Crime Scene Investigation
Crime scenes are not the only way physical evidence is created, but all crime scenes create it. A crime scene may be as small as a closet or as large as several city blocks. Regardless of the size and scope of a scene, the same fundamentals of documentation and evidence collection apply. These concepts are presented in the chapter and illustrated using an imagined crime scene that we will revisit throughout the text. We will explore how digital methods are incorporated in crime scene processing through crime scene mapping and virtual reconstruction.
Learning Objectives
3.1 Understand and discuss the process utilized by CSIs at crime scenes
3.2 Identify the basic search patterns used and what situations they are used in
3.2 Describe the different methods of crime scene documentation
3.4 Understand the chain of custody
3.5 Identify methods used to document, collect, and store different types of physical evidence
Multiple-choice questions
Fill-in-the-blank questions
True or false questions
Matching activity
The matching activity quiz will be added shortly.
Drag and drop activity
Hotspot activity
You arrive at a scene and talk with one of the responding officers. They report that witnesses see two men pull up in a car and park in a gravel lot outside a convenience store. They entered the store, threatened the attendant with a pistol, and demanded cash. The attendant sounded a silent alarm and one of the robbers fired a shot at him. The attendant was not hit and retrieves a shotgun from behind the counter and returns fire. One of the men fell injured to the floor. The other man discharged his pistol as he turned to run. The attendant discharged the shotgun again at the fleeing man ran out of the store and down the street. Police arrived within a minute, secured the scene, and obtained medical help for the injured suspect. As part of processing the scene, you look under the car. What would you collect or not collect and why?