Research Paper on Crime Scene Investigators

Introduction

The first scene of the crime laboratory was constructed in 1910 in France by Edmond. Edmond explained that it was impossible for the criminals to escape the scene of the crime without leaving behind some traces of evidence which can be used to trace them. His principle led to the discovery of the crime forensic science, which refers to an accumulation of methods which can be used to collect , develop and analyze the physical evidence collected from the scene of the crime (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). The crime scene investigation which is done by the experts who are commonly referred to as the crime scene investigators and the process involves collecting relevant details which are then analyzed. The investigators who are involved in the crime scene plays various roles that include managing the situation at hand. They need to ensure that the available evidence is kept and handled in the right way as a measure of making sure that there is adequate information to solve the crime involved. The public tends to hold different views on the roles played by the CSI on the work of the investigating officers.

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A Scene of the Crime Investigator

A criminal scene investigator is usually a law enforcement officer whose duties and responsibilities include the identification, collection, preservation, and packaging of any physical evidence obtained in a scene of the crime. Their work is mainly confined at the scene of the crime. The crime scene investigator may be an expert in finger-printing, DNA collection, and sampling, an expert in ballistics, a leader in the crime scene, a forensic photographer, a technician in the crime scene and a sketch artist in the crime scene. The crime scene experts are mostly employed by the state, federal and local law enforcement agencies (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). Additionally, they are employed by the state department of police, The Federal Bureau of Investigations. Depending on the nature of the crime scene. The crime scene investigators perform various kinds of duties ranging from the standardized collection and preservation of evidence to the more specialized ones of DNA recovery. The CSI is vital in conducting investigations where a crime has happened. Some of the functions of the CSI include the following:

• Giving testimonies in court regarding the evidence collected
• Working in collaboration with the law enforcement officer to ensure that the evidence at the crime scene is not contaminated.
• Supervising the transportation of the physical evidence to the laboratory for preservation
• Repairing and maintaining the scientific tools used in investigations
• Using the scene of the crime tools in collecting evidence (Burney & Pemberton, 2016).

The Role of the Scene of the Crime Officer in Law Enforcement

The Scene of the crime Phenomenon has recently occupied a central place in the mainstream and social media. The scholars, as well as the media, have taken a keen interest in how the CSI has affected the legal system more especially in the United States. The scholarly inquiries on the effects of the CSI are fewer, and the evidence presented from both the anecdotal and academic accounts have mixed findings (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). However, there is no study carried out to show how the Crime Scene investigation has affected the operations of other law enforcement officers. Where there are several studies conducted on the effect of CSI on the juries, no studies shows how the CSI has influenced and affected the perceptions and operations of other law enforcement officers. This is shocking because the police officers arrive first at the scene of the crime and it is their responsibility to ensure that the crime is solved. Therefore, the aim of this study is, therefore, to examine the beliefs and attitudes about the effect the CSI has amongst the officers charged with the responsibility of ensuring that law and order are observed (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). The following are the aims of the study:

1. To thoroughly examine the beliefs and attitudes about the effect of CSI on law enforcement officers in the US
2. To analyze and examine any institutional or professional changes these officers have made due to the CSI effects (Burney & Pemberton, 2016)

The Study on the Public Perception About the CSI Officers

The study used a web survey which was self-administered, and it was administered to 500 law enforcement officers at the federal, county, state and the local levels and the areas under the jurisdictions which are special laws. The administration of the survey which done in a manner such that each agency and department responded once. Out of the 500 surveys issued three hundred agencies returned the forms which translate to a 60% rate of response. The results of the study showed that law enforcement officers have a perception that there exists a Scene of the crime Investigation in public (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). The law enforcement officers who were surveyed showed that there had been a lack of details in the last decade.

The respondents additionally stated that forensic science issues were being addressed when the trial arguments were being done. The results of the research showed that the law enforcement officers for the last ten years had made drastic changes in the manner they handle in the manner they have criminal investigations. These findings show that the CSI has an impact in the manner the law enforcement officers perform their duties (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). The open-ended questions which were used gave the respondents an opportunity to give more details of incidents where the respondents strongly believed that the Scene of the crime Investigation changed the criminal investigation outcome. Most of the respondents of the open-ended questions explained that the law enforcement officers were being interrogated on the evidence collected and the training the respondents received. The findings of this study are the first academic study which demonstrates the support that the law enforcement officers believe that the CSI affects criminal justice. The findings generally show that the Crime scene investigators play a significant role in conducting investigations through the evidence they collect from the scene of the crime (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). The perception of the members of the public was based on the significant roles placed by the CSI in the scene of the crime and further investigations.

Why the Public Thinks the CSI Influences Other Law Enforcement Officers

When the CSI arrive at the scene of the crime they ensure first, that the area has been secured after which they begin the process of ensuring that they collect as much evidence as possible which can be used to identify the culprit and act as evidence in a court of law. When enough evidence is collected, the people at the lab are able to perform their duties effectively in the identification of the culprit (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). Different types of scenes require different types of evidence to be gathered. However, generally some of the evidence that the scene of the crime offices need to gather immediately they secure the area to ensure that there is no evidence which is tampered with include the human hair. The other traces of evidence to be collected include fibers, blood, semen, pieces of paper, paint chips, tree seeds, the soil samples, and broken glass. These kinds of pieces are important during the laboratory analysis in conducting the DNA and other microscopic investigations. Apart from the trace evidence the CSI look for the evidence that they can cast\.These include the tire tracks, footprints and the tool marks (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). When this evidence is found the CSI photograph them and then go ahead to prepare to make castings.

The CSI experts are also trained to deal with these evidence at the scene of the crime because if they are poorly handled, they are likely to interfere with the evidence (Burney & Pemberton, 2016). Through the use of the current technology the officers are able to do some forensic work at the scene of the crime such as the use of the Hexagon OBTI to confirm if the blood sample found is for animals or human beings (Houck, 2012). This information is important so that they can gather the right type of evidence. If for instance, after testing the sample tests positive for human blood the CSI officer, it gives him/her very important information that he can use while continuing with the investigations. If for instance, the suspect tried to hide some blood the officers are trained on how to spray the solution of Bluestar on the suspected surface. The Bluestar has the ability to fluoresce on coming into contact with any sample of blood. The officers can then take a photo of the sample. The CSI officers also function as surveyors because they are the ones who draw maps and diagrams of the scene of the crime scene (Houck, 2012). The diagrams and other documentation are required in the court of law to act as evidence in the process of the reconstruction process of the scene of the crime.

There are mapping systems available which make the reconstruction of the scene of the crime possible for CSIs. However, they face challenges when the crime happens in the remote areas or along the coastline where facilities are not available therefore the documentation of the evidence becomes challenges. As technology advance, the CSI also have to advance their skills in information technology (Houck, 2012). The current areas that they are required to use advanced technological skills include the bullet trajectory, the spatters of blood and the collect way of gathering sensitive evidence, such as drugs and computers. The main reason as to why the CSI officers require advanced training is purposely not to damage the evidence collected which can endanger the evidence hence jeopardizing the whole process of the legal system. For example, some people who suspect that their fraudulent activities might be traced place their computers in such a way that the hardware crashes the computer when they are not well handled. If such an incident occurs, it means that the evidence will be lost. The more a CSI officer on the ground the easier it becomes for the ones who will be doing the analysis in the laboratory (Houck, 2012). The proper collection of evidence is important because that same evidence will be used to build a very strong case in case the CSI is required to testify in a court of law as an expert.

For a scene of the crime investigator to perform all those delicate duties, he must undergo thorough training in order to gain such knowledge and skills. Additionally, the officer should possess qualities such as natural curiosity, must be keen on observing things, meticulous and have skills in solving problems. They also need to have superb verbal and written skills because they will be required to write reports about the scene of the crime where they collect the evidence from. The verbal skills are also important because they are required to make oral submissions in court when presenting evidence in a court of law. In their training, they take certain courses that are related to their work so that they can perform their duties effectively ones they graduate. Such courses include anatomy, criminal justice, forensic techniques, and statistics (Houck, 2012). The CSI work hand in hand with the police officers because the police are the ones who will eventually take the cases to court, but their duties are to give evidence rather than prosecuting the case.

Conclusion

The CSI officers are very important professionals in the criminal justice system because their absence will make it impossible to sustain any convictions in a court of law. That is so because other investigative agencies rely...