Transcript FORENSIC SCIENCE - Killarney School

Chapter 3: THE CRIME SCENE
“Oh, how simple it
would all have been
had I been here before
they came like a herd of
buffalo and wallowed all
over it.”
—A. Conan Doyle, in The Boscombe
Valley Mystery, 1892
CRIME SCENE
Students will learn:
 The steps to take when
processing a crime scene.
 The type of evidence that
determines what packaging
should be used.
 Why the chain of custody must
be preserved.
Students will be able to:
 Isolate, record, and search for
evidence at a mock crime
scene.
 Collect and package evidence
at a mock crime scene using to
proper forensic procedures.
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CORPUS DELICTI
“Body of the Crime”
 You must prove
 that a crime occurred
 that the person charged with the crime was responsible for the
crime
 Top Reasons for Committing a Crime
 Money
 Revenge
 Emotion—love, hate, anger
 Source of Evidence
 Body
 Primary and/or Secondary Crime Scene
 Suspect(s)
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CRIME SCENE TEAM
 A group of professional investigators, each
trained in a variety of special disciplines.
 Team Members
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First Police Officer on the scene
Medics (if necessary)
Investigator(s)
Medical Examiner (if necessary)
Photographer and/or Field Evidence Technician
Lab Experts
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CRIME SCENE
INVESTIGATION
Based on the scientific method and the
Locard Exchange Principle, logic and forensic
techniques
 Involves:
 Recognition—scene survey, documentation,
collection
 Identification—comparison testing
 Individualization—evaluation and interpretation
 Reconstruction—reporting and presenting
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PROCESSING A
CRIME SCENE
 Isolate and secure the
scene
 Document the scene
 Search for evidence
 Collect and package
evidence, maintaining
the chain of custody
 Submit evidence to the
crime lab
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FIRST OFFICER
ON THE SCENE
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A
Assess the crime scene
and assist those hurt
D
Detain the witness
A
Arrest the perpetrator
P
Protect the crime scene
T
Take notes
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CRIME SCENE SURVEY
Walk-through—performed by the crime scene investigator, the first officer
and sometimes the lead detective
Purpose:
 Mentally prepare a reconstruction theory
 Note any transient or conditional evidence that could change over
time.
 Note weather conditions
 Note points of entry or exit, as well as paths of travel within the crime
scene
 Record initial observations of who, what, where, when, and how
 Identify special needs within the crime scene for personnel,
precautions or equipment and notify superior officers or other
agencies
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DOCUMENTATION
 Notes—date and time, description of the location, weather
and environmental conditions, description of the crime,
location of the evidence relative to other key points, the
names of all people involved, modifications that have
occurred and other relevant information
 Photography—photos of scene and surroundings, midrange to close-up photos with various angles of each
piece of evidence, photos as viewed by any witnesses.
 Sketches—inclusion of date, time, scale, reference
points, distance measurements, names of investigators,
victims, suspects, and a legend (key)
 Videography—allows narration (non-subjective) to be
included
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SEARCH METHODS
 Line or strip method—best in large, outdoor scenes
 Grid method—basically a double-line search; effective,
but time-consuming
 Zone method—most effective in houses or buildings;
teams are assigned small zones for searching
 Wheel or ray method—best on small, circular crime
scenes
 Spiral method—may move inward or outward; best used
where there are no physical barriers
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CRIME SCENE SKETCH
Date: August 14, 2005
Time: 11:35 am
Criminalist: Ann Wilson
Location: 4358 Rockledge Dr, St. Louis, Mo.
N
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COLLECTING AND
PACKAGING EVIDENCE
 One individual should be designated as the evidence
collector to ensure that the evidence is collected,
packaged, marked, sealed, and preserved in a consistent
manner
 Each item must be placed in a separate container, sealed,
and labeled
 Most fragile is collected and packaged first
 Different types of evidence require specific or special
collection and packaging techniques
 The body is the property of the coroner or medical
examiner. The collection of evidence on the body is done
by that department
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PACKAGING
Most items should be packaged in a
primary container and then placed
inside a secondary one. These are
then placed inside other containers
such as paper bags, plastic bags,
canisters, packets and envelopes
depending on the type and size of
the evidence.
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CHAIN OF CUSTODY
There must be a written record of all people
who have had possession of an item of
evidence.
 The evidence container must be marked for
identification
 The collector’s initials should be placed on the
seal
 If evidence is turned over to another person, the
transfer must be recorded.
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CRIME SCENE
RECONSTRUCTION
Stages
 Data collection
 Hypothesis formation
 Examination, testing and analysis
 Determination of the significance of
the evidence
 Theory formulation
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INVESTIGATORS
“The wise forensic investigator will always remember
that he must bring all of his life experiences and logic
to find the truth. This means common sense,
informed intuition, and the courage to see things as
they are. Then he must speak honestly about what it
adds up to.”
—Dr. Henry Lee
Chief Emeritus for Scientific Services and the
former Commissioner of Public Safety for the state of Connecticut
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THE MEDICAL EXAMINER
AND THE CORONER
 A medical examiner is a medical doctor,
usually a pathologist and is appointed by the
governing body of the area. There are 400
forensic pathologists throughout the U.S.
 A coroner is an elected official who usually
has no special medical training. In four
states, the coroner is a medical doctor.
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MEDICAL EXAMINER’S
RESPONSIBILITIES
 Identify the deceased
 Establish the time and date of death
 Determine a medical cause of death—the injury or disease that resulted
in the person dying
 Determine the mechanism of death—the physiological reason that the
person died
 Classify the manner of death
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Natural
Accidental
Suicide
Homicide
Undetermined
 Notify the next of kin
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THE CORPSE
“The way I see it, being dead is not terribly far off from
being on a cruise ship. Most of your time is spent
lying on your back. The brain has shut down. The
flesh begins to soften. Nothing much new happens,
and nothing is expected of you.”
—Mary Roach. Stiff. W. W. Norton &
Company. 2003
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ACTIVITY
Evaluating a Crime Scene
Crime scene: The body of a scientist, whose name and identity are being
withheld, is discovered in a science lab at the local high school. The body is
located in the corner of the classroom in a sprawled position, faceup. The
victim is wearing a disguise of some kind, and a small amount of dirt is lying
nearby. There is some evidence of a struggle, and foul play has not been ruled
out. A broken beaker is found next to an overturned microscope. It appears
that the victim may have attempted to identify the aggressor by writing an
incriminating note, which is found torn and crumpled next to the body. Blood,
hair, and fiber evidence are collected at the scene along with a variety of
fingerprints. Police are baffled by what actually took place. Consider each of
the possible scenarios as to how the scene was handled. Carefully review
each, taking into account proper crime scene processing.
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Scenario A:
One morning, a teacher, Mr. Woodward, enters a classroom to find
the body of a former science teacher sprawled on the classroom
floor. He immediately checks the body for a pulse. Hearing a janitor
in the hall, he calls him into the room. The janitor notices the blood
around the body and, wearing gloves, attempts to clean it up,
hoping to avoid its spread to the rest of the room. Meanwhile, Mr.
Woodward runs next door and calls the principal, Mr. Glynn. The
principal, having just entered the office, hurries down to the crime
scene. He moves around the area, carefully avoiding the body.
Making a quick decision, he calls the superintendent at home, who
immediately calls the police. The first officer to arrive at the scene
puts up a barrier and posts guards at the entrance to the room. The
forensic technician soon arrives to process the crime scene.
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Scenario B:
An early morning janitor spots the body through the classroom door and
immediately calls the police. The first officer to arrive enters the room and
walks around the body, accidentally stepping in the blood and tracking it
through the soil, leaving a bloody shoe print on the floor. He quickly wipes his
shoe on the lab coat and checks the body for a pulse. Finding none, he calls
for additional help. As he waits, he views the crime scene. Spotting the
torn and crumpled paper on the floor, he smooths it out and pieces it
together. Some blood, apparently from the body, is on the note, making it
difficult to read, so he replaces it where he found it. The second officer to
arrive at the scene puts up barrier tape and isolates the scene, preventing the
teacher and principal from coming in. The forensic technician soon arrives to
process the scene.
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Scenario C:
Patrolling the halls in the early morning hours, security officer Morgan
notices a light on in the classroom. She slowly opens the door and notices the
body on the floor. She immediately calls for backup and secures and isolates
the scene, preventing anyone from entering the room. As the supporting
officers arrive, she places a barrier around the area and posts guards at the
scene. The second officer to respond attempts to enter the area but is not
allowed to enter until the forensic experts have completely recorded the
scene and collected the evidence.
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Questions
 1 What is physical evidence? List some examples.
 2 Use what you have learned to describe how the crime scene was contaminated as well as how
incorrect procedures were used in Scenario A. What was done correctly?
 3 Use what you have learned to describe how the crime scene was contaminated as well as how
incorrect procedures were used in Scenario B. What was done correctly?
 4 Use what you have learned to describe how the crime scene was contaminated as well as how
incorrect procedures were used in Scenario C. What was done correctly?
 5 Make a sketch of the crime scene your teacher has set up in the back of the classroom. Be sure
to include all measurements, scale, and a legend identifying what piece of evidence corresponds
to the position in the sketch.
 6 After you have completed the sketch, take detailed notes describing the scene an all
information pertinent to the crime.
 7 What type of evidence should be collected from the crime scene?
 8 Make a list of the controls that would need to be collected in this case for comparison.
 9 Discuss the type of packaging that should be used for each type of evidence in the scene.
Explain your reasoning.
 10 What steps should be taken in this case to maintain the chain of custody?
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Additional Projects
Each group of students can find, or be assigned, a case where the
crime scene was compromised.
For example,
•the Manson murders,
•the O. J. Simpson case,
•the Enrique Camarena case,
•the Jon Benet Ramsey case,
•Ted Binion murder case,
•the KFC crime,
•Mexico murders investigation involving Canadians (specifically connected to a
former KCI grad),
•Dr. Jeffrey MacDonald case
A poster should provide a synopsis of the crime, the case, and how it was
botched.
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PEOPLE IN THE NEWS
Dr. Michael M. Baden is a renowned pathologist
and was the Chief Medical Examiner in NY City
and for Suffolk County.
Dr. Baden was on the panel that investigated the
assassinations of president John F. Kennedy
and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. He has been
involved as an expert in forensic pathology in
many cases of international interest including:
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The remains of Tsar Nicholas of Russia and his family
The Claus Von Bulow murder trial
Expert witness for the defense in the O.J. Simpson trial
Re-autopsy of Medgar Evers, Civil Rights leader
Re-examination of the Lindberg Kidnapping and murder
Autopsies of the victims of TWA Flight 800
Dr. Baden is the host of HBO’s Autopsy series and
is featured on many of the crime talk shows.
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MORE INFORMATION
For additional information on crime scene
investigation, check out Court TV’s Crime Library:
www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/forensics/crimescene/5.html
On Michael Baden and the autopsy:
www.crimelibrary.com/criminal_mind/forensics/autopsy/1.html
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