Securing the Crime Scene
Isabella Silvestri
Protecting the crime scene is the most important way to collect and preserve evidence. When the police get to the crime scene it is crucial to block off the scene as soon as possible so the evidence remains uncontaminated.
Steps to secure crime scene
1. Establish the boundaries of the crime scene
2. Put police barriers or tape to enclose the scene
3. Remove unnecesary people from the scene, but keep any witnesses and record names
4. Write down conditions and evidence
5. After it had been thoroughly searched, then you may leave the scene
Expectations to work in this field:
Any police officer may be the first to respond to a crime scene. Ultimately, this means every single police officer needs to know the proper requirements and training for when they get there. When the police officer arrives to the crime scene he/she may have to arrest anyone who is suspicious or appears as a a suspect. The police officer may also have to perform life saving tasks on anyone who appears to be hurt. The officer needs to make notes of the conditions of the scene and anything that may seem out of place and anything that appears to be disturbed. Whenever anyone comes in or out of the crime scene the officer needs to take the names, if there are any witnesses there this also applies to them.
How it is used to solve cases:
Securing the crime scene is used to solve cases because it collects all the evidence that there is at the crime scene. Once it is secured, nobody besides professionals can enter or exit the scene. Once the scene is secured, evidence and DNA is collected which can be crucial in figuring out important details in the crime
JonBenet Ramsey Case
In 1996 a six year old boy named JonBenet Ramsey was thought to be kidnapped. Since he was thought to only be kidnapped, police crossed off his room and used that to look for evidence. The rest of the house was not sealed off, which means contamination could have gotten into the room. Eventually the father found the body in the basement, covered it with a blanket and brought her up from the basement. In doing so, the body got contaminated and key evidence that could have been found in who killed her, was lost.
Works Cited
Works Cited:
Editor, EHow Careers & Work. "How to Secure a Crime Scene." EHow. Demand Media, 13 Aug. 2007. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.
"Free Newsletter." Protecting the Crime Scene. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2013.
"Lessons From the JonBenet Ramsey Case." Crime-Scene Investigation and Evidence Collection. N.p., n.d. Web. 30 Jan. 2013. <http://www.cengagesites.com/academic/assets/sites/4827/bertino_chapter2.pdf>.