U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice Crime Scene Investigation A Guide for Law Enforcement research report U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs 810 Seventh Street N.W. Washington, DC 20531 Janet Reno Attorney General Daniel Marcus Acting Associate Attorney General Laurie Robinson Assistant Attorney General Noël Brennan Deputy Assistant Attorney General Jeremy Travis Director, National Institute of Justice Department of Justice Response Center 800–421–6770 Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice World Wide Web Site World Wide Web Site http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij Cover photograph of man on the ground by Corbis Images. Other cover photographs copyright © 1999 PhotoDisc, Inc. Crime Scene Investigation: A Guide for Law Enforcement Written and Approved by the Technical Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation January 2000 U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs National Institute of Justice Jeremy Travis, J.D. Director Richard M. Rau, Ph.D. Project Monitor Opinions or points of view expressed in this document are a consensus of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the U.S. Department of Justice. NCJ 178280 The National Institute of Justice is a component of the Office of Jus- tice Programs, which also includes the Bureau of Justice Assistance, the Bureau of Justice Statistics, the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, and the Office for Victims of Crime. Message From the Attorney General ctions taken at the outset of an investigation at a crime scene can Aplay a pivotal role in the resolution of a case. Careful, thorough investigation is key to ensure that potential physical evidence is not tainted or destroyed or potential witnesses overlooked. While many agencies have programs in crime scene processing, the level of training and resources available varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, as does the opportunity to practice actual investigation. To help these agencies, the National Institute of Justice supported the development of this guide. I commend the hard work of the 44 members of the technical working group that created this guide. They are representative of law enforcement, the prosecution, the defense, and forensic science, and their collective expert knowledge, experience, and dedication to the task made this effort a success. The guide is one method of promoting quality crime scene investigation. The type and scope of a crime scene investigation will vary from case to case. Jurisdictions will want to carefully consider the procedures in this guide and their applicability to local agencies and circumstances. Janet Reno Attorney General iii Technical Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation he Technical Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation T (TWGCSI) is a multidisciplinary group of content-area experts from across the United States, from both urban and rural jurisdictions, each representing his or her respective agency or practice. Each of these individuals is experienced in the area of crime scene investigation and evidence collection in the criminal justice system from the standpoints of law enforcement, prosecution, defense, or forensic science. At the outset of the TWGCSI effort, the National Institute of Justice (NIJ) created a planning panel—composed of distinguished law enforce- ment, legal, and science professionals—to define needs, to develop initial strategies, and to steer the larger group. Additional members of the technical working group were then selected from recommendations solicited from the planning panel, NIJ’s regional National Law Enforce- ment and Corrections Technology Centers, and national organizations including the American Academy of Forensic Science, National District Attorneys Association, National Association of Criminal Defense Law- yers, National Legal Aid and Defender Association, International Asso- ciation of Chiefs of Police, National Sheriffs’ Association, International Association for Identification, and the American Association of Crime Laboratory Directors/Laboratory Accreditation Board. Collectively, over a 1-year period, the 44 members of TWGCSI listed below worked together to develop this guide, Crime Scene Investigation: A Guide for Law Enforcement. National Crime Scene Planning Panel (NCSPP) Dr. Jose R. Almirall Susan Ballou Paul Carroll Associate Director and Forensic Scientist Sergeant (Ret.) Assistant Professor Montgomery County Police Chicago Police Department International Forensic Research Department Big Pine Key, Florida Institute Crime Laboratory Department of Chemistry Rockville, Maryland Florida International University Miami, Florida v Elizabeth Farris Larry McCann Ann Talbot Chief Trial Counsel Senior Special Agent (Ret.) ASCLD/LAB Hampden County District Virginia State Police Albuquerque Police Department Attorney’s Office Richmond, Virginia Albuquerque, New Mexico Springfield, Massachusetts Dr. Joseph L. Peterson James T. “Tom” Thurman Jo Ann Given Department of Criminal Justice Associate Professor ASCLD/LAB University of Illinois College of Law Enforcement Naval Criminal Investigative Chicago, Illinois Eastern Kentucky University Service Richmond, Kentucky Norfolk, Virginia Elliot B. Spector Director Marjorie Harris Center for Police and Security Forensic Scientist, Senior Training Department of Criminal Justice Suffield, Connecticut Division of Forensic Science Richmond, Virginia Additional Technical Working Group Members Hal R. Arenstein James Estrada Robert Mullins Attorney at Law Detective Investigator Detective Law Offices of Hal Arenstein Homicide Unit Investigative Services Cincinnati, Ohio San Antonio Police Department New Haven Police Department San Antonio, Texas New Haven, Connecticut Dexter J. Bartlett Inspector Drew Findling Steve Nash Illinois State Police Attorney Detective Crime Scene Services Command Atlanta, Georgia Marin County Sheriff’s Joliet, Illinois Department Nan Horvat/John Sarcone San Rafael, California Eric Buel Assistant Polk County Attorney/ Director Polk County Attorney Kathryn Normington- Department of Public Safety Des Moines, Iowa Hollenbach Crime Laboratory Senior Forensic Scientist Waterbury, Vermont N. Michael Hurley Wyoming State Crime Regional Director Laboratory Jeff Cover Oregon State Police Cheyenne, Wyoming Supervisor, Crime Scene Unit Forensic Services Division Anne Arundel County Police Springfield, Oregon Galen Paine Department Assistant Public Defender Millersville, Maryland Gary L. Kaldun Public Defender’s Office Forensic Scientist, Crime Sitka, Alaska Elizabeth Devine Scene Coordinator Supervising Criminalist Bureau of Criminal Apprehension Michael J. Rafferty Scientific Services Bureau St. Paul, Minnesota Chief of Forensics Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Florida Department of Law Department Joe Marchan Enforcement Los Angeles, California Supervising Criminalist Fort Myers Regional Operations Texas Department of Public Center Henry Escobar Safety Crime Laboratory Fort Myers, Florida Detective McAllen, Texas San Antonio Police Department Eugene Rifenburg San Antonio, Texas Joseph John Moseley, II Senior Investigator (Ret.) Detective New York State Police Jerry N. Estes Central Homicide Evaluation Investigator (current) District Attorney General Support Squad Oneida Nation Police 10th Judicial District Chicago Police Department Munnsville, New York Athens, Tennessee Chicago, Illinois vi Gary A. Rini Clarene Shelley Stephen Weichman Police Commander (Ret.) Lieutenant County and Prosecuting Director Lakewood Police Department Attorney The American Institute for Lakewood, Colorado Teton County Police Science Jackson, Wyoming Elkhorn, Nebraska Gregory Smith Assistant County Prosecutor James Wiser Heidi Robbins Office of the County Prosecutor Crime Scene Investigator/ Supervising Criminalist Camden County Evidence Custodian Scientific Services Bureau Camden, New Jersey Mount Pleasant Police Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department Department Richard Stanek Mount Pleasant, South Carolina Los Angeles, California Captain Minneapolis Police Department Larry Wood Darrell Ryan Minneapolis, Minnesota Detective Lieutenant Major Case Unit Nashville Police Department Brad Townsend Smyrna Police Department Nashville, Tennessee Sergeant Smyrna, Georgia Corona Police Department Norman Shapiro Corona, California John Yarbrough Vice President, New York Sergeant State Defender’s Association Larry Turner Homicide Bureau Counselor at Law Director of Forensic Services Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Law Offices of Norman Shapiro Jackson Police Department Department Middletown, New York Crime Laboratory Commerce, California Jackson, Mississippi vii Acknowledgments he National Institute of Justice (NIJ) wishes to thank the Technical T Working Group on Crime Scene Investigation (TWGCSI) for their dedication and endurance. This 44-member network of experts from a variety of backgrounds gave their time to draft and review the guide, providing feedback from all areas of the Nation. The true strength of this document is derived from the commitment of the TWG members to produce a guide that could be implemented across the country, from small, rural townships to large, metropolitan areas. In addition, the agencies and organizations that employ each member of the group share in this endeavor. Through their support, each member was given the flexibility needed to complete the project. NIJ also wishes to thank Attorney General Janet Reno, whose support and commitment to the