Crime Scene Investigation Flashcards
Immediate action
What should be done On arrival?
Arrival
• Park in safe place
• Note time, weather etc
• Consider safety and approach to scene
• Locate informant - ask to point out where crime occurred and to id victim and suspect and their whereabouts
• Record and mark out clear path into scene. Avoid path taking by offender
• Take care not to contaminate or destroy evidence
Immediate action:
What should be done enroute?
Enroute • Obtain all info available • Consider risks and plan approach • Get description of suspect - vehicles, direction of travel • Discuss roles and responsibilities
What is the first priority?
Victim: when injured
Victim
• When injured:
• first aid, ambos, record injury, if likely to die try to obtain statement - may be admissible (S.18 Evidence Act)
• Note or record position before moved/
• If hospitalised, accompany, obtain and preserve clothing, get names of dr’s and ambo personnel. Give sitrep to O/C investigation.
What is the first priority?
Victim :When showing no signs of life?
- When showing no signs of life:
- Check for signs and render assistance if alive
- Don’t move body unless alive and necessary
- If moved, don’t return to original position
- Stand still, record what you can see - position of body and exhibits
- Note cond. of clothing - wet, bloody, disarranged?
- Sketch plan of room or sight - note position of all you can see
What should be done with witnesses?
Witnesses - separate, contain, interview
Describe steps to establishing order at a scene:
Control
• Remove all people from scene
• Ensure they don’t disturb, take anything, contaminate
• Assemble in clear area and stay with them
• Warn not to talk to each other
• Obtain full particulars - prelim interviews
• Unless arrested, can’t force them to cooperate.
When dealing with a suspect what should you do?
Dealing with suspect
• Ensure does not leave scene
• Don’t arrest unless absolutely necessary and even then only if you have GC to suspect
• Separate from witness and other suspect
• Note appearance, conduct, demeanour
• Conduct prelim search and prevent disposal of evidence
What should CIB staff be briefed on? O/C scene?
Do police have a right to photograph lawful prisoners?
What if they refuse?
- Situation
- What has been, is being and needs to be done
- All MOP who initially attend need to record their observations
What should O/C scene be briefed on?
O/C scene when arriving on scene:
• Thorough briefing from police in attendance
• Ensure scene cleared and witnesses contained.
• Victim and suspect taken separately from scene to station
• Check scene boundaries and adjust
• Brief all police on their duties
• Est. log for those entering and a common path route into scene
• Make preliminary recon to see what urgent action may be required to preserve evidence/exhibits
• Consider hot, cold, warm zone method
Do police have a right to photograph lawful prisoners?
What if they refuse?
Prisoner photographs
• Those in lawful custody may be photographed by police (at police station or other place used for police purposes)
• Refusal is an offence - imprisonment not exceeding 6 months, fine not exceeding $5000 or both.
When should/must a police photographer be used?
- If there has been a fatality or if prosecution is likely or a major enquiry is likely.
- The exhibits themselves cannot be presented in Court
How should an accelerant be collected and packaged?
Accelerants
• Recover pools of suspicious liquids by drawing up the sample using a sterile adequately sized syringe and then decant into an accelerant container
• Smaller amounts swab with cotton wool
• seal in nylon bags or clean dry, airtight glass jars/metal containers
How should a bite be treated?
Bites
• No not touch a bite mark
• Swab area with the wet and dry swabbing technique
• If on skin trace using clear acetate sheet and permanent marker pen. obtain cast if skin is broken. Swab for saliva.
• If on food, preserve food by wrapping in tissue moistened with a formalin solution. Send to dental specialist.
How should hair be treated?
How should exhibits obtained from crime scene be managed/ seized/ packaged?
Should evidence containing blood/biological material be sealed immediately if wet?
What is a POL143?
How should control samples be stored and transported?
What are four categories of biological material?
What are the different types of blood staining?
What is the chain of evidence?
What is contamination and how does it occur?
What is cross-contamination?
Define Degrade
DefineDeteriorate
What is a crime scene? Examples
What is an elimination sample?
What is the golden hour?
How is the ‘integrrity of evidence’ maintained?
What are latent prints?
Are they visible to the naked eye?
Are they visible in grease and blood?
What determines the ‘order of examination’
What is persistence?
What is physical evidence?
What is primary transfer?
What is secondary transfer?
What is significance?
What is trace evidence?
Can it be seen by the human eye?
Describe the zonal system: What uses does each zone have?
How does a buccal swap differ from a saliva sample?
What is the decontamination zone model and when is it used?
What action should be taken at scene (O/C scene) - in terms of the scene itself after all freeze control preserve action has been tended to:
1. Make plan of scene
What further enquiries should be made?
What should be done with the suspect?
Hair
• Recover with translucent tape and sandwich between acetate sheet.
• Use tweezers and place on sellotape as above. Record where recovered from.
• For general hair and fibre taping work over an item (ie. car seat) systematically in a grid fashion.
• Label all as exhibits
• Securely package and seal tapings in envelopes/sleeves.
• Package loose fibres in screw top containers.
• Package, seal, label asap to avoid contamination
How should exhibits obtained from crime scene be managed/ seized/ packaged?
Crime Scene Examination
• Package, seal and label exhibits as soon as they are taken
• Do not reuse any packaging
• Seal with tape and sign across
• Do not reopen after sealing until examination stage
• Completely dry evidence containing blood or other body fluids before packaging. Affix biohazard warning labels to the outer.
• Place evidence contaminated with human blood or other potentially infectious materials in sealed multi wall paper sack and label with biohazard warning. Avoid plastic and sealed jars when dealing with biological material as this will cause rapid degeneration of DNA.
• Attach label that includes, exh no. description of item collected, location of item, time and date found, by whom collected, from whom collected (if applicable)
• Store and transport control samples and items from each person in separate outer containers (ie. large paper sacks)
