A man called the police and said that a body had fallen out of the sky and landed on his family car, which was parked in the driveway of his home. Initial canvassing of the area failed to locate any witnesses. The man who called the police was home with his family. They did not see the incident but reported hearing a loud thud and glass breaking.
You are the crime scene investigator. When you arrive at the scene, you find what you thought was a bizarre call is in fact true. You see the mangled body of a Caucasian man and a partially deployed parachute streaming in the mild breeze. You also note that the deceased's reserve chute has not opened. Closer examination of the scene reveals that the deceased is wearing a leg bag containing about 20 lbs. of cocaine and U.S. currency totaling $28,000.00.
The victim had in his possession 2 state ID cards, one from California: Andrew Jackson, DOB 01-05-60, 1419 Petulia Drive, Santa Cruz, CA. The second ID is from Texas: Paul Smith, DOB 05-01-61, 268 Ridge Boulevard, Crawford, TX.
Assignment Guidelines
- Address the following in 4-6 pages:
- In detail, explain the steps that you will take and the techniques that you will use to process from arrival until the scene is relinquished.
- Prepare a comprehensive list of how the scene should be documented.
- Create and include a crime scene sketch. Use your own neighborhood to fabricate any necessary details.
- You may then draw and scan the sketch or use any software application of your choice.
- Prepare a comprehensive list of at least 25 questions that need to be answered about the scene and the body.
- Prepare a list of evidence that will be collected from the scene and from the body.
- What methods or techniques will you use to collect and preserve the evidence? Explain.
- Conduct a background investigation to develop logical leads, which would include an AFIS inquiry, applicable forensics analysis, and any other leads you determine to be appropriate.
- Be sure to provide in-text citation and reference all sources using APA style.