Title: Scientific Crime Solving

Anytime Activity

Description: A “dry lab” for solving a crime based on written reports from an investigation. Thanks to Nancy Beckman for submitting this activity.

Time: 45 minutes

Materials: Copies of lab reports and student sheets

Procedures: 1. Hand out the student sheets and discuss how science has become very important to solving crimes. Be sensitive to any students that have been victims of crime. You might wish to ask student before you begin if any students will be uncomfortable talking about a break-in and murder. 2. Be prepared for students to come and ask you questions about the “crime”. You can make up information as you need. The suggested answer is:

The robbery was done by an outside person who came in and meant to steal from the house. He was only able to steal three things and push them outside when the owner came down for a drink of water and heard a noise in the living room. The owner catches the thief at the window and surprises him. So the thief grabs the nearest weapon, an icicle, and stabs the owner who drops the glass and falls to the floor. The thief then runs out of the house.

Yakima Police Department Homicide Police Report Date: 12/15/2006 Officer: Detective Beckman At 8:34 am, the dispatcher received a call from a very agitated cleaning woman, a Mrs. Smith, who reported that she found the front door to one of the residences she cleans open and upon entering saw her employer, a Mr. Jones, on the floor, dead. I was contacted at 8:36 am and in turn contacted the CSI crew to meet me there.

Upon arriving at the residence, I noticed the front door open and some tracks in the snow leading to the side window. I noticed that the side window, from a distance, appeared to have been broken. The CSI crew arrived and catalogued all evidence inside and outside the house. I did not enter the house till after the CSI crew left. I pulled the cleaning lady, Mrs. Smith, aside and asked her to tell me if anything was missing in the house. She stated that two Venetian vases, worth $500 apiece, were missing from the living room and also a Bose Home Stereo System, worth $350, was also missing from the living room. The rest of the house was intact and nothing else was missing.

I then taped off the scene and made sure that it was clear before leaving the site.

This information is correct according to the best of my knowledge. No one entered the house before me except the cleaning lady, and no one entered the house after I left.

Detective Beckman

Addendum: A fingerprint was lifted off the front door knob on the inside and run for matches. It matched a local doctor who I was sent to arrest and search his house. Upon search of his house was found a shirt with blood on the sleeve. The blood was sent to the lab to see if it matches the victim. Upon questioning the suspect, the suspect stated that he was an acquaintance of the victim and visited the victim at his house the day before to drop off some documents. When asked about the blood on the shirt, he stated that the victim had a bloody nose and he simply helped him to get cleaned up, so the blood must have been transferred to his shirt at that time. The victim’s house was searched and the above said documents were found. Because of the plausible explanation for all evidence the murder weapon must be found to convict the suspect.

Crime Scene Investigator Report

Date: 12/16/2006

Upon entering the residence of the victim, Mr. Jones, the door was open and a fingerprint was lifted which belonged to the suspect, the local doctor. The victim, Mr. Jones was found lying face-up with a circular hole about the size of a half-dollar that tapered down to a point upon entering the body. The victim’s shirt was wet and when tested showed that the wetness was simply water. There was a pool of water with traces of the victim’s blood around the victim’s chest on the floor. A glass was found overturned next to the body with water around the mouth of the glass on the floor. The only fingerprints found on the glass belonged to the victim. A pair of fingerprints were lifted from the window but no match was found in the fingerprint database. The murder weapon remains a mystery. Coroner’s Report

Date of Death: 12/15/2006

Time of Death: 1:23 am

The victim, Mr. Jones, dies from a puncture wound to the heart. He was stabbed in the chest. The wound was caused by a cylindrical object with a somewhat pointed tip. There were no defensive wounds to the arms or hands. Upon his death, Mr. Jones was wearing flannel pajama bottoms and a t-shirt which were sent to the CSI lab. Everything else tested at normal levels. This report is correct to the best of my knowledge.

Coroner Name: Date: Period:

Title: Using Science to Solve Crimes

Introduction: The use of scientific method to solve crimes has become well known thanks to TV shows such as CSI. Modern technology and investigative techniques have improved dramatically and crime solving has never been more scientific. In this activity you will use your problem solving skills to look at investigative reports made at the scene of the crime.

Procedures:

1. Read the crime reports and record your observations in the data. Explain what you think each observation means. 2. Make your predictions and check with your teacher to see when you are correct. 3. As soon as you have the answer, do not tell others, give them a chance to find out!

Data:

Observation Explain 1.

10. II. Your question is – What is the murder weapon and why did this murder occur? Using gathered evidence and observations make an educated guess(hypothesis) about the murder weapon. Fill out the blank below.

The murder weapon is a(n) ______because ______

III. Make a prediction using your hypothesis. A prediction is an if/then statement. An example would be – If the murder weapon is a knife then I should find ……. Fill in your prediction below.

If the murder weapon is a(n) ______then ______.

IV. Once you have recorded down the appropriate hypothesis and prediction you need to test your hypothesis by bringing it to the teacher (lab technologist) to gather more evidence.

V. Was your prediction/hypothesis correct? Yes No

VI. If yes, go to number XV below. If no, review the evidence again, record any new evidence and make a new hypothesis.

The murder weapon is a(n) ______because ______

VII. Make a prediction using your hypothesis. A prediction is an if/then statement. An example would be – If the murder weapon is a knife then I should find a knife missing from the kitchen and/or a knife with traces of blood in the suspect’s house. Fill in your prediction below.

If the murder weapon is a(n) ______then ______.

VIII. Once you have recorded the appropriate hypothesis and prediction you need to test your hypothesis by bringing it to the teacher (lab technologist) to gather more evidence.

IX. Was your prediction/hypothesis correct? Yes No X. If yes, go to number XV below. If no, review the evidence again, record any new evidence and make a new hypothesis.

The murder weapon is a(n) ______because ______

XI. Make a prediction using your hypothesis. A prediction is an if/then statement. An example would be – If the murder weapon is a knife then I should find a knife missing from the kitchen and/or a knife with traces of blood in the suspect’s house. Fill in your prediction below.

If the murder weapon is a(n) ______then ______.

XII. Once you have recorded down the appropriate hypothesis and prediction you need to test your hypothesis by bringing it to the teacher (lab technologist) to gather more evidence.

XIII. Was your prediction/hypothesis correct? Yes No

XIV. If yes, go to number XV below. If no, review the evidence again, record any new evidence and make a new hypothesis.

XV. Draw conclusion about how the murder took place and what happened. Record notes below. ______

XVI. Record your theory of how and why the murder occurred. ______