Criminal investigations test

Frances Glessner Lee

Known as the "Mother of Forensic Science." Created the "Nutshell Studies of Unexplained Death," miniature crime scenes used to train homicide investigators. Advocated for scientific methods in police investigations. Her work helped standardize death investigation procedures.

Initial Response / Securing the Scene

First priority: safety (officers, victims, and the public). Second: preserve evidence by establishing a perimeter. Control entry and exit points. Begin a log of everyone who enters the scene. Prevent contamination or loss of evidence.

Primary vs. Secondary Crime Scenes

Primary Scene: Location where the crime actually occurred. Secondary Scene: Any other location related to the crime (e.g., where a body was moved or evidence was disposed). Both must be processed carefully for evidence.

Interview vs. Interrogation

Interview: Non-accusatory, information-gathering; used with witnesses or victims. Interrogation: Accusatory; used with suspects to gain a confession or clarification. Interviews = open-ended questions; Interrogations = direct and controlled.

Witness, Subject, Suspect

Witness: Person with information about the crime but not involved. Subject: Person possibly connected, but involvement not confirmed. Suspect: Individual believed to have committed the crime based on evidence or behavior.

Background Interviews

Conducted to gather contextual info on individuals (suspects, witnesses, or victims). May include family, friends, coworkers, or neighbors. Helps establish behavior patterns, motives, and credibility.

Serious Criminal Cases

Involve major offenses (murder, rape, arson, robbery, etc.). Require multidisciplinary teams (forensics, detectives, prosecutors). Evidence must be handled with chain-of-custody precision. Often include media involvement and extensive documentation.

Warm-Up

The initial conversation to make an interviewee comfortable. Builds rapport and trust before asking sensitive questions. Encourages openness and cooperation.

Know-Nothing Type

Claims to know nothing about the event. May genuinely not know or may be avoiding involvement. Strategy: Use open-ended questions and establish credibility.

Disinterested Type

Appears unconcerned or apathetic. May be difficult to engage. Strategy: Use personal connection or emotional appeal to draw attention.

Inebriated Type

Under the influence of drugs or alcohol during questioning. Memory and perception may be distorted. Strategy: Delay the interview until sobriety; ensure clarity of responses.

Suspicious Type

Distrustful of law enforcement or motives. May withhold information. Strategy: Build rapport, maintain transparency, avoid aggressive tactics.

Role-playing

Investigator may use role-playing or controlled empathy to gain cooperation.

Helpful Advisor

Interviewee who wants to assist and may offer extra details. Can be valuable but may embellish or assume facts. Strategy: Verify information independently.

Greater and Lesser Guilt

Psychological concept in interrogation. Investigator offers a moral comparison (e.g., 'You made a mistake' vs. 'You're a monster'). Allows suspect to admit to a 'lesser' version of guilt to ease conscience.

Sympathetic Counselor

Investigator uses empathy and understanding to encourage a confession. 'I understand why you did it' approach. Builds emotional connection that lowers defenses.

Knowledge Bluff

Definition: A psychological interview or interrogation tactic where the investigator pretends to know more than they actually do about the suspect's involvement or evidence.

Bluff on a Split Pair

Definition: A split pair occurs when two people involved in the same event (e.g., partners, accomplices, or witnesses) are interviewed separately.

Questioning as Formality

Used when the interviewer already knows much of the information. Designed to confirm facts, document responses, or test honesty. Often seen in follow-up or secondary interviews.

Pretense of Physical Evidence

Investigator may imply the existence of evidence (e.g., fingerprints, DNA) to encourage a confession. Must not fabricate evidence but can suggest possibility. Must remain within legal and ethical boundaries.

Reliving the Event

Technique encouraging witness/suspect to mentally return to the scene. Helps recall sensory details (sights, sounds, smells). Often used in cognitive interviews.

Recalling Details

Encourages interviewee to restate everything, even minor details. Small pieces may later connect to major evidence. Avoid interrupting during recall.

Changing the Order

Asking the person to recount events backward or out of sequence. Helps identify false statements — liars struggle to maintain consistency. Reveals genuine memory patterns.

Changing Perspective

Asking the person to describe the event from another viewpoint (e.g., 'What would the victim have seen?'). Helps uncover new details and test truthfulness. Part of the cognitive interview method.

Lividity

Postmortem process where blood settles in the lowest parts of the body due to gravity. Appears as purplish-red discoloration on the skin. Helps determine time of death and whether the body was moved after death. Typically appears 2-4 hours after death and becomes fixed around 8-12 hours.