Securing the Crime Scene Essay

How must it be to live in a criminal mind? How must it be to completely loose the sense of normality? I heartily believe that Forensic Psychology holds the key which opens an entire world of psychopathologies, mental deformities, twisted thoughts and repressed needs of bestiality. Besides letting you sink into the most dangerous minds, it gives you the armament to combat everything hiding in there- knowledge.

Forensic Science has contributed to our world a great deal. People often misunderstand Forensic Science and believe it is much more capable than it really is. As a matter of fact what you see on T.V. is around 80% false or over exaggerated in some way. To Start of, Criminal Investigation is the largest and most known form of Forensic Science. Some of the more known areas include; Fingerprinting, Ballistics, DNA Identification, Fiber Samples, Computer Animation, Documentation analysis, etc. To get this out of the way in the beginning, what you saw on last night’s law and order is far from the truth. Things they do in a matter of hours take months at a time, and most of the time aren’t even plausible concepts.

By now the crime scene has been labeled a homicide and detectives have been dispatched to the scene. When the detectives arrive the lead officer will then provide a detailed crime scene briefing to the detective in charge of the scene. This briefing will be the only opportunity for the detective to receive the initial aspects of the crime scene prior to subsequent investigation. Since the crime scene and any/all evidence collected are the key factors in making a case, the crime scene must be documented as soon as possible including, appearance and condition of the scene upon arrival, lights on/off, shades up/down, doors, windows open/closed, any unusual smells, ice, liquids, weather conditions, temperature, and any personal items that may have been left behind. Once the lead detective has been briefed and evaluates the scene him/herself, he/she will then need to determine if consent to search and/or obtaining a search warrant is needed. The scene assessment allows the lead detective

The Insanity defense is mentioned as confusing to the psychiatric and legal concept. Furthermore, it is explained that the word “insane” is more of a legal word, then a medical term, and therefor to prove a person or a criminal insane, one must find the mental condition, of a criminal, severely impaired to the point of losing one’s free will. A psychiatrist may be or may not able to determine such illness, and a jury’s decision solely based on a psychiatrists’ opinion may be grounded on unreliable evidence. Retrieved from; West's Encyclopedia of American Law, edition 2 (2008).

1). Forensic Psychology is the application of the theories of psychology to law and the legal system. Issues of violence and its impact on individuals and/or groups delineate the main and central concerns in Forensics within the adult, juvenile, civil, and family domains. Forensic psychologists provide advice to legislators, judges, correctional officers, lawyers, and the police. They are called upon, for example, to serve as an expert witness, diagnose and treat incarcerated and probationed offenders, and screen and evaluate personnel in the law enforcement and judicial systems. Forensics encompasses a wide range of academic orientation. Synonyms for Forensic psychologists include criminal psychologist,

between a cut (an injury that is longer than deep) and a stab wound (an injury

The first priority for a first responding officer(s) is safety that there is no threat to the officer or citizens at the scene. Once the scene is secured, investigators and forensics personal can process the scene. Once forensics personal is notified this is called “called out”. They should record the date and time of the call out they receive. Once at the crime scene they get a briefing about the incident. Forensic technician should record arrival time, and time briefing is over. Should also document the names and identification numbers of all personal present. Ask if any fragile evidence or area of the scene has been disturbed is important. Tracked blood, shoe or tire impressions from first responder’s activity. Start processing scene. Initial search for evidence is a search conducted by the forensic technician to survey the scene to determine and prioritize task. Records date and time the initial search for evidence. Records notes on areas of interest, and location of evidence. Notes environmental and premises conditions. Always proceed slowly (sight, smell, hearing, and touch) using senses. Night time crime scenes are difficult to see blood, firearm casings etc. hard to locate.

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.

used to looking at a dead body. Then she saw it, clutched in her hand

were the bodies of both Nicole Simpson and Ron Goldman. There was a large amount

The purpose of crime scene reconstruction is to help determine what actually occurred or eliminating actions, events, or suspects through a methodical analysis of identification and examination of physical evidence. By recognizing and identifying the location, impressions, patterns and positions of physical evidence, as well as the scene presentation, an examiner or investigator can apply scientific methods, logic and past experiences to develop a theory in conjunction with information collected from a victim and witnesses (University of Split, n.d.).

Crime scene preservation should be the most important step to any first responder. This protocol should continue to be followed by anyone who processes the scene. From the moment the first responder arrives at the scene, he/she should exercise a pertinacious attitude to insure that curious onlookers and personnel who are not involved in a task related to the scene, remain outside the cordoned

Today, more than ever, the quality of evidence in criminal cases is scrutinized because of contamination. Contamination is the introduction of something that physically corrupts a substance at a crime scene that was not previously there; it comes in many forms and most often times comes from the humans who investigate a crime scene. It is imperative that prevention of cross-contamination is implemented when gathering evidence. Several of the more sensitive forensic techniques such as trace analysis, bloodspatter interpretation, and DNA comparison are not being used to their fullest potential. Items of physical crime scene evidence are not always visible to the naked eye and may be easily overlooked so deliberate and methodical approach to collection and preservation of evidence is essential. Prosecutors have lost cases due to crime scene contamination; this could be prevented by simple and productive behaviors. The U.S. Supreme Court, in a leading case on physical evidence, stated:

The photographer that is present at the crime scene is responsible for making one picture worth a thousand words. Photography plays an integral role in the documentation of physical evidence found at crime and accident scenes as well as during forensic autopsies. Forensic Photographers are among the first crime scene technicians to arrive at crime and accident scenes. They walk through a scene to obtain an overview before they begin taking photographs. Forensic Photographers apply their technical skills and their knowledge of anatomy and forensic requirements to take photographs that convey the information that crime scene, criminal, medico legal, or forensic investigators need documented. These

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.