Case Study: Murder of Ashley Smith

2999 Words6 Pages

Introduction

The purpose of this paper is to discuss and analyze the practices conducted by law enforcement during the investigation of the murder of Ashley Smith. The following pages will discuss the crime scene investigation, the evidence collection, the investigative steps following the initial crime scene investigation, the interviews of witnesses and suspects, and other strategies performed by the acting case investigators. Constitutional challenges have surfaced regarding specific pieces of critical evidence and a section of this paper will analyze the admissibility of this evidence. Lastly this case’s law enforcement processes will be contrasted with textbook processes in an effort to determine the validity of the case’s outcome.

The Crime Scene

On 11/3/00, two truck drivers discovered the deceased body of fourteen-year-old Ashley Smith in a wooded area behind the Pizza Hut, located on Old Annapolis Rd. Local authorities were dispatched and D/CPL. Glenn Case was designated as the primary investigator on the case. Upon arrival, D/CPL. Case observed that the medical examiner had already examined the body, evidence had been collected, photographs of the crime scene had been taken both on ground and from a helicopter (aerial view), and D/CPL. Case was advised that the victim had not yet been identified. The victim’s body had what appeared to be several stab wounds to her neck and abdominal area. D/CPL Case will later be advised by medical examiners that the victim had been stabbed thirty-four times and had also been manually strangled. The victim’s body was positioned with her head facing towards the Pizza Hut parking lot. The positioning coupled with bloody drag marks on the concrete suggested that the victim had been ...

... middle of paper ...

...e resulted arrest of the suspects reflects this applicably.

References

Bond, J. (2007). Value of DNA Evidence in Detecting Crime. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 52(1), 128-136.

Moston, S., & Engelberg, T. (2011). The Effects of Evidence on the Outcome of Interviews with Criminal Suspects. Police Practice & Research, 12(6), 518 - 526.

State by State Compliance. (2010). Retrieved from http://www.vegress.com/index.php/can-i-record-calls-in-my-state

Swanson, C. R., Chamelin, N. C., & Territo, L. (2012). Criminal investigation. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.

Technical Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation (2000). Crime Scene Investigation: A Guide for Law Enforcement-Research Report (NCJ 178280). Retrieved from U.S. Department of Justice website: http://www.fbi.gov/about-us/lab/forensic-science-communications/fsc/april2000/twgcsi.pdf

Show More
Related

  • The Casey Anthony Trial: The Trial Of O. J. Simpson

    1077 Words  | 3 Pages

    Even though the prosecution presented evidence to the court, the only clear-cut hard fact the prosecution had against Anthony was that she failed to file a report for her missing daughter Caylee and that when she finally did a month after her daughter had gone missing, she proceeded to lie profusely to the authorities on the events that took place. The prosecution focused highly on the forensic evidence of decay located in the trunk of Casey Anthony’s car. The use of a cadaver dog to search the vehicle led investigators to be able to determine that a decomposing body had been stored in the trunk of the car. The forensics department used an air sampling procedure on the trunk of Casey Anthony’s car, also indicating that human decomposition and traces of chloroform were in-fact present. Multiple witnesses described what they considered to be an overwhelming odor that came from inside the trunk as it where the prosecution believes Caylee’s decomposing body was stowed. Several items of evidence were ruled out to be the source of the odor, as experts were able to rule out the garbage bag and two chlorine containers located in the trunk as the source. The prosecution alleged that Casey Anthony used chloroform to subdue her daughter and then used duct-tape to seal the nose and mouth of Caylee shut, inevitably causing her to suffocate. Based off the

    Read More

  • Jonbenet Ramsey: The Murder Of Jonbenet Ramsey

    1939 Words  | 4 Pages

    The murder of JonBenet Ramsey has become one of the nation's notorious unsolved murder mysteries. A wide range of crime scene investigators and police officials have searched for clues for JonBenet's killer, but countless authorities have already considered this murder to be one of the most inexplicable cold-cases in America. As the world marks the twenty first year anniversary of the tragic event with still no standing suspects, an abundance of evidence proven through research points to one suspect in particular.

    Read More

  • Synopsis of Anatomy of a Murder Movie

    1814 Words  | 4 Pages

    Gardner, T. J., & Anderson, T. M. (2013). Criminal evidence: Principles and cases (8th ed.).

    Read More

  • Actual Innocence Essay

    1941 Words  | 4 Pages

    Ofshe, Richard J., and Richard A. Leo. The Social Psychology of Police Interrogation: The Theory and Classification of True and False Confessions (1997). Web. 28 Nov. 2011.

    Read More

  • Scott Peterson Case Analysis

    784 Words  | 2 Pages

    In November 2004, Scott Peterson was found guilty and charged with two counts of murder for the death of his 8-month pregnant wife Laci Peterson, and prenatal son Conner Peterson. It was not until one month later, the jury had recommended Scott Peterson be sentenced to death by lethal injection. Before his conviction, there was no substantial evidence submitted during the trial that linked Peterson directly to the death of his wife and their unborn child. In fact, the only physical evidence presented to the court was a single strand of Laci Peterson’s hair attached to a pair of Scott’s pliers. The evidence was deemed circumstantial on the basis that it did not deliberately constitute the murder weapon.

    Read More

  • The Bodies Are Talking: Will Society Listen?

    3892 Words  | 8 Pages

    On Thanksgiving evening, November 27, 1992, Sergeant Kenneth Mathison and his wife Yvonne drive their 1988 tan Ford van along Route 131 in Hilo, Hawaii. The rain is pouring down and before he knows it, Kenneth Mathison is awaiting police assistance as he cradles his wife’s dead body in the back of their van. Mathison, a sergeant of 25 years with the Hilo Police Department was allegedly informing his wife, a maternity nursing professional at the Hilo Medical Center, that he was being investigated in his second paternity suit. According to Mathison, when Yvonne heard the news, she jumped from the passenger side of the van. While he was looking for her in the blinding rain, Mathison purportedly ran over his wife. He then carried the body into the van and secured it with yellow rope in the back before attempting to find help. Will the forensic evidence support Mathison’s account of that fateful evening?

    Read More

  • Love Triangles

    706 Words  | 2 Pages

    When the first responder got to the scene he adimatately meet the 911 caller, who lead him to a car in an apartment parking lot. The car doors were closed and all of the windows were fogged. The police officer used his flashlight to see inside of the car before opening the door. He found a young African American woman who had been shot several times. The officers quickly called for backup, investigators and medical personnel. While awaiting for their arrival he secured the crime scene with caution tape, creating an initial perimeter setup as discussed in lecture two. Once everyone arrived he left it to them to search the car while he talked to the 911 caller, witnesses and others who had information on who had been present in the car. The investigators were able to collect physical evidence of bullets and cartage casings that were found outside the vehicle and inside the vehicle on the floorboard of the driver’s side. The team determined the bullets came from a 40 caliber. Other types of physical evidence that were found on the scene were the bloody clothing on the victim, the victim’s cell phone and fibers in the car from the driver’s side. personnel at the scene crime took several photographs, powered test for finger prints and did a blood spatter analysis. Stewart’s autopsy revealed that she had been shot at close range in the left hand once and in the

    Read More

  • Crime Scene Investigator Research Paper

    977 Words  | 2 Pages

    In today’s time, modern Crime Scene Investigation has increased rapidly. From throughout the late 1900’s and in the early 2000’s (Taylor 1). For all of the evidence that they find, a solid foundation has formed over the thousands of years of Crime Scene

    Read More

  • Ron Williamson, The Innocent Man

    914 Words  | 2 Pages

    The relationship between law enforcement and prosecutors, which goes hand-in-hand, can’t be overlooked. Evidence of a crime that detectives and law enforcement discover is as equally important as a good trial on part of the prosecution. If detectives aren’t able to find good solid evidence – that case usually isn’t bothered in being pursued. Several years ago, in the late 80’s, there was a murder case in Southeastern Oklahoma which now serves as a tragic example to the need for honest, constitutional work in the criminal justice system. Disreputable investigative procedures, fraudulent sources, and bad evidence were the foundation of this case that shattered innocent lives.

    Read More

  • Forensic Evidence Admissibility For or Against in the Bloodsworth v. State Case

    1944 Words  | 4 Pages

    ...lice or lawyers used their integrity. The police skirted around the law and use evidence that the witnesses said was not correct. They had a description of the suspect that did not match Bloodsworth but, they went after him as well. They also used eyewitness testimony that could have been contaminated.

    Read More

  • Anatomy of a Murder: Four Expert Witnesses

    1469 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gardner, T. J., & Anderson, T. M. (2013). Criminal evidence: Principles and Cases (8th ed.).

    Read More

  • Collecting the Evidence From a Crime Scene

    1095 Words  | 3 Pages

    Andrus, R., Bailey, J., Sprague, T., Springer, F., Tulleners, F., Wiersema, S., et al. (n.d.). Crime Scene

    Read More

  • Forensic Psychology Literature Review

    1703 Words  | 4 Pages

    Roesch, R., & Rogers, B. (2011). The cambridge handbook of forensic psychology. Canadian Psychology, 52(3), 242-242-243.

    Read More

  • Processing a Crime Scene

    1194 Words  | 3 Pages

    Gaensslen, R. E., Harris, H A., & Lee, H. (2008). Introduction to Forensic Science and Criminalistics. New York, NY: The McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. .

    Read More

  • Forensic Science History Essay

    836 Words  | 2 Pages

    Forensic science has now been recognized as an important part of the law enforcement team to help solve crimes and cold cases. The advances in technology are being used each day and we must continue to strive to develop better advances in this field. The recent discovery of using DNA in criminal cases has helped not only positively identify the suspect, but it has helped exonerate hundreds of innocent individuals. “With new advances in police technology and computer science, crime scene investigation and forensic science will only become more precise as we head into the future.” (Roufa, 2017) Forensic science and evidence helps law enforcement officials solve crimes through the collection, preservation and analysis of evidence. By having a mobile crime laboratory, the scene gets processed quicker and more efficiently. Forensic science will only grow in the future to be a benefit for the criminal justice

    Read More

More about Case Study: Murder of Ashley Smith

Open Document