminal on the scene to be considered, but also the manner in which the scene may have imparted traces to the criminal,"1 he is restating Locard's Exchange Principle. Skilled, painstaking work is required to make this principle effective in solving crimes. Crime-scene investigation consists of certain preliminaries, followed by documentation, then the collection and preservation of the evidence. Only then may crime reconstruction be possible. Finally, certain legal considerations must be followed. PRELIMINARIES Nowhere is the adage "First things first" more appropriate than at the scene of a crime. Both the police officer, who is likely to be the first official to arrive at the scene, and the investigator, who typically arrives soon thereafter, must see that vital information is not lost. The following preliminary actions are recommended.2 1. Deal with any emergency situation that is found (such as a person who requires first aid or a weapon that needs to be secured) regardless of the following guidelines. 23 24 CRIME SCIENCE 2. Identify the person who reported the crime or disturbance to the police and if possible detain the person for questioning. (The individual may have valuable information to impart and may even become a suspect .) 3. Attempt to determine the perpetrator of the crime if that can be immediately determined by inquiry or direct observation. 4. Detain everyone who is present at the scene, including eyewitnesses to events leading up to the crime, to the crime itself, or to its aftermath or people in possession of other information that must be garnered while fresh. 5. Summon whatever assistance may be necessary. Police officer(s) may need additional personnel to assist with crowd control; investigator (s) may require assistance in safeguarding the area. 6. Secure the scene by the issuance of necessary orders and by physical isolation of the area. Unauthorized persons, such as spectators, newspaper reporters, and television crews, must be kept well away from the premises; people milling about a crime scene may obliterate crucial evidence . Uniformed officers can be used to rope off the scene and to post "Police Line Do Not Cross" signs or "Stop: Crime Scene Search Area" cards where appropriate, or specially imprinted tape may be used to cordon off the area. Police officers should be instructed that all witnesses they encounter should immediately be referred to an investigator. 7. Separate the witnesses so that their statements are not influenced by one another. 8. Secure and investigate any additional crime scene, such as a place from which a body was moved or where a vehicle connected to the crime is discovered.3 9. If it is known there is no emergency, avoid rushing to the area of focus (for example, the body in a homicide case); minute but valuable evidence may thereby be altered or even destroyed. (Of course, in the process of rendering first aid, checking for signs of life, or handling some other emergency, a police officer or emergency medical technician may alter the scene and inadvertently destroy evidence, but that is simply the unavoidable consequence of a more important duty and no blame is attached.)4 10. Refrain from moving, or even touching, any object at the scene. It is impossible to restore an item of evidence to its original position once it has been moved. 11. If assistants are available, assign each one definite duties so as to minimize confusion and eliminate duplication of effort. [18.234.232.228] Project MUSE (2024-03-29 01:05 GMT) CRIME-SCENE INVESTIGATION 25 FIGURE 2.1. Array of equipment typically found in a crime-scene vehicle. (Courtesy of Ed Hobson, Orlando Police Department, Orlando, Florida.) Ideally, a crime-scene team such as the following should be assigned to conduct the search: The officer in charge assumes overall responsibility for the effectiveness of the work, gives directions, and delegates assignments. An assistant carries out the directions of the officer in charge. The photographertakes the necessary photos of the scene as well as of each individual item of evidence as it is discovered. The sketcher prepares a rough draft and later a finished drawing of the crime scene. The master note taker records in shorthand such observations and descriptions as others provide, noting...