Police officers and detectives play vital roles in the detection, investigation, and solving of crimes. In order to effectively solve a crime, a series of procedural steps must be followed. It is extremely crucial that the steps be completed in the proper order, not taking any short cuts or skipping steps. If steps in the investigation process are not executed properly or are skipped, your case has just been compromised, possibly resulting in an inaccurate verdict. Although each crime scene investigation has the same stages or steps required in the investigation process that need to be completed, the nature of the crime and evidence gathered will possibly differ, resulting in the use of different investigative techniques and resources.
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Howell's book, Homicide Investigation Standard Operating Procedures, 1999, the primary responsibility of everyone partaking in the investigation of a homicide is to document everything. This means from the first officer to arrive on the scene, to the lead investigator(s), to the evidence technicians, and any others who assist in the investigation. Thorough documentation by everyone who assisted on what they saw, what they heard, what they did, and when they did it is a crucial process in the investigation. Proper documentation and accurate note taking will close more cases than the most insightful detective every …show more content…
We know that we have the victims body that is deceased, the roommate who's shirt was covered in blood, and the knife on the floor. These specific items of evidence were all in plain sight, visible to the naked eye. It is extremely viable that we still search the crime scene thoroughly for any clues or evidence that may not be as easily visible or in plain sight. Missing evidence that is of importance to the case can result in our case becoming compromised. Having all of the evidence relevant to our case will give us a clear, precise explanation of precisely exactly happened and in what chronological order. As a detective who has been called to a crime scene to investigate an apparent homicide, the first thing that must be done is to examine the obvious possibilities of what took place. Where did the crime occur, has the victims body been tampered with or moved, have any other objects on the premises been moved, and were there signs of a struggle? This thought process will build the foundation for the detective as to where the crime occurred and other important details, such as whether any evidence has been tampered with. After we have completed the process of gathering, photographing, and properly containing the evidence, we turn it over to the medical examiners for further testing. Examining the victims body will tell us if in fact we are actually dealing with a homicide, also confirming that the
Howell's book, Homicide Investigation Standard Operating Procedures, 1999, the primary responsibility of everyone partaking in the investigation of a homicide is to document everything. This means from the first officer to arrive on the scene, to the lead investigator(s), to the evidence technicians, and any others who assist in the investigation. Thorough documentation by everyone who assisted on what they saw, what they heard, what they did, and when they did it is a crucial process in the investigation. Proper documentation and accurate note taking will close more cases than the most insightful detective every …show more content…
We know that we have the victims body that is deceased, the roommate who's shirt was covered in blood, and the knife on the floor. These specific items of evidence were all in plain sight, visible to the naked eye. It is extremely viable that we still search the crime scene thoroughly for any clues or evidence that may not be as easily visible or in plain sight. Missing evidence that is of importance to the case can result in our case becoming compromised. Having all of the evidence relevant to our case will give us a clear, precise explanation of precisely exactly happened and in what chronological order. As a detective who has been called to a crime scene to investigate an apparent homicide, the first thing that must be done is to examine the obvious possibilities of what took place. Where did the crime occur, has the victims body been tampered with or moved, have any other objects on the premises been moved, and were there signs of a struggle? This thought process will build the foundation for the detective as to where the crime occurred and other important details, such as whether any evidence has been tampered with. After we have completed the process of gathering, photographing, and properly containing the evidence, we turn it over to the medical examiners for further testing. Examining the victims body will tell us if in fact we are actually dealing with a homicide, also confirming that the