Chapter 15 Arson

Question 1

Legal categories of Arson (2)

Answer 1

Aggravated arson - deliberate burning of property while creating imminent danger to human life or risking bodily harm.

Simple arson - leader offense - burning of property that does not result in a risk to human life.

Question 2

The police and fire relationship in arsons

Answer 2

Fire fighters - 1. Extinguish 2. Investigate origin of fire 3. Detect possibility of arson but not to investigation

When fire investigation becomes who committed the crime the matter becomes police investigation

Question 3

Preliminary investigation for arson

Answer 3

Arson does not have immediate corpus delicti - investigators role to prove that a fire did occur and deliberately.

Circumstantial and direct can be used to show fire ignited but may not reveal the MO of arsonist

Question 4

First step in arson investigation?

Answer 4

• Identify point of origin.
• Most critical phase because includes ruling out accidental or natural causes.
• materials used in setting fire, type of material being burned, may show distinct burn pattern
• most physical evident may be found at point of origin

Question 5

Finding accelerants in arson investigations

Answer 5

Accelerants at fire scene prove it was set intentionally
Accelerants = chemical fuels that cause fires to burn hotter , quickly , make difficult to extinguish
Accelerants may still be in charred debris

• sniffer dogs can find accelerants *

Question 6

Headspace gas chromatography

Answer 6

• one of Mose advanced techniques for detecting accelerants in fire debris
• separating mixtures of gases into their individual components based on different boiling points of their hydrocarbons
• Each gas in the mixture can then be identified
  If accelerant is used, a small amount will likely still be present in charred debris.

Question 7

Observe span of fire

Answer 7

Determining span of fire can be beneficial
Physical characteristics of smoke , direction, flames and distances traveled are important
Debris from the fire should be tested for accelerants

Question 8

Photograph the scene

Answer 8

Photographs of strict should be taken to preserve scene

Pictures of other evidence should also be taken

Question 9

Identify plants or trailers

Answer 9

Plants : preparations used to set the fire including newspapers rags or other flammable waste material

Trailers : materials used in spreading the fire. These include gunpowder

Question 10

Alligatoring

Answer 10

Pattern of crevices formed by the burning of a wooden structure.
Resembling the skin of an alligator this pattern reveals minimum amount of charring, with alligatoring in large segments when a fire is extinguished rapidly.
As fire continues to burn the alligatoring becomes smaller with charting becoming deeper

Question 11

Other clues unifications dire of suspicious origin is arson

Answer 11

• flames - color of flame (ex: blue orange represents burning alcohol)
• smoke - black smoke petroleum base , white smoke indicates straw or hay (vegetable matter )
• size of the fire - ex: engulfed in flames in short period of time arson
  Odor- “investigators should try to detect orders by using their own OLFACTORY SENSES

Question 12

Arson for profit

Answer 12

50% of fire related property damage

Includes business owners setting fire for insurance

Question 13

Arson for revenge

Answer 13

Jealousy spite
People targeting both individuals and property
After revenge has been identified as possible motive the list of suspects can be narrowed

Question 14

Arson for vandalism

Answer 14

Almost always by a juvenile 95% time
Can include children experimenting with fire
Some theories suggest children set fires to call for help

Question 15

Arson for crime concealment

Answer 15

It is common to cover up crime using fire
Murder burglaries and other crimes have been concealed through fire
Investigators must consider this as an alternative motive for all fires

Question 16

Pyromania

Answer 16

Compulsive fire starter
Impulsive , their acts seldom planned and the perp gets some sort of gratification from starting the fires
Investigators revealed PYROs have sordid last which includes being abused as a child bed wetting and cruelty to animals

Question 17

Serial fire starters

Classified as : (3)

Answer 17

Mass arsonist : set three of life fires at same location.

Spree Arsonist : sets fires at three or more separate locations with no cooling off period in between

Serial arsonist : sets three or more separate fires with a definite cooling off period in between them , this period could be days weeks or months

Question 18

Fire triangle

Answer 18

Heat, fuel, oxygen - without the fire triangle there can be no fire

Question 19

Reasons why prosecution of arson crimes may never occur

Answer 19

1 there is nobody qualified or trained to conduct investigation
2 the time required for a thorough arson investigation by police of fire is not available
3 prosecuting attorneys are reluctant to file and pursue prosecution - this is the most prevalent reason because arson cases are difficult to prosecute

Question 20

Bomb searching techniques (3)

Answer 20

First room searching sweep
Second room searching sweep
Third room searching sweep
Fourth time searching sweep

1- divide area and select a search height
2- start from bottom work up
3- start back to bCk and work toward eachother
4- go around the walls and proceed toward center of room

Question 21

Four primary elements of terrorism

Answer 21

Premeditated
Politically motivated
Violent
Committee against non-combatant targets

Question 22

Domestic vs international terrorism

Answer 22

Domestic - unlawful use of threatened use of force by a group or individual - based and operating entirely within the US WITHOUT foreign direction , against people or property to intimidate or coerce a government population for social or political objectives
International - violent acts that are danger to human life that are violation of the law of the US or any state - assassination, kidnapping - outside of US and national boundaries