Forensics

1330 Words3 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Crimes and Criminals

It is a fact of life that murders and other violent crimes are not solved as easily as they are on shows such as CSI and Law and Order. It takes a lot of teamwork, dedication, smarts, and patience to catch the bad guys when it comes to real crime. The differences between what we see portrayed on television and how an investigation works in real life are extraordinary.
Often in shows such as CSI, Law and Order, and Criminal Minds, crimes are solved within the hour. All of the forensic tests, the interviews, the arrest, and sometimes even the arraignment and convictions are done within forty-five minutes or less. In real life that is nowhere near the truth. Some forensic tests can take weeks, months, or even years to come back with the results (National Institute of Justice). In areas of high crime there can be a backlog of samples waiting to be tested. This can result in test results not coming back for periods of months or years. Interviewing suspects and witnesses is not a quick and easy task either. The police need to track down all of the people they feel they need to question. Interviews can run for hours and hours at a time and even occur for days at a time. Sometimes people do not cooperate which can result in the police needing to obtain a warrant. Obtaining a warrant can sometimes be a lengthy process on its own. Often times unless it is an open and shut case, it can take weeks, months, or years for an arrest to actually happen. When an arrest does actually happen, a trial can take years to complete. In order for an arrest and trial to even occur the police have to have evidence to support what they are trying to prove. Evidence gathering is a whole project in itself and is very different from what is shown on television...

... middle of paper ...

...metimes goes past the arrest into the trial and prison stage. Television shows never go too in depth when it comes to what happens after the trial and therefore many people do not have a good idea of what is actually involved.
There are many differences between fictional crime and true crime. Everything from the investigation, to the evidence collection, and the arrest and trial are completely different. Real life crime cannot be summed up into an hour long block. While it is convenient and exciting to watch shows where the bad guy is caught and the crime solved within the hour, it also is fantasy and people need to remember that. We need to be aware of what really goes on in police work and be thankful for the men and women out there who are willing to put their time, energy, emotions, and even their personal safety on the line to solve the crimes of others.

Show More
Related

  • Argumentative Essay On Criminal Minds

    1362 Words  | 3 Pages

    Crime fighting is incredibly time consuming and can be immensely complicated. As I mentioned before, shows will often lead the viewer on to think that one person does all the work at a crime scene. In reality, the process goes more along these lines: When a call is made that needs assistance, a uniformed officer will be the first one on scene. He will do his job of securing the area and making sure any other threats have been neutralized. If he needs, he will call for detectives to come and investigate as well as interview any witnesses in the area. Shortly thereafter, crime scene units will show up and help in recovering physical evidence such as prints or traces of DNA. Following all of these different units and people arriving, the scene and evidence needs to be photographed, documented, and chronicled. Every single member of the team will record his or her own take on the scene by filling out paperwork (Fact vs. Fiction). The bottom line here is that television is

    Read More

  • Mystery Powder Lab Report

    1260 Words  | 3 Pages

    Forensic Science Introduction: Someone in a restaurant has suddenly fallen ill and a mystery powder has been discovered with the victim. As the chief investigator, your duty is to identify the mystery substance through a lab. In this lab, it will consist of five known compounds and one unknown compound. Your job is to distinguish which one out of the five substances is the mystery powder. To figure out the mystery matter you will have to compare their physical and chemical properties and match them with the appropriate compound.

    Read More

  • 1.07 Forensic Evidence

    823 Words  | 2 Pages

    Other evidence located within the grave consisted of a generic watch, two cigarette butts, a button, a washer and a shell casing. All of these could be analysed for finger prints and DNA. The cigarette butts would also show a serial number indicating the brand (shown in Figure 3), which can be useful if it is found a victim or offender smokes a particular type of cigarette.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of Making A Murderer

    2325 Words  | 5 Pages

    “We can all say we’re never going to commit a crime, but that doesn’t mean you won’t be accused.” The trailer of Netflix’s series, Making a Murderer, begins with this statement. Before viewers have even begun watching the series, this quote prods them to go down a scary thought path. Where would you find the strength to stay hopeful while in jail? How would you prove your innocence? Would you succumb to the pressure of pleading guilty for the chance of early parole? The first seven seconds of the trailer captures the viewers’ attention, and from there they are hooked. Netflix creates the infamous good vs. evil scenario in this series. Steven Avery and his family are portrayed as the poor and innocent citizens, while the investigators and prosecutors

    Read More

  • CSI Synthesis Essay

    1065 Words  | 3 Pages

    Specifically, crime shows have given us, the TV audience as a whole, scripts or an expectation of what will/should happen in a variety of situations. It leads people to think about what is appropriate and what isn’t in terms of how the results of these situations play out. For example, in the CSI franchise, as the plot unfolds in each episode, it takes forensic evidence, such as DNA or fingerprints, to convict the villain. Before the technological breakthroughs made in the fields of biology and forensics, juries relied more on circumstantial evidence, and eyewitness accounts to prove someone was guilty. This is just one example of how crime shows have changed the general representations of what is the “correct” way to solve a crime.

    Read More

  • Crime Scene Analysis

    2243 Words  | 5 Pages

    The crime scene was then examined and a list of possible pieces of evidence were recorded down. Including a sketch of the crime scene, Anna Garcia’s house, with the locations of all of the pieces of evidence. All of these items listed help develop a theory about Anna’s death. This theory then helped establish a list of possible suspects. The person of interest list included a number of four individuals and each one had a relation with Anna. The list included (1) Alex Garcia- Anna’s ex-husband. They had an unpleasant divorce the year before and in a result Alex quickly remarried a much younger woman, while Anna remained single. Alex and his newlywed wife are expecting to have a baby soon. Although, Alex may be suffering from a few financial

    Read More

  • crime investigator

    1234 Words  | 3 Pages

    ...im and there are no leads. However when he does have to go to a crime scene, there are crime specialists that are civilians who photograph and collect evidence at his direction. Normally they collect all the evidence, but if there are extreme amounts of evidence to pick up, then he will put gloves on and collect evidence. The investigator always waits for them to get there before any evidence is collected or photograph. Although some law enforcement agencies hired civilians to handle the crime scene processing and forensics, it is more common that the CSI is a licensed peace officer with specialized training that is part of an investigative unit (Orthmann & Hess, 22). If there is weapon at the crime scene, only the investigator can touch the weapon. (Velazquez). Vincent brings his evidence back to his office along with his notes and starts the investigation process.

    Read More

  • How Does CSI Affect Lack Of Forensic Evidence?

    680 Words  | 2 Pages

    CSI is an enthralling hit TV series, which reels viewers into the sinister minds of the criminals and the warped cases that the investigators solve within the hour. It draws in people from the younger crowd as well as older viewers. The shows, set in different cities, allow you to witness investigators sweep a crime scene, collect the evidence, run tests in the lab, and crack the case. Public expectations may influence jury trials if expecting evidence like on CSI. Most of the impact seems to be on prosecution and forensic scientists, easy for defense lawyers to attack lack of forensic evidence

    Read More

  • Criminals: Gaining Cleverness Through Crime Television

    1683 Words  | 4 Pages

    Picture this: it is a weeknight and you are watching Jeopardy or Wheel of Fortune while enjoying a delicious meal with your family. After those programs finish, it is now about eight o’clock. During late night, local channels present new or old episodes of many television shows. There is American Idol, So You Think You Can Dance, The Bachelorette, but most importantly CSI, Criminal Minds, etc. To most viewers, shows like CSI or Criminal Minds capture their attention and find them interesting. Watching the characters solve crimes by either using forensic science or studying the “behavior” of the criminal. Also observing how the crime took place and what exactly was the criminal’s motive. Of course, in reality, it does not take an hour to solve these crimes, or a few days according the shows. For many years, criminological shows entertain hundreds of viewers. My grandmother and I usually watch Criminal Minds every Wednesday night at nine. A criminal can also gain much from reading books or examining earlier killers.

    Read More

  • Analysis Of John Grisham's The Pelican Brief

    1449 Words  | 3 Pages

    Criminal investigations are a very serious matter that take a large amount of time to solve. The Criminal Justice System plays a huge part on cracking down criminal cases. “The Criminal Justice System is a set of

    Read More

  • Forensics in the Criminal Justice System

    334 Words  | 1 Pages

    The criminal justice system has changed a lot since the good old days of the Wild West when pretty much anything was legal. Criminals were dealt with in any fashion the law enforcement saw fit. The science of catching criminals has evolved since these days. We are better at catching criminals than ever and we owe this advancement to forensic science. The development of forensic science has given us the important techniques of fingerprinting and DNA analysis. We can use these techniques to catch criminals, prove people's innocence, and keep track of inmates after they have been paroled. There are many different ways of solving crimes using forensic evidence. One of these ways is using blood spatter analysis; this is where the distribution and pattern of bloodstains is studied to find the nature of the event that caused the blood spatter. Many things go into the determination of the cause including: the effects of various types of physical forces on blood, the interaction between blood and the surfaces on which it falls, the location of the person shedding the blood, the location and actions of the assailant, and the movement of them both during the incident. Another common type of forensic evidence is trace evidence. This is commonly recovered from any number of items at a crime scene. These items can include carpet fibers, clothing fibers, or hair found in or around the crime scene. Hairs recovered from crime scenes can be used as an important source of DNA. Examination of material recovered from a victim's or suspect's clothing can allow association to be made between the victim and other people, places, or things involved in the investigation. DNA analysis is the most important part of forensic science. DNA evidence can come in many forms at the crime scene. Some of these forms include hair; bodily fluids recovered at the crime scene or on the victim's body, skin under the victim's fingernails, blood, and many others. This DNA can be the basis of someone's guilt or innocence; it has decided many cases in the twentieth century. As the times continue to change and the criminals get smarter we will always need to find new ways to catch them. Forensic science is the most advanced method yet, but is only the beginning. As the field of science grows so will the abilities of the

    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 in Pop Culture: The CSI Effect

    1924 Words  | 4 Pages

    In the following literature review, scholarly and peer-reviewed journals, articles from popular news media, and surveys have been synthesized to contribute to the conversation pertaining to forensics in pop culture in the courtroom and the overall criminal justice system. This conversation has become a growing topic of interest over just the past few years since these crime shows started appearing on the air. The rising popularity of this genre makes this research even more relevant to study to try to bring back justice in the courtroom.

    Read More

  • Forensics Anthropology

    882 Words  | 2 Pages

    Forensics Anthropology is the study that goes beyond the human skeleton. A forensics anthropologist can find out. How a person lived, the food that person ate, and the overall make-up of a human. The use of forensics has grown in recent years, it is used to solve crimes and locate missing persons. Snow, (1982) Forensics anthropology is not a new science. The first case forensics anthropology was used on was the Jezebel case, dating back to the nineteenth century. This case involved a person, who was thrown from a window. Snow, (1982) The remains found in this case were the skull, feet, and the palm of the victim’s hands.

    Read More

  • A Career as a Criminal Investigator

    643 Words  | 2 Pages

    Imagine pulling into your driveway and seeing your neighbor’s house surrounded by police, flashing lights, and caution tape with bodies covered in white sheet on the lawn. It was a drive by shooting. Next, a van pulls up and a Criminal Investigator steps out and starts assessing the crime scene. She begins taking photos, marking shell casings, packaging evidence, documenting tire treads on the pavement and inspecting and collecting DNA evidence from the bodies. Criminal Investigators are highly trained college graduates that are a vital part of bringing criminals to justice.

    Read More

More about Forensics

Open Document