DH+R1-28+notes


 * Scene of the Crime
 * Crime Scene
 * a location where an illegal act took place...compromises the area from which most of the physical evidence is retrieved
 * crime scene might join two or more places
 * man pushed off hotel balcony
 * hotel and the sidewalk are the crime scenes
 * Crime Scene Analysis
 * a combination of criminalistics and criminology
 * criminalistics - the application of science to the physical evidence, such as bloodstains, DNA, and bullet trajectories
 * criminology - includes the psychological angle, which involves studying crime scenes for motives, traits, and behavior that will help to interpret the evidence
 * Primary Concern
 * preserving the crime scene as not to destroy the evidence
 * the crime scene itself is key to any criminal investigations
 * The Initial Call
 * Steps
 * initial call goes out
 * usually to 911
 * uniformed police arrive and make a decision as to whether they need other personnel
 * note the time and write down or record any other pertinent observations
 * whether doors or windows are open
 * refrain from touching or moving anything
 * evidence is everywhere
 * doorknobs
 * light switches
 * distinct odors
 * lights on or off
 * blinds drawn
 * mail or newspapers piled up
 * food is spoiled
 * if someone is at the scene attempting to clean it up, that person must be stopped
 * After The Call
 * officers must take care to avoid contamination and they must also restrict access to all non-principal personnel, including curious officers
 * too many feet coming into a crime scene can obliterate evidence on the floor or ground
 * if an officer moves something or leaves something behind, it can deflect the diresction of the investigation
 * if they leave footprints orfingerprints, it can confuse the case
 * if they setp on something or touch something, it can obliterate evidence
 * If there is a wounded victim, the first priority is first aid and transport to the hosibal, even if that damages evidence
 * officer should not the person's position when found and record a description of wounds or injuries
 * if the perpetrator is present, the officer makes an arrest
 * any and all suspects are detained
 * officers control the scene by marking the perimeter with tape or an obvious barrier, keeping everyone clear of the defined area
 * prevents the destruction of evidence
 * someone found hanging at the sight
 * body needs to remain hanged until the crime scene unit arrives
 * if the rope looks like it might break, the officer must try to support the body
 * if the body must be moeves, then the officer needs to take accurate notes, sketch the pose of the corpse when found, and transport it in that same pose, if possible
 * An Aside about Sin City
 * Thirty million visitors arrive annually to lose some $8 billion in the casinos, stay in the 125,000 hotel roomes, see shows, or get married in some wedding chapel
 * The city has its own jargon, much of it tied to the casinos
 * Las Vegas appears to be the nation's suicide capita - many of the victims frm out of town and mostly men- must be kept in mind for every death investigation that is not clearly a homicide
 * only a small percentage of suicides jump off biuldings
 * Processing The Scene
 * In the case of a major crime, like a bombing or a homicide, detectives are called in
 * in charge of the investigation
 * rule over the crime scene
 * most difficult aspects of controlling a scene
 * defining its boundaries
 * murder
 * crime scene could extend to other rooms where the killer left traces of his or her presence, out into a hallway, and even into a neighborhood
 * raped
 * raped in one place, then transported elsewhere, the crime scene extends from the point of abduction to the vehicle of transport and to the other location where he or she was left
 * "grid search"
 * the C.S.I.s pwalk the aproximate area, shoulder to shoulder, stopping only when someone in the line signals that something appears to be evidence. A flag is set down in the place where it was found, and this procedure continues until everything is collected
 * crime scene "visual"
 * covers a large area and potentially stretches out evern farther
 * It's rare that C.S.I.s get the chance to return to a scene while it's still fresh, so they have to stay with it as long as possible and pick up everything they can find that might be construed as evidence.
 * an area gets marked off as the spot for taking breaks, storing equipment, and briefing the various personnel who came in
 * mobil crime lab
 * set up there for quick processing of certain types of evidence
 * outer barrier
 * established around the defined scene in order to keep onlookier at a distance
 * first 24 hour period
 * considered the most crucial because the evidence is relatively undisturbed and witnesses have better memoriessuspect's trail is still fresh
 * reporters have generally not alerted him or her to what the police know