CRIME SCENE

PROCESSING
CRIME SCENE
PROCESSING
EACH CRIME SCENE IS DIFFERENT AND MAY
NECESSITATE A DIFFERENT APPROACH TO
PROCESSING THE SCENE. HOWEVER THERE IS A
FUNDAMENTAL CRIME SCENE PROTOCOL THAT
SHOULD BE ADHERED TO IN ALL CRIME
SCENES. THESE BASIC FUNCTIONS OR TASKS
ARE AS FOLLOWS:

 INTERVIEW
 EXAMINE
 PHOTOGRAPH
 SKETCH
 PROCESS
INTERVIEW
 INTERVIEW
THE CRIME SCENE TECHNICIAN MUST
INTERVIEW THE FIRST OFFICER WHO
RESPONDED TO THE SCENE OR THE
VICTIM TO DETERMNE THE
“HYPOTHESIS” OF THE CASE. IT DEALS
WITH WHAT ALLEGEDLY HAPPENED,
WHAT CRIME TOOK PLAVE, AND HOW
WAS THE CRIME COMMITTED. THIS
INFORMATION MAY NOT BE FACTUAL
BUT IT WILL GIVE THE CRIME SCENE
TECHNICIAN A FOUNDATION FROM
WHICH TO START.
EXAMINE
 EXAMINE
THE SECOND STEP INVOLVES
EXAMINATION, TO ESTABLISH IF THE
THE “THEORY” OF THE CASE IS
CORROBORATED BY WHAT THE CRIME
SCENE TECHNICIAN OBSERVES.
EXAMINING THE SCENE WOULD MAKE
IT POSSIBLE TO IDENTIFY POTENTIAL
ITEMS OF EVIDENTIARY NATURE,
IDENTIFY POINT OF ENTRY AND POINT
OF EXIT, AND GETTING THE GENERAL
LAYOUT OF THE CRIME SCENE.
PHOTOGRAPH
 PHOTOGRAPH
PHOTOGRAPHING THE CRIME SCENE TO
CHRONICLE A PICTORIAL VIEW OF WHAT THE
SCENE LOOKS LIKE AND TO RECORD ITEMS
OF POSSIBLE EVIDENCE, CRIME SCENE
PHOTOGRAPHS ARE USUALLY TAKEN IN TWO
CATEGORIES:

OVERALL VIEWS
ITEMS OF EVIDENCE
OVERALL ITEMS OF
VIEW EVIDENCE
 SKETCHES AND
INVESTIGATIVE NOTES
PROPERLY REPARED NOTES AND
SKETCHES ARE USEFUL TO AN
INVESTIGATOR AS REFERENCE IN
QUESTIONING WITNESSES,
SUSPECTS AND VICTIMS; IN
PREPARING A REPORT OF
INVESTIGATION; AND TO REFRESH
YOUR MEMORY WHEN APPEARING
IN COURT.
 SKETCH
A SKETCH GRAPHICALLY PORTRAYS
THE SCENE OF A CRIME AND ITEMS
WITHIN THE CRIME SCENE THAT ARE
OF INTEREST TO THE INVESTIGATION.
THE SKETCH, CRIME SCENE
PHOTOGRAPHS AND INVESTIGATIVE
NOTES ARE COMPLIMENTRARY AND
ARE ALL NECESSARRY TO EFFECTIVELY
PROCESS THE CRIME SCENE.
THE SKETCH PROVIDES THE BEST MEANS OF
PORTRAYING DISTANCES BETWEEN OBJECTS
AT THE SCENE.
TWO BASIC KINDS OF SKETCH
ROUGH SKETCH
FINISHED SKETCH OR SCALED
DRAWING

 TAKE NOTE: THEY ARE BOTH TYPES OF

SKETCHES BUT DIFFER TO THE TECHNIQUE
OF PRESENTING THE INFORMATION.
TO COVER ITEMS OF INTEREST TO THE
INVESTIGATION, CRIME SCENE SKETCHES
SHOULD AS A MINIMUM DEPICT THE
FOLLOWING:

 LOCATION OF APPROACHES SUCH AS

PATHS, ROADWAYS, ENTRANCES, EXITS,
SKYLIGHTS AND WINDOW.
 SIZE AND AREA OF THE BUILDING
 EXACT LOCATION AND RELATIVE POSITION
OF ALL PERTINENT EVIDENCE FOUND AT
THE CRIME SCENE
 CAMERA LOCATIONS
IN DEPICTING THE FOREGOING, THE SKETCH
SHOULD DO THE FOLLOWING:
 REFLECT TRUTHFUL MEASUREMENTS VERIFIED BY
ANOTHER PERSON
 INDICATE COMPASS DIRECTION OF NORTH
 DESIGNATE THE ACCURATE SCALE; IF NO SCALE IS
USED STATE THIS FACT
 USE A CONVENTIONAL SYSTEM OF MEASUREMENT
WHETHER ENGLISH OR METRIC SYSTEM, PACES
OR STEPS ARE NOT USED TO DEPICT DISTANCE
 CONTAIN A LEGEND THAT EXPLAINS ALL SYMBOLS
OR LETTERS USED TO IDENTIFY OBJECTS ON THE
SKETCH. MILITARY SYMBOLS ARE USED
WHENEVER PRACTICAL
MORE THAN ONE SKETCH CAN BE MADE OF A
PARTICULAR SCENE
 ONE MAY REFLECT MEASUREMENTS
 CAMERA POSITION
 LOCATION OF ITEMS OF PHYSICAL
EVIDENCE AT THE CRIME SCENE
THE FOLLOWING ARE ITEMS NECESSARY
TO PREPARE A ROUGH SKETCH
SOFT LEAD PENCIL
UNLINED OR GRAPH PAPER
RULER
CLIPBOARD LARGE ENOUGH TO
FORM A SUPPPORT FOR THE
PAPER
STEEL TAPE
COMPASS
WHEN POSSIBLE A FINISHED SKETCH IS DRAWN
TO SCALE FROM INFORMATION ON THE ROUGH
SKETCH. WHEN DRAWN TO SCALE, THE SKETCH
NEED NOT INCLUDE FIGURES TO SHOW
DISTANCES. IF IT IS NOT DRAWN TO SCALE, THIS
FACT SHOULD BE SHOWN AS ON A ROUGH
SKETCH. A COPY OF THE FINISHED SKETCH IS
ATTACHED TO EACH COPY OF THE REPORT OF
THE INVESTIGATION

TAKE NOTE: THE INVESTIGATOR SHOULD VERIFY

ITS ACCURACY AND THE NAME OF THE PERSON
WHO PREPARED THE SKETCH IS INDICATED IN
THE REPORT AND ON THE SKETCH
 A CROSS – PROJECTION
SKETCH
A PROJECTION DRAWING ADDS
ANOTHER DIMENSION AND IN
SOME CASES IS NEEDED TO
EFFECTIVELY PORTRAY THE
CRIME SCENE. ALL
MEASUREMENTS TO POINT ON
A MOVABLE OBJECT ARE MADE
FROM AT LEAST TWO
IMMOVABLE REFERENCE
INDOOR AREAS:
THE TRIAGULATION METHOD IS
USED FOR ALL INDOOR SKETCHES.
IN THIS METHOD, OBJECTS ARE
LOACTED AND DEPICTED BY
CREATING A TRIANGLE OF
MEASUREMENTS FROM TWO OR
MORE FIXED POINTS TO A SINGLE
IDENTIFIABLE PART OF THE OBJECT
TO BE FIXED.
OUTDOOR AREAS:
OUTDOOR AREAS ARE CLASSIFIED INTO TWO
CATEGORIES:
INHABITED – INHABITED
AREAS NORMALLY HAVE WELL
DEFINED FIXED REFERENCE
POINTS AND THE
TRIANGULATION METHOD CAN
BE USED TO ESTABLISH THE
LOCATION OF THE OTHER
OBJECTS.
UNINHABITED OR REMOTE
AREAS – IT MAY NOT HAVE
EASILY DEFINED FIXED POINTS
WITHIN REASONABLE PROXIMITY
AND OBJECTS WILL HAVE TO BE
LOCATED THROUGH THE USE OF
THE INTERSECTION/RESECTION
METHOD AS TAUGHT IN BASIC
MAP READING
 PROCESS
THE FINAL STEP IN THE PROTOCOL IS TO
PROCESS THE CRIME SCENE. THE CRIME
SCENE TECHNICIAN WILL SORT OUT THE
CRIME SCENE FOR EVIDENCE, BOTH
PHYSICAL AND TESTIMONIAL EVIDENCE. IT
IS THE CRIME SCENES TECHNICIANS DUTY
TO IDENTIFY, EVALUATE AND COLLECT
PHYSICAL EVIDENCE FROM THE CRIME
SCENE FOR FURTHER ANALYSIS BY A
CRIME LABORATORY

TAKE NOTE: CRIME SCENE PROCESSING

THIS PROTOCOL SHOULD BE
EMPLOYED IN ALL CRIME
SCENES. WHETHER THE CRIME
SCENE IS A MULTIPLE
HOMICIDE OR RECOVERED
STOLEN VEHICLE WHERE
SEVERAL CRIME SCENES ARE
INVOLVED THE BASIC
PROTOCOL REMAINS
UNCHNGED
ONCE THE CRIME SCENE HAS BEEN
CAREFULLY DOCUMENTED AND THE
LOCATIONS OF THE EVIDENCE NOTED,THEN
THE COLLECTION PROCESS CAN BEGIN.
THE COLLECTION PROCESS WILL USUALLY
START WITH THE COLLECTION OF THE
MOST DELICATE AND MOST EASILY
PERISHABLE EVIDENCE.

PHOTOGRAPHS SHOULD ALSO CONTINUE

TO BE TAKEN IF THE INVESTIGATOR IS
REVEALING LAYERS OF EVIDENCE WHICH
WERE NOT PREVIOUSLY DOCUMENTED
BECAUSE THEY WERE CONCEALED FROM
SIGHT.
EVIDENCE WILL BE COLLECTED IN PAPER
CONTAINERS SUCH AS PACKETS, ENVELOPES, AND
BAGS. LIQUID SUBSTANCES CAN BE
TRANSPORTED IN NON-BREAKABLE, LEAK-PROOF
VIAL CONTAINERS. ARSON EVIDENCE IS USUALLY
COLLECTED IN AIR-TIGHT, CLEAN METAL CANS.

MOIST OR WET EVIDENCE SUCH AS BLOOD,

PLANTS, ETC. FROM A CRIME SCENE CAN BE
GATHERED IN PLASTIC CONTAINERS AT THE SCENE
AND TRANSPORTED BACK TO AN EVIDENCE
RECEIVING AREA IF THE STORAGE TIME IN PLASTIC
IS TWO HOURS OR LESS AND THIS IS DONE TO
AVOID CONTAMINATION OF OTHER EVIDENCE
THE CONTAINERS SHOULD BE CLOSED AND
SECURED TO AVERT THE MIXTURE OF
EVIDENCE DURING TRANSPORTATION. EACH
CONTAINER SHOULD HAVE:

 THE COLLECTING PERSON’S INITIALS

 THE DATE AND TIME IT WAS COLLECTED
 A COMPREHENSIVE DESCRIPTION OF THE
EVIDENCE AND WHERE IT WAS FOUND
 INVESTIGATING AGENCYS NAME AND THEIR
FILE NUMBER
 CARE OF PHYSICAL
EVIDENCE
PHYSICAL EVIDENCE IS ANY
EVIDENCE INTRODUCED IN A TRIAL
IN THE FORM OF TANGIBLE OBJECT,
INTENDED TO PROVE A FACT IN
ISSUE BASED ON ITS
DEMONSTRABLE PHYSICAL
CHARACTERISTICS. PHYSICAL
EVIDENCE CAN POSSIBLY INCLUDE
ALL OR PART OF ANY OBJECT.
 KINDS OF PHYSICAL
EVIDENCES:
 FINGERPRINTS
 BITE MARKS
 BROKEN FINGERNAILS
 QUESTIONED DOCUMENTS
 BLOOD AND BODY FLUIDS
 FIREARMS AND TOOL MARKS
 SHOEPRINTS AND TIRE TRACKS
 FRACTURE MATCHES
 HAIR
 FIBERS
 PAINT
 CHAIN OF CUSTODY
THE CHAIN OF CUSTODY IS A CONCEPT
IN JURISPRUDENCE WHICH APPLIES TO
THE HANDLING OF EVIDENCE AND ITS
RELIABILITY. “CHAIN OF CUSTODY”
ALSO REFERS TO THE DOCUMENT OR
PAPER TARIL SHOWING THE SEIZURE,
CUSTODY, CONTROL, TRANSFER,
ANALYSIS, AND DISPOSITION OF
PHYSICAL AND ELECTRONIC EVIDENCE.