FORENSICS A
s this excerpt from the text of a seasoned crime scene investigator vividly describes, forensic evidence may be leſt or carried
away from a crime scene and its ultimate value is largely dependent upon the human factor. Crime scene management and forensic evidence collection, preservation and analysis are of increasing importance within a CBRNE context. As such, we must explore some defi nitions and clarifi ca- tion of the criminality of CBRNE events, what may constitute a crime scene, and the roles of criminal investigation and forensic science. We also need to discuss the interplay of the forensic, investigative and prosecutorial roles and responsibilities as well as the overall response to terrorism.
Terrorism as a crime
First, there are several defi nitions of terrorism, and yet there is no single, standardized or universal defi nition. With reasonable objectivity, we may conclude that terrorism is a crime, committed by perpetrators, and which generates a law enforcement and judicial response to a criminal act. The commission of the criminal act creates a crime scene containing evidence that is subject to investigative strategies and tactics. Essentially, a crime scene is any
area in which a crime may have been committed as well as anywhere the criminal was during the commission of the crime and the egress from the scene. Evidence is something legally and
Crime scene protocols normally involve:
1. Preparation 2. Approaching the scene 3. Securing and protecting the scene
4. Initiate preliminary surveys 5. Evaluation of physical evidence probabilities
6. Preparation of narrative script 7. Photographing the scene (using intrinsically safe equipment)
8 . Preparation of diagram or sketch
9. Conducting a detailed search 10. Recording and collecting physical evidence
11. Conducting the fi nal search 12. Release of the scene
EVIDENCE OF THE CRIME
Generally, types of evidence collected during an investigative process include:
1 2
3 4
5 6 7
8
Circumstantial evidence – Facts, if proven, allow fact-fi nder to draw conclusions.
Direct evidence – Documents, records, physical evidence, computer records and videos directly related to the case.
Trace evidence – Minute particles of matter which can be examined microscopically, physically, or chemically, e.g. bioagent, chemical residue, or dust at a radiological dispersal device (RDD) detonation site.
Hearsay evidence – Statements off ered to prove the truth of the matter asserted and the declarant is unavailable for cross-examination.
Eyewitness testimony – Observation or sensation personally seen, smelt, heard, felt, or tasted – such as a witness reporting a strange-looking vapour cloud in the vicinity of downed victims.
Physical evidence – Anything that has been used, leſt , removed, altered, or contaminated during the commission of a crime by either the victim or the suspect.
Documentary evidence – Refl ects any evidence which may be in written or typed form.
Photographic and video evidence – Includes any images recorded by cameras or video equipment.
procedurally submitted to a competent tribunal as a means of ascertaining the truth in an alleged matter under investigation. There are several other categories and sub-categories of
evidence, such as cyber-evidence (any data generated, stored, received or transmitted by computer systems, e.g. hard drives), audio evidence (sound recordings, voices, background noises). Some evidence overlaps, or is a subgroup: an altered document found at a crime scene with a bloody fi ngerprint on it is documentary evidence, but is also physical evidence. Some of the key principles involved in evidence collection and preservation include chain-of-custody and documentation. An investigator must be able to maintain accountability of the recovered evidence and ensure its security throughout the process, and be able to document the same. The crime scene search must also be conducted in a systematic manner, such as using the grid method.
Applying forensics to CBRN Forensic science is science applied to matters of the law. Therefore, forensics has great applicability and importance to the criminal investigation and prosecution of CBRNE terrorism. The scientifi c examination of forensic evidence is only as good as the evidence brought to the laboratory. Unless destroyed by fi re or explosion, evidence is present. Forensic science is about identifi cation and individualization.
Forensics seeks to establish uniqueness that can be associated with a questioned piece of evidence in relationship to a crime or other matter of the law, such as ballistics of a bullet fi red from a recovered weapon, paint chips from an automobile in a hit and run incident, DNA recovered from a rape scene, blood spatter pattern at a homicide scene.
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