The criminal investigation process starts at the initial crime scene with the first responders. The instigation of a crime scene includes the distribution of officers to an incident after they have been informed of a crime. These officers are called the first responders which consist of police officers, paramedics and firefighters. Investigations into Felonies(serious crimes) usually have three key stages:
1. Instigation and initial response – This involves the dispatch of officers to an incident after a report of a possible crime or felony and all operations carried out by the officers
2. The investigation – Where a crime is allocated for investigation, investigators should develop a clear plan for how they intend to bring the investigation
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The first officers have to determine(firstly if a crime has been committed) the nature of the crime committed and if it is of a serious nature then they must contact scene of crime officers(SOCOs) to come and collect evidence along with other roles. First officers must also identify and separate the witnesses which is one of their other priorities, witnesses must not be able to converse with each other because they might be able to create a story by working together, this is called collusion. Officers will need to ask each witness the …show more content…
They manage resources required to locate, preserve, record and recover evidence. Senior investigating officers(SIOs) are the lead investigators in cases that involve homicide, rape or any other crime of a serious nature. Their roles include acting as the lead officer in charge of the investigation as outlined by the code of practice under part II of the criminal procedure and investigations act 1996. They also develop and apply the investigative process and the effective management system. Furthermore, they manage the resources allocated to the specific investigation.
One important procedure SIOs must carry out is the review of the fast track actions carried out and those that will be carried out during the investigation. These fast track actions include:
Identify suspects
Intelligence
From a trial strategy point of view, you always start with the piece(s) of evidence you believe are most damaging to the client's case and work backwards looking for an exploitable flaw in the search and seizure procedure that would make that or those item(s) inadmissible. The further back in the series of events you can argue a fatal flaw, the more likely that the evidence and any additional materials which flowed from that particular item of evidence will be excluded. This is the practical analysis of all the times we see or hear of law enforcement arguing that there was some technical item which drew their attention and suspicion and justifies their hunch that criminal activity is afoot.
The RAND Criminal Investigation Study: Its Findings and Impacts to Date. (1979). Rand.org. Retrieved 2 September 2017, from
Lyman, D. Michael; Criminal Investigation, The Art and Science; 3rd edition, 2002 Prentice Hall. Pgs. 188-200.
The police conduct a preliminary investigation then later conduct a secondary or follow up investigation. The primary goal of the preliminary investigation is to secure the crime scene to protect the integrity of the evidence. The follow-up investigation is when they thoroughly collect, preserve and relinquish the evidence to the evidence tech in the lab with a chain of custody form.
Denise Moore 's criminal report starts the investigation. A police investigation of a crime is the entryway into the criminal justice system, once Denise Moore reported the crime, Detective Riley and Detective Clay conducted a photo lineup, an investigative tool used when the suspect is unknown and not in custody, to identify the suspect (Burns, 194).
When an individual enters the criminal justice system, it always begins with the police. So in order for police to be involved in any situation, there has to be a crime committed or violation of any law which has been put in place by the government. As the police act as the enforcement agents of these laws, they are the first ones to be involved. There are four steps that police follows when there is a crime – the crime itself, the report of the crime, the investigation of the crime, and the arrest to finish this process – these are the very basic avenues which police follows.
The part of the unit known as the internal affairs department is under the inspection unit section. The main job of an internal affairs investigator entails keeping a close eye on department’s policies and procedures by conducting “internal quality control inspections” (Dempsey, Frost, & Carter, 2014) (p. 99). Other duties that one must consider when working in this area of the unit according to (Dempsey, Frost, & Carter, 2014) is to focus on suspected “misconduct and corruption of other officers” (p. 99). They must ensure that all employees within the department are adhering to the rules and conducting themselves in the manner that the system, guidelines and policies requires. Another main objective that the internal affairs division has is to uphold the integrity of the department. In fact, according to (Dempsey, Frost, & Carter, 2014), “they are the police that police the department” (p. 247).They do so by making any improvements and putting new practices into practice and making sure officers are abiding in those protocols and
This is where the crime scene unit (CSU) comes in to play as well as the detectives. Once the detectives arrive on the scene they will be looking for a suspicious individual or individuals and speak to witnesses and take their testimonials or story, they basically tell the investigator what they observed. On a crime scene investigation packet it states "when seeking for witnesses and taking their testimonials it is best to separate them so no individuals have identical stories." Once this has been done and the investigator takes the testimonials they must determine if a crime took place. For example if a person was stabbed in the abdomen and first responders arrived and trying to help the victim and he dies then the crime that took place was a aggravated battery but turned into a homicide. If a person was sexually molested and beaten while being molested then the crime that occurred is a sexual battery and rape. Once this is completed then the investigator will determine the nature of the crime. What this means is that if it is a violent crime, a website
When there is a criminal case, are a set of guidelines a criminal investigator should follow when conducting a preliminary inquiry. These guidelines consist of arriving to a crime scene in a timely manner just in case the suspect may still be at or near the scene (Hess, K.M & Orthmann, C.H., 2013). They will need to take care of any injured person or people that may need emergency care. Check to see if there are any witness seen what had happen. Make sure the crime scene is safe and secured. Once the crime scene became secured that will be the time to start questioning the victims, witness and or the suspects. This would also be the time for some officers to conduct a neighborhood canvass (Hess, K.M & Orthmann, C.H., 2013). Measuring, taking photograph, videotape and sketching the scene just in case the weather is bad that day. Search for evidence,
Criminal Investigative Analysis is an investigative tool used by law enforcement officials to help determine the unknown offender of a specific crime, usually involving violent crimes. The purpose of Criminal Investigative Analysis is to create a profile containing characteristics of the offender who committed a certain crime. Law enforcement then uses this profile to help determine a possible suspect that fits into that profile. The Criminal Investigative Analysis has been crucial in solving some very large cases, where law enforcement had no leads and used this tool to come up with a possible suspect. The media has influenced the view that the public has between what the media portrays how law enforcement conducts an investigation
First responders play a crucial role in the establishment of a crime scene. Upon arriving at the scene, the first responders have checked for living victims and have rendered aid. It’s important to create a perimeter around the crime scene (this can be altered if additional evidence is found outside the initial crime scene). Only emergency personnel should enter and exit from the central entry point to control contamination, by creating an exit point; it helps avoid any excessive traffic through the crime scene. By secure the scene to ensure that no evidence is misplaced or damaged, or otherwise compromised. Do a cursory check of the crime scene to obtain any transient evidence and secure any weapons found at the scene (in this case it was already at the scene with the suspect). Crime scene analysts and investigators communicate with first responders and are quickly briefed on the situation, and now a more thorough search can be conducted.
probable explanation for the crime event in which they are investigating. For experts they use the
The criminal investigation process is able to achieve justice to a great to a great extent. They are effective in achieving justice, as they are able to balance the rights of the victim, offenders and society and also provide fair and just outcomes. For these reasons, the criminal investigation process is largely able to achieve justice.
Criminal investigation may be a terribly troublesome and dangerous operation of police work. Once a criminal offense happens, a police officer goes to the scene of the crime, gathers information, and searches for for the potential suspects. If in case, there are witnesses to the crime; criminal investigation becomes easier because the suspect is know. Downside arises once the cops don't have any witnesses to the crime and there's no physical proof found within the cri...
Since the old times primary investigations do not typically yield enough information to prosecute a criminal case. The information yielded in criminal investigations may be used to prosecute a criminal case or can even assist in a federal case. Even though primary investigations can identify a lot of evidence and information, a secondary investigation will usually identify further details and allows for a second look at everything pertaining to the investigation. This paper is to explain criminal investigations and the necessary tools and skills needed to conduct and thorough investigation.