Studied by 43 people
Who are investigators
People who look into the events or situations to find the facts about what happened
What is an investigation
A lawful search
What do you need when a criminal investigation occurs
Reasonable certainty
investigator must be reasonably sure a crime is going to occur
T/F: Investigators may receive anonymous tips
True
Administrative Investigation
Usually non-criminal
Civil investigation
review of property tax records
Employee/employer
contraband, improper use of company equipment
Steps in initiating Investigation
Get on scene
Secure scene/ care and aid injured
Possible arrests- be cautious
Locate witnesses- they have valuable Info identify them, they sometimes don’t wanna talk
Protect crime scene
Interview suspect if possible
Take notes
Make notifications
Enlist help
Write report-who, what where, when why how
Who
o Knows what happened
o Need to talk to
o Witness
o With victim
o Reporting party
o Involved as victim
o Suspect
o Suspects friends/ associates
What
Happened
Was the victim doing
Used to commit the crime
Happened since I was called
Do we know so far
Next 5 things that need done
Time did it happen
Time was it discovered
Time was I called
Relationship between suspect and victim
Where
Did it happen
Is the victim
Informant
Evidence
Witnessess
What is important to remember where the crime happened
Don’t assume anything, and keep jurisdiction in mind
When
Did it happen- can be broad
Was it reported
Victim/suspect last seen
Why
Did it happened- ask victim
Was it reported
Did witnesses not tell you something
Did witnesses tell you certain things- too concise is suspicious
Did crime happen the way it did
How
Did the event happen
Did suspect/ victim get there
Did suspect get away
Did suspect know victim
Was the event reported- call, flagged down
Old is the crime
Much more needs to be done
Qualities of supervisor Investigator
Ethical
Aware- quickly evaluate situations, people, events
Energized- tenacious
Think outside the box
Determined
What investigation is NOT
Prove a particular person guilty
prove a particular person did not commit crime
Job of an investigation
report facts
Let guilt/innocence fall where it falls
Be objective
Importance of field notes
Help you remember
Keeps information accurate and order of events
capturing accurate quotes by suspect
Storage
If you keep notes, keep them organized so you can retrieve them for court if subpoenaed
If you destroy, destroy consistently
What ever you do with your notes, do it __ and __
always, consistantly
aid to memory
takes extensive notes
trivial things can become important facts later on
mechanics of note taking
readable
accurate
concise
Readable
others will need your notes
accuracy
names spelled correctly, measurments
concise
avoid symbols, get most out of few words
Types of notes
3x5
6x9
8x10
3x5
easy, always with you, limited info
6x9
`larger, usually too large to always have
8x10
clumsy, lots of info
Organization
by date, shift area, car assignment, etc
write only on 1 side of page
leave some room
include
Spell names, SSN, DOB, phone #s, addresses, gender, weight, height
Weather
Measurements
Sketches
Drawings
Key word, phrase quote
Investigate personal info- name, business address, phone #s
where to begin
Introduce yourself and ask what happened- Most people are going to be anxious to tell you what they saw
Listen without taking notes initially
Get identifier information
Have them tell story again and makes notes- Ask questions for clarification
Repeat story to them- ask if what you repeated was correct
Give a phone number for them to call with any additional information- I have my name and phone number and asked them to call with any additional information.
other forms of notes
recorder
in car video
video camera
EXAMPLE
o Jones, Bob N
o 2-4-75 506-2104412
o W/M 600 175 Bro/Brow
o 510 N. Main SPFD 09
o Home - 417-557-1234
o Business- 417-555-5432
o Walmart S. Glenstone
o M-F 8-5
1st Rule First Person
Rerefer to yourself as “I”
2nd Rule- Past Tense
Use past tense to describe events that have already occurred
To see
I saw
To tell
Smith told me
to say
he said
to go
We went
For quotes use past tense
Smith told me the suspect said “give me your money”
3rd Rule- Active Voice
Show who is doing the action
I wrote
The report was written by me
I arrested brown
Brown was arrested by me
T/F- If you forget who did what sometimes you will see passive voice
True
4th Rule- Chronological Order
Hard getting started
Develop consistency
Start with date and time (don’t do this)
Solve problem of how to start
Established reason for investigation
All reports may not have a face sheet
Several investigators writing reports
I was dispatched to 710 N. main
5th Rule- short, clear, concise, and concrete words
Use concrete words
Those that have a clear meaning and little or no misinterpretation of their use
Contacted vs spoke with
Observed vs saw
Indicated vs said
Spelling
Use spell check, pocket spell checker, shorter words you know how to spell
Minimize abbreviations
use last names
People with the same last name
use first name
Dr./ Officer- only when acting officially
T/F- You should use radio code and investigative jargon
False
Qoutes
Direct statements you know
Otherwise summarize
Purpose of a report
Document a crime
Corpus delicti (elements of the crime)
Identification of the suspect
Listing stolen property
Establishing MO’s (don’t use in report)
Statical data
For insurance
Investigative tool (most important)
Categorizing people for report
Victims
Reporting party
Suspect
Witness
Parent
Person discovering the crime
Victim
`Someone or some entity that has had a crime committed against them
The recipient of some wrongful act or deed
Determine who was damaged or who owed the damaged property
T/F- A victim can be a person or business
True
Reporting parties
The person who reports the crime to an investigative agency
may or may not be the person who discovered the crime
The reporting party may be _______
Anonymous
Suspect
Only list actual ones here
T/F- In Missouri, suspects information is accessible to the general public
False
T/F- Some jurisdictions only list suspects if there is probable cause for an arrest
True
Witnesses
Someone who has useful information
What can a witnessess knowledge be?
Firsthand or secondhand (hearsay)
Hearsay can be __ ___
very revealing
Obtaining Suspect Descriptions
Sex
Gender
Age
Height
weight
Hair style and color
Eye color
Clothing description starting at the top with outside garments and working down
Anything unusual
Speech impediment
Limp
Nasty teeth
Describe Property in a Report
Involvement
Brand
model
# of pieces
serial numbers
owner applied number
include photos
monetary value
Value
Important in determining if the crime is a felony or misdemeanor.
RSMO
Normally the value of the property will be its market value or if that cannot be satisfactory determine its replacement cost
What dollar amount makes a property crime a felony?
$500 or more
Original cost
What the owner paid for the item
What does officer base their judgment on to determine the fair market value?
Cost of item when new
Current demand for item
What it may be worth now
Victim appraisal
Victim tells the investigator what the item was worth
Replacement cost
What it costs to purchase a new like item
Dealing with Evidence in your Report
Detailed chronological order was collected in narrative.
Generic mention in narrative with more detail on the evidence report
Evidence Report Formats
Most departments and agencies have a policy or special way they deal with evidence in reports.
If a department does not you can use
Guns
Money
Drugs
Items with serial numbers
Items without serial numbers
Chain of Custody
The handling and care of evidence
This all must be documented somewhere.
Note 
Flashcard (48)