Rigor MortisDeath to 36 hrs

Livor Mortisblood settles in areas of body

closest to the ground

Forensic Entomology –Using insects to assist in time-of-death analysis

Forensic Science

Crime Scene Investigation

ARISN

• Approach.• Render medical aid.• Identify additional victims or witnesses.• Secure the scene and physical evidence.• Notifications made appropriately.

Crime Scene Search

• The crime scene coordinator may choose from a variety of crime scene search patterns based upon the type and size of the crime scene.

• Key is to be orderly and thorough- don’t walk over too much but don’t miss anything.

(a) Spiral

(b) Strip/Line

(c) Grid

(d) Zone/Quadrant

(e) Pie/Wheel

Collecting and Packaging Evidence

• Forceps and similar tools may have to be used to pick up small items.

• Unbreakable plastic pill bottles with pressure lids are excellent containers for hairs, glass, fibers, and other kinds of trace evidence.

• Manila envelopes, screw-cap glass vials, or cardboard pillboxes are also good containers

• “Zip-lock” plastic bags work for dry fibers and fragments – must be dry!

Packaging to Preserve Evidence

• Separate containers–Prevents damage through contact

and prevents cross-contamination

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

Obtaining Reference Samples

• Standard/Reference Sample — Physical evidence whose origin is known, such as blood or hair from a suspect, that can be compared to crime-scene evidence.

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

Chain of Custody

• Chain of Custody—A list of all persons who came into possession of an item of evidence.

• Every person who handled the evidence and where it was at all times must be documented.

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

Case Studies

• O.J. Simpson – Evidence not handled well, leading it suggestions

it was compromised by dishonest forensic analysts and police.

• JonBenet Ramsey– Crime scene wasn’t secured and family friends

and father found body, contaminating the scene.

Visually Documenting the Crime Scene Is Critical

• Video taping• Photographing• Sketching

Photography• The most important prerequisite for photographing a

crime scene is for it to be in an unaltered condition. • Unless there are injured parties involved, objects

must not be moved until they have been photographed from all necessary angles.

• As items of physical evidence are discovered, they are photographed to show their position, size and location relative to the entire scene.

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

Photography

• Overviews then close-ups • A ruler may be placed near the object• Once photographs are taken, the crime-scene

investigator will sketch the scene.

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

Photography

• Photograph as soon as possible.

• Establish a progression of overall, medium, and close-up views of the crime scene.

• Photograph from eye level to represent the normal view.

Photography

• A medium-distance photograph that shows the evidence and its position to other evidence.

• A close-up photograph that includes a scale and fills the frame.

• Acquire prior photographs, blueprints, or maps of the scene.

Sketches

• Rough Sketch—A representation of all essential information, evidence and measurements at a crime scene drawn at the crime scene.

• Finished Sketch—A precise rendering of the crime scene, drawn to scale. This type is not normally completed at the crime scene.

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

Sketches can illustrate where evidence was collected

Vandalia Science Education ©2007 Vandalia Research, Inc. Huntington, WV 25701

Landmark Cases• Mincy vs. Arizona (1978):– Police officers may make warrantless entries and searches

if they believe someone needs aid– However, to return later to gather additional evidence, the

police must have a warrant

• Michigan vs. Tyler:– Fire investigators may search and gather evidence for a

reasonable time following a fire– However by the next day, to gather additional evidence

investigators must obtain a warrant

PRENTICE HALL ©2007 Pearson Education, Inc. Upper Saddle River, NJ 07458

CRIMINALISTICS An Introduction to Forensic Science, 9/EBy Richard Saferstein

“Crime Scene Exception" to the 4th Amendment?

• James Michael Flippo v. West Virginia (1999)• One night in 1996, a petitioner and his wife were vacationing at a cabin in a state park. After

petitioner called 911 to report that they had been attacked, the police arrived to find petitioner waiting outside the cabin, with injuries to his head and legs. After questioning him, an officer entered the building and found the body of petitioner’s wife, with fatal head wounds. The officers closed off the area, took petitioner to the hospital, and searched the exterior and environs of the cabin for footprints or signs of forced entry. When a police photographer arrived at about 5:30 a.m., the officers reentered the building and proceeded to “process the crime scene.” Brief in Opposition 5. For over 16 hours, they took photographs, collected evidence, and searched through the contents of the cabin. According to the trial court, “[a]t the crime scene, the investigating officers found on a table in Cabin 13, among other things, a briefcase, which they, in the ordinary course of investigating a homicide, opened, wherein they found and seized various photographs and negatives.”

• On appeal, the United States Supreme Court disagreed, holding that "searches conducted outside of the judicial process, without prior approval by a judge...are per se unreasonable under the Fourth Amendment". 437 U.S. at 390. Thus, absent an emergency threatening life or limb, a warrantless search of a crime scene is unconstitutional. In sum, there is no "crime scene exception" to the search warrant requirement.

• The result in Flippo is consistent with Mincey. Law enforcement officers remained in the cabin for sixteen hours to conduct the warrantless search of the homicide scene. This was obviously illegal, and the State court ruling admitting the evidence was reversed.

Crime Scene Search Patterns