Criminal Justice: CRJU 1062 Methods of Criminal Investigations

1. Target Selection
2. Data collection
3. Data collation and analysis
4. Dissemination 

Surveillance in Investigations 

FDA: Criminal Investigations

Criminal Investigation

Methods of Criminal Investigations

In methods of criminal investigations students will gain an understanding of the following topics:

Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation

Foundations And History Of Criminal Investigation

The Crime Scene: Identification and Collection of Evidence

The Crime Science: Field Notes, Documenting, and Reporting

Follow-Up Investigative Processes

Identification of Criminal Suspects: Field and Laboratory Services

Legal Issues in Criminal Investigation

Information Gathering

Interviews and Interrogations

Criminal Intelligence and Surveillance Operations

Management of Informants and Undercover Operations

Crimes Against Persons

Death Investigations

Robbery

Assault and Related Offenses

Missing and Abducted Persons

Crimes against Children: Child Abuse, Child Fatalities, and Exploitation

Crimes Against Property

Theft-Related Offenses

Arson, Bombings, and Terrorism

Vice and Profit-Related Crime

Special Investigations: Drug Trafficking and Gangs

Special Investigations: White-Collar, Corporate, and Computer-Related Crimes

Prosecution

Preparation for Court

The objectives of criminal investigations are:

• Detect crime
• Locate and identify Suspects in crimes
• locate, document, and preserve evidence in crimes
• Arrest suspects in crimes
• Recover stolen property
• Prepare sound criminal cases for prosecution

Types of Investigations:

Personal background

Suspected violations of criminal law

• Death Investigations
• robbery
• Assualt & related offenses
• abduction or missing person
• child abuse, child fatalities, exploitation
• theft
• arson, bombing, terrorism
• white-collar, corporate, and computer related

Infractions to civil law

Vice (drug and organized crime)

Processing a crime Scene:

Preliminary Investigation: initial inquiry by officers to establish the facts and circumstances of a suspected crime

• Secure the scene
• Considering the possible arrest of suspect
• locating and questing witnesses and victims
• documenting crime scene
• identifying and collecting evidence

Evidence:

Locard exchange principle: Every contact leaves a trace

• Put in place by forensic scientist Edmond Locard

Walk-through

Scene search

Collect evidence

Interview witnesses

Crime scene report

Follow up investigation

Interviews & Interrogations:

Interview: nonaccusatory. Formal conversation conducted for the purpose of obtaining information

• Develop plan of action
• conduct interview in private
• Place interviewee at ease
• Be a good listener
• Ask the right questions
• don't dispute the subject's answers
• maintain control of interview
• take brief notes
• adjourn interview properly

Interrogation: designed to match information with a particular suspect to a secure confession

Goals:

• To learn the truth of the crime and how it happened
• To obtain an admission of guilt from suspect
• To obtain all facts tp determine teh method of operation and the circumstance of the crime
• To gather information that enables investigators to arrive at a logical conclusion
• To provide information for use by prosecutors in possible court action

Types of witnesses:

Fact: Personal knowledge of events can testify to only things he or she personally observed

Experts: opinions that may assist the judge or jury in understanding specialized technical knowledge that is beyond expertise of the jury

Police officers: straddle the fact and expert witness categories. may be asked what he observed or did and may be asked about an opinion 

Preparing for Trial:

Officers should Cooperate fully with prosecutor: Pretrial conference, pass on all information beneficial to the case, disclose all flaws in the case

Be familiar with rules of evidence

Do not communicate with defense attorney unless approved by prosecutor

Have all witnesses available when ready to testify

Have all evidence that is to be presented available

Review all notes of the case

Testifying:

• Confine testimony to known facts
• Avoid expressed opinions or conclusions unlessed authorized by rules of evidence
• Do not volunteer evidence
• Speak calmly and audibly in natural voice
• Use plain and easy to understand terms
• Maintain self control