Why is criminal investigation important

The aim of the book is to guide you into the structured practices of tactical investigative response and strategic investigative thinking. Criminal investigation is not just a set of task skills, it is equally a set of thinking skills. To become an effective investigator, these skills need to be consciously understood and developed to the point where they are deliberately engaged to work through the problem-solving process that is criminal investigation.

Trained thinking and response can be difficult to adapt into our personal repertoires because we are all conditioned to be much less formal and less evidence driven in our everyday thinking.

Still, as human beings, we are all born investigators of sorts. As Taber pointed out in his book, Beyond Constructivism , people constantly construct knowledge, and, in our daily lives, we function in a perpetual state of assessing the information that is presented to us.

Interpreting the perceptions of what we see and what we hear allows us reach conclusions about the world around us Taber, Some people are critically analytical and want to see evidence to confirm their beliefs, while others are prepared to accept information at face value until they are presented facts that disprove their previously held beliefs.

Either strategy is generally acceptable for ordinary people in their everyday lives. Diametrically opposing the analysis processes of everyday people, in the role of a police investigator, the process of discovering, interpreting, and determining the validity of information is different and this difference is critical.

As an investigator, it is no longer sufficient to use the strategies that ordinary people use every day. Instead, it is incumbent on investigators to critically assess all the information they encounter because every investigation is an accountable process in which the investigator is not just making a determination about the validity and truth of the information for personal confirmation of a belief.

Rather, the police investigator is responsible and empowered under the law to make determinations that could significantly affect the lives of those being investigated as well as the victims of crime.

Significant to these possible outcomes, the investigator must always be ready to explain their thinking and actions to the court. For an investigator speaking to the court, this process needs to be clear and validated through the articulation of evidence-based thinking and legally justifiable action.

Thinking must illustrate an evidence-based path to forming reasonable grounds for belief and subsequent action. Thinking must also demonstrate consideration of the statutory law and case law relevant to the matter being investigated.

Considering this accountability to outcomes, it is essential for police investigators to have both the task skills and the thinking skills to collect and analyze evidence at a level that will be acceptable to the criminal justice system.

Investigation is the collection and analysis of evidence. To be acceptable to the court, it must be done in a structured way that abides by the legal rules and the appropriate processes of evidence collection. Additionally, it must be a process the investigator has documented and can recall and articulate in detail to demonstrate the validity of the investigation. Obviously, it is not possible for someone to remain in a constant state of vigilance where they are always critically assessing, documenting, and determining the validity of every piece of information they encounter.

However, when on duty, it is frequently necessary for a police investigator to do this. A police investigator must master this higher and more accountable level of analytical thinking for both tactical and strategic investigative response. Most traditional police training provides new officers with many hours of instruction in the task skills of investigation. However, the learning of investigative thinking skills is expected to develop through field experience, learning from mistakes, and on the job mentoring.

This learning does not always happen effectively, and the public expectations of the justice system are evolving in a model where there is little tolerance for a mistake-based learning. The criminal investigation of serious crimes has always drawn a substantial level of interest, concern, and even apprehensive fascination from the public, the media, and the justice system.

Police actions and investigations have been chronicled and dissected by commissions of inquiry and the media. From the crimes of the serial killers like Paul Bernardo Campbell, , and Robert Pickton Oppal, to the historical wrongful convictions of David Milgaard MacCallum, and Guy Paul Morin Kaufman, , true life crimes are scrutinized and the investigations of those crimes are examined and critically assessed. Today, transparency throughout the criminal justice system and public disclosure of evidence through investigative media reports make it much easier for the public and the media to examine the investigative process.

Public and media access to information about police investigative techniques and forensic tools has created an audience that is more familiar and sophisticated about police work. The ability of both social and traditional media to allow public debate has created a societal awareness where a higher standard for the investigation of serious crimes is now an expectation.

One only needs to look at the historical and contemporary judicial reviews and public inquiries to appreciate that there is an expectation for police investigators and police organizations to maintain and demonstrate a high level of competency. In a judicial review, it is often too late if an investigator discovers that they have pursued the wrong theory or they have failed to analyze a piece of critical information or evidence.

These situations can be career-altering or even career-ending. A good investigator needs to be conscious of his or her-own thinking, and that thinking needs to be an intentional process. Today, criminal investigation is a broad term encompassing a wide range of specialities that aim to determine how events occurred, and to establish an evidence-based fact pattern to prove the guilt or innocence of an accused person in a criminal event.

In some cases, where a person is found committing the criminal act and apprehended at the scene, the criminal investigation is not a complex undertaking. However, in cases where the criminal event is discovered after the fact, or when the culprit is not readily apparent, the process of criminal investigation becomes more complex and protracted. Q: You left law enforcement to transition to a career in media, but you eventually came back as a reserve officer.

What is a reserve officer, and why do you do it? About 10 years ago, while still working in radio and television, I felt the calling to go back into law enforcement. In California, that means you have to have all the same qualifications and training as a full-time officer. I had to go back and re-certify, which I did as a volunteer. And now for the last 10 years, I still work at least 8 to 12 hours one day a week out in the field, answering radio calls like every other cop.

I feel a deep responsibility to contribute to society whatever tools and gifts that I have. The truth of the matter is, I love it.

Q: What kind of support does National offer to people working in criminal justice who want to pursue further education? The chancellor here at National is committed to supporting police officers and others working in public safety in achieving their educational goals. We also give these professionals as much credit towards their degree for their prior training as we can. We worked really hard with faculty, with the registrar, and with our accrediting bodies to look at basic training, like the police academy, and see where that aligns with our degree programs.

The training that you get in a police academy aligns really well with criminal justice, homeland security, and public administration — but especially criminal justice. We also recognize some training in other states, but every state has different training standards. We can give them extra credit in those degree programs that I mentioned. Q: How do the flexible options at National University help working adults fit their education into already busy lives?

National University was the only place that I could take all my units from community college and the four-year schools that I had gone to and concentrate on one class per month. This format is still incredibly applicable to those in public safety who are doing shift work. If the first three objectives are successfully attained, then the crime can be said to be solved.

Several other outcomes such as recovering stolen property, deterring individuals from engaging in criminal behaviors, and satisfying crime victims have also been associated with the process. A useful perspective on the criminal investigation process is provided by information theory Willmer. Liability for federal crimes also extends to those who aided and abetted the crimes or counseled, commanded, induced, procured, or willfully caused another to commit the crimes.

If officials endeavored to cover up torture in order to evade oversight, other criminal statutes — such as those relating to making false statements or obstructing justice, for example — may be implicated. While some of the abuses took place a decade ago, the statute of limitations has not run out on many of the most serious crimes. Most importantly, there is no statute of limitations under the torture statute when the abuse risked or resulted in serious physical injury or death.

There is no statute of limitations on war crimes that resulted in death. Some have suggested that those who authorized or engaged in torture cannot be prosecuted because memos written by the Office of Legal Counsel provide immunity.

This is incorrect. Nor does it cover those who went beyond the scope of the legal opinions, either by inflicting abuses that were not authorized or by exceeding what was authorized e.

It is not a golden shield. Moreover, international law and U. The Senate Intelligence Committee report describes serious violations of domestic and international law.