Crime Scenes

Several years ago, five boys ranging between the ages of 8 and 12 were found buried together in a shallow grave. The bodies, having been buried for 10 years, were decomposed, but skeletal remains were intact. The bodies had been laid side by side. They were all killed at the same location, and all died as a result of severe blunt force trauma to the head. Over time, crime scene investigators—including forensic anthropologists, homicide detectives, medical examiners, and forensic psychology professionals—reviewed the crime scene.

What is the role of a forensic psychologist in such a case? What information would the forensic psychologist be looking for to determine victim-offender relationships, motivation for the killings, type of offender(s) involved in the killing, and likelihood of past or future violent behavior by the offender(s)? In addition, what information about the crime scene could indicate whether the killings were expressive or instrumental? This investigative behavioral analysis helps the forensic psychologist hone his or her skills in crime scene investigations and case consultation.

For your Assignment, you will examine a case provided through the perspective of a forensic psychology professional.

To prepare for this Assignment:

• Read through the Learning Resources pertaining to the role of the forensic psychology professional in a crime scene investigation.
• Examine the crime scene scenarios in the “Week 5 Crime Scene Scenarios” document from this week’s Learning Resources.
• Select one of the scenarios to be the focus of your Assignment.

By Day 7

Write a 2- to 3-page paper addressing the following:

• Analyze the offender/victim relationships within the crime scene.
• Analyze the offender characteristics from the crime scene.
• What was the primary motivation for the crime? What are some secondary motivations?
• Are any of the following crime scene elements present? If so, describe them and explain their possible meaning.
  • Staging
  • Undoing
  • Posing
  • Signatures
• Was this an example of expressive or instrumental crime? Or both? Explain your reasoning.

Learning Resources

Note: To access this week’s required library resources, please click on the link to the Course Readings List, found in the Course Materials section of your Syllabus.

Required Readings

Hessick, C. B. (2014). The limits of child pornography. Indiana Law Journal, 89(4), 1437–1484. Retrieved from http://www.repository.law.indiana.edu/ilj/

Hilton, J. L., & Watts, C. (2011, January). Pornography addiction: A neuroscience perspective. Surgical Neurology International, 2(1), 87–90. doi:10.4103/2152-7806.76977.

Seto, M. C., & Eke, A. W. (2015). Predicting recidivism among adult male child pornography offenders: Development of the child pornography offender risk tool (CPORT). Law and Human Behavior, 39(4), 416–429. doi:10.1037/lhb0000128

Bukh, A. (n.d.). Famous cases of child sexual abuse. Retrieved August 24, 2016, from http://naasca.org/2015-Articles/040615-FamousCases...

Center for Sex Offender Management. (n.d.). Section 3: Common characteristics of sex offenders. Retrieved August 24, 2016, from http://www.csom.org/train/etiology/3/3_1.htm

Federal Bureau of Investigation. (2014). Child pornography case results in lengthy prison sentences: Couple abused child in their care. Retrieved from https://www.fbi.gov/news/stories/2014/november/chi...

Winerman, L. (2004). Criminal profiling: The reality behind the myth. Monitor, 35(7), 66–68. Retrieved from http://www.apa.org/monitor/julaug04/criminal.aspx
Week 5 Crime Scene Scenarios


Scenario 1
Introduction: Police are summoned by the husband of the deceased after his wife was
found in their basement bedroom, dead from blunt force trauma to her head. Both the
husband, 56, and wife, 52, had been attending a funeral and the deceased decided to
leave early to come home and prepare for the luncheon for those attending the funeral.
Crime Scene: The victim was found lying on her back on the floor at the end of the bed.
The victim had died from blunt force trauma to her head, specifically her face. The killer
had obliterated the victim’s face with a blunt instrument, most likely a shoe worn by the
perpetrator. No other wounds were visible. The victim’s shirt top had been unbuttoned
and pulled back to either side, revealing the victim’s bra. Her outer pants had also been
unbuckled and partially pulled down. Her panties had not been removed. A pillow lay
against the left side of her face. An opened bottle of Vaseline was near the body. The
rest of the room appeared not to be disturbed. Upon closer inspection, a few hundred
dollars in cash had been removed from a desk drawer in the bedroom. In order to do so,
the desk chair would have had to be moved in order to gain access to the desk drawer.
The chair had been placed back in its original position against the front of the desk. A
sliding glass door was partially open and partial shoe prints were visible due to the
tracking of blood from the crime scene, out the glass sliding door, across the lawn, and
over the back fence.
Questions to ponder:
 Who is the most likely to be the killer? A family member? A relative? An
acquaintance? A stranger? Why?
 What can you determine from the crime scene?
 What additional information do you need to help solve this case?
 What was the primary motivation for the crime?
 Are there sexual components to this crime scene?
 Are any of the following crime scene elements present: Staging, Undoing,
Posing, and Signatures?
Scenario 2
Introduction: A girl, 15, and her boyfriend, 16, are found dead late one evening in the
boyfriend’s Volkswagen Beetle, parked behind some tennis courts in an area of a small
town that has low crime rates. They were eating a pizza when both of the victims were
shot to death while sitting in the car. Both victims were good students. She was on the
cheerleading squad, and he was on the high school football team. Neither had any
known enemies. Their parents were devastated. The girl’s mother and stepfather were
home watching a movie the evening of the shooting, as were the parents of the male
victim. No one could offer any insights as to the motivation for such random killings.
© 2016 Laureate Education, Inc. Page 2 of 2
Crime Scene: The female victim had been shot once point blank in the head. Her car
window had been rolled down. The male victim was also shot once through the open
window. He was hit in his right side and bled out in a few minutes. No expended shell
casings were found. The driver’s window was closed. A partially eaten pizza lay in a box
on the lap of the female victim. Nothing was stolen. There was no apparent sexual
assault. No drugs were found nor were they using drugs or alcohol. There were no
reports of any violent crimes in the area for several years.
Questions to ponder:
 Who would carry out such random acts of violence?
 What could be some of the motivations for the killings?
 Do you think there could have been a sexual component to this crime?
 Where would you begin your investigation?
 Who might be able to give you clues to the killer’s identity?
Scenario 3
Introduction: A 15-year-old girl’s body was found just off a park pathway not far from a
pub at about 6:00 a.m. She had been drinking the night before and was seen leaving
the party alone at about 11:00 p.m. She was known to party often and was used to
walking by herself. Her parents had a hard time controlling her behavior. She liked to
dress provocatively and stay out late.
Crime Scene: Victim was found lying in a grassy area, face up. Her throat was slashed
so severely that she was almost decapitated. Her pants had been removed and a near
perfect, circle-shaped incision about the size of an average apple was made through
her lower abdominal wall. Her small intestines had been removed and placed on her
body next to the incision. The victim had not been raped. No one had heard any
screaming or calls for help.
Questions to ponder:
 Who is the most likely to be the killer?
 What can you determine from the crime scene?
 Was this a sex crime?
 What do you think was the primary motivation for this brutal crime?
 Are any of the following crime scene elements present: Staging,
Undoing, Posing, and Signatures?
 Is this the type of crime that the offender might do again?