Description
Take the time to think about the content of this course and how it applies to the homicide scene described below. Your final essay should be a minimum of 800 words and include a minimum of one scholarly reference.
As a Crime Scene Investigator, you respond to a homicide scene at a convenience store/gas station at 3am. Upon arrival, the first officer at the scene informs you that there was an additional employee present during the incident as well as a mother and small child who witnessed the crime.
You also find a deceased victim with a through and through gunshot to the chest.
Other visible items:
1. Lottery Ticket on counter with a bloody, smeared print on it.
2. Black 9mm semi-automatic gun under ice cream cooler. 3. Pack of cigarettes removed from a carton as well as the ripped open carton on the floor in front of counter.
4. Casing by the glass store entry door.
5. Six pack of cold beer on the floor near the beer cooler. 6. Spent bullet embedded in the wall behind the counter. 7. Spilled cigar box of cash on the floor next to the deceased.
8. Fresh cigarette butt only half smoked outside the store in the parking lot.
A. Explain what you would process for fingerprints and why. What processes will you use at the scene? Back at the Laboratory?
B. What steps would you take to determine if any of the people present at the scene may have been involved in the homicide or are merely witnesses?
C. How would you package the evidence that pertains to the fingerprint analysis?
Explanation & Answer
Attached.
Running head: CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION
Crime Scene Investigation
Name
Institution
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CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION
Crime Scene Investigation
The objective of crime scene investigation is solely to assist in determining what
really happened, also known as crime scene reconstruction to positively identify the culpable
person. Crime scene reconstruction is conducted by thoroughly and cautiously documenting
all the conditions, which are visibly present at the crime scene and determining all the
relevant physical evidence. There is a person lying dead on the ground after being shot on the
chest.
Processing Finger Prints
Fingerprint evidence left behind by a victim or a suspect might identify any person at
the crime scene and what he/she actually touched. There is need to locate, lift, and identify
the fingerprint for a successful litigation. Locating the fingerprint necessitates a calculated
and vigilant search. In case where the prints are visible, identification is relatively simple.
The type of fingerprint also determines the effort and time in locating the print. The patent
prints are usually easy to locate as they are visible to our naked eyes. They occur when
someone has grease, blood, ink, or paint on the hand. The plastic prints occur when a person
touches an object like butter, soap, or wax then leaves behind a three-dimensional impression
on the object.
The latent prints are very common and hard to since they are invisible; they occur
when a person touches any non-porous or porous surface. The natural residues and oils on the
finger usually leave behind deposit on the surface which reflects the furrows and ridges
present on a person’s finger. The first phase in searching for fingerprints entails looking for
plastic and patent prints as they are visible. They can be seen sing flashlight. The Second
phase entails a blind search for the latent prints. There is need to concentrate on the entry and
exit points likely used by the suspect as well as all physical items which appear to be
tampered on the crime scene.
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CRIME SCENE INVESTIGATION
The surface will determine technique to be used. For instance, the non-porous
surfaces like plastic, wood,...
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