Investigation And Investigation : The Three Elements Of Criminal Investigation

Solving a crime is difficult for detectives. Homicides are even harder cases to solve, the only person that can really tell what happened is dead. So many people are afraid to step up as witnesses, they fear their life would be in jeopardy for helping the detectives. For homicide detectives, the first forty-eight hours is the most critical part for solving a case. After that, the probability of solving the case reduces by fifty percent. Each passing hour gives suspects more time to get away, witnesses more time to forget what they saw, and crucial evidence more time to be lost forever. There are several steps to take in solving a homicide.

Make a decision on whether a crime has been committed and, if so, to begin the criminal investigation

In a criminal investigation case, a victim is usually seeking justice for an offence against them personally. Victims can

One of the first steps in finding out whom the suspect is, is by obtaining and evaluating factual information. You must obtain as much information on the offense as you can.For instance, Harry Franks, a money-order collector, had just walked out of the Cute-Rate store in Fairmount where he was attacked by two guys. These two attackers had thrown acid in Mr. Franks face, beat him and then executed him with a gun. A third attacker pulled up to the side of the curb in a green car in which the other two attackers got into and all three attackers drove off. Information on the

This stage one of criminal investigation is considered to be one of the most important stages of criminal investigation. An unprofessional mistake made by a first responding officer can extensively destroy the whole investigation. By following the correct procedures and rule the first responding officer can eliminate the chance of making mistakes during the initial investigation. The lack of knowledge can also disrupt a criminal investigation. The first responding officer is likely to conduct a successful investigation if he knows how to deal with the problems at the crime scene therefore, the first responding officer need to have good knowledge about the investigative procedures.

The civilian process begins with the investigation. Once an investigation is cleared, warrants are issued and the police make an arrest. In some cases, such as when an officer witnesses the crime taking place, the arrest may proceed the warrant or the case may go straight from arrest to completion

1. Outline and explain the three key goals victims can pursue through the criminal justice system.

Followed by documenting all investigation performed, obtained evidence along with the witnesses and suspects interviews. Always the report should be accurate and with no mistakes, also make sure that everything went thru the proper channels complying with the law, before submitting it to the prosecuting attorney. Finally prepare & testify in court.

After the crime is first reported, the law enforcement officers must open an investigation. Within the investigation, witnesses must be interviewed separately by police, along with the victims, and suspects. Crime scene technicians should also be contacted to collect any type of evidence from DNA, fingerprints, and blood samples. After possible incriminating evidence is collected, it must be sent back to the lab for testing.

An investigation does not just happen. It must be an organized event that occurs. There are many steps that must be taken during an investigation. The first step to an investigation would be to preserve, document, and collect all of the evidence at the scene of the crime. The investigator would then need to establish that a crime has been committed. Once that is established, an investigator must identify all of

Outline and explain the three key goals victims can pursue through the criminal justice system.

So for an example, the investigator can say, this is a murder, the person was stabbed, and the motive was this person was caught having an affair. After the investigator comes up with his hypotheses he/she will then test it, if the evidence does not support his/her theory then he would start over on figuring out what, why and how it all occurred.

They have to make sure that before they entered the crime scene, nothing in the scene should have been moved. While they are going through a walk-through, they may have to construct theories about what happened in the crime scene based on visual examination. Investigators have to take photographs of the scene and will later on be collected. Taking photographs of the scene will help them solve the crime because there are some points of the investigation that investigators may have overlooked evidence, and that evidence could be found in the photographs. After taking photographs of the scene, they will start to collect clue and evidence that may lead them to their possible suspect(s). What they may find in the crime scene are fingerprints which can be done using colored powder and a brush, other thizngs such as blood, firearms, hair, glass and many more things that can be found in the crime scenes.

Nothing is more crucial to any investigation than the actions of the first officers on the scene and the actions they take regarding the preservation of the crime scene, detention of witnesses and an arrest if possible. The immediate objective of the first officers on the scene must be the safety of all parties involved and all else follows

Evidence is the key element in determining the guilt or innocence of those accused of crimes against society in a criminal court of law. Evidence can come in the form of weapons, documents, pictures, tape recordings and DNA. According to the American Heritage College dictionary, evidence is the documentary or oral statements and the material objects admissible as testimony in a court of law (476). It is shown in court as an item of proof, to impeach or rehabilitate a witness, and to determine a sentence. This paper will examine two murder cases, O.J. Simpson and Daniel Taylor.