Criminalistics Chapter 2

physical evidence

any object that can establish that a crime has or has not been committed or can link a crime and its victim or perpetrator

first arriving officer

is responsible for preserving and protecting the area as much as possible

methods for recording the crime scene

notes, photography, and sketches

most common crime scene camera

DSLR

a digital camera captures light on a light-sensitive____

microchip

overview photos of a crime scene should be taken___

first

closeup photos of a crime scene should be taken___

last

search patterns

strip, grid, spiral, wheel, quadrant

plastic pill bottles

can be used to hold hairs, glass, fibers, and other small evidence

packaging for biological materials

paper, envelopes, or paper bags so that it is not airtight which can lead to molding of the evidence

chain of custody

a list of all people who came into possession of an item of evidence

standard/reference sample

evidence whose origin is known, such as fibers or hair from a suspect, that can be compared to crime-scene evidence

buccal swab

a swab of the inner portion of the cheek. used to compare other DNA samples to

substrate control

materials adjacent or close to area where physical evidence has been deposited. used to ensure that the surface on which a sample has been deposited does not interfere with lab tests

4th amendment

you need a warrant from probable cause to obtain evidence or to search