Crime Analysis and Investigation

In order not to be unsubstantiated, it is necessary to give the accurate, scientific definition of the term «crime». From a religious point of view, a crime is the same thing as a sin – a rejection of God’s commandments. Philosophy in general agrees that the crime is the distortion or displacement from the original rules of the society in which people live. With these two sides, the crime can be considers as a kind of behavior carried out by an individual against a society in which he lives. Individual treats with people or with the society in such a way, how he does not want to be treated with him.

But nevertheless what is the definition of the concept “crime”. Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia shows the origin of this word:

“The word crime originates from the Latin crimen (genitive

criminis), from the Latin root cernō and Greek κρινω = “I

judge”. Originally it meant “charge (in law), guilt,

accusation”.

Crime is a provided by law public dangerous illegal act (both action or inaction), encroaching on social order, political or economic system, property, personality, political, labor, material and other rights and freedoms of citizens. Depending on the nature and degree of public danger all misdeeds are divided into the crimes of small weight, crimes of medium weight, serious crimes and heinous crimes. According to the object of infringement they are divided into the crimes against a person, crimes in the economic sphere, crimes against public security and public order, public authorities, government, military service, against peace and security of mankind.

The subsequent part of the paper will examine and answer the list of questions. First of all it is necessary to describe the main developed technologies, widely used in most cases’ investigations. The paper also depicts, how the investigators use the advanced technologies in their working practice and what purposes do they have, whether they apply the expertise in a proactive approach or respond in a reactive manner, contenting with the simple solvability of any accident.

Crime Investigation

   All in all it does not matter what kind of crime is committed, because the investigator should do all he can to analyze and discover the incident. Method of deduction with its logic conclusions, clear observation and others play only the half-part role in the process of crime investigation. I mean that in most cases the sound mind of the investigator and his practiced eye will not give the full picture of the crime and help to uncover the criminal’s game. Great amount of devises, apparatus, technologies, examinations and special analyses have become the main and vitally important assistants for their users.

But what about computer crimes, or so called technology crimes? This is the separate kind of crimes, rather new and badly studied. The investigation of such crimes is provided not with the help of deductive method, and moreover most of such crimes have no obvious locus delicti, corpus delicti and at last a quantity of witness. The process of investigation becomes particularly technological. The article “Technology Crime Investigation” reads about such crimes:

“In Information Technology crime, it is difficult to work

with offender profiles to such degree that we can use them

efficiently to identify a culprit. Most cases do not give

us sufficient information on the physical behavior of a

person; which conflicts with one of the basic laws in

criminology: Locard’s Exchange Principle, which states that

when an offender comes into contact with a location or

another person, he always leaves something of himself

behind and takes something away of that location or other

person. In the digital world, this no longer holds true,

unless we can consider bits and bytes to be that

“something”.

Science of crime detection has the classification of forensic examination, which allows the investigator (or the court) to determine what is necessary to appoint expert in a particular case. The reason for this classification is the subject, object and research methods.

The subject of expertise is made up by the factual data, evidence, examined and established in the investigation of criminal or civil case on the basis of special knowledge in the spheres of science and technology. The objects of examination are represented by the material carrier of information about facts and events, the sources of getting evidence. The methodology of expert study is a system of scientifically based methods, techniques and tools. The most common is the classification of forensic examinations according to the classes, kinds and species.

Here are the following classes:

1) Traditional forensic examination. They include: trassological, ballistic, portraiture, phonoscopic, handwriting, technical, phototechnical and reconstruction marking sighs expertise. They all as the independent kind of examination form the forensic examinations of materials and substances.

2) Medical and psycho-physiological examinations. This class includes: forensic medical examination, forensic-psychiatric, forensic-psychological and complex examination. The most widely distributed and used in the practice of investigation is the forensic medical examination.

3) Forensic-economical expertise is appointed to investigate the crimes related with thefts, false bankruptcy and the investigation of tax crimes. Nowadays this kind of expertise is in the process of formation. In connection with the growth of crime in the area of financial relations it becomes increasingly necessary to establish and improve the new types of economic expertise.

4) Forensic biological examinations. It consists of three types: forensic botanical, forensic zoological and soil expertise.

5) Engineering and technical expertise. This class can be divided into the following types: fire-technical, construction technology expertise, accident prevention. The judicial examination of accident prevention is applied in various fields of production. The main goal of its installation is to establish the reasons, which led to an accident at work.

6) Forensic engineering and transportation expertise include autotechnical, aero-technical, rail technology examinations. It is worth noting some other new types of expertise that are in the process of formation, in particular environmental, agrobiological, art. So, here is a brief description of the basic classes and types of forensic examinations that are used in investigating and solving crimes. The process of their creation and development is conditioned by the needs of the investigative and judicial practices in obtaining special knowledge in any area for the effective disclosure of crimes.

Scientific and technological advances continually open up new possibilities of using science and technology in criminal proceedings. Now even the most profound professional knowledge of the investigator will not be enough for a successful investigation. The path to the truth in many cases would be much longer, a number of crimes would not be disclosed if the investigators did not use that expertise, i.e., knowledge which is acquired through focused training and work experience for a particular activity within a profession, excluding in this case, the profession of the investigator.

Thus, when drawing up the plan at the initial stage of investigation, the investigator must consider what kind of specialists, when and how should be engaged, identify the activities in which they will participate. It is desirable that the use of special knowledge in the initial stage must be sufficiently broad and planning. In addition, it is important to provide scientific, technical and organizational support for the effectiveness of the initial investigation and search activities during planning. The plan must not only provide a list of scientific and technical means, but the specific tactics and its usage.

At the initial stage of the investigation the special knowledge in the form of expertise should be systematically applied. However, it is at this stage, when a wide variety of forensic evidence is not always used, particularly of a diagnostic nature. Examinations can be appointed untimely, the resolutions do not provide all the questions that can be solved on the basis of available material, other mistakes are permitted, reducing the effectiveness of the investigation. The terms of examinations, the questions that are necessary to be settled, materials necessary for the study – all should be reflected in the initial phase of the investigation. In doing so, the investigator should consult with the appropriate experts, compare his needs in the case with the possibilities of expert institutions, and when they do not match, plan the studies in other forensic agencies with greater opportunities because of the availability of sophisticated analytical techniques, highly skilled staff, etc.

In order to be effective and to show the highest level of crime detection an investigator must use all available resources. Each expertise separately shows its results, but as technology advances, the progress gives the opportunity for the investigator to adopt more technologies and to apply them to their investigations. In doing so, the investigators extend their possibilities in working practices. Avoidance of new technologies means that the investigator content with the solvability of the particular incident, and in that way limits the investigative actions and measures. This can lead to figuration of false data and incorrect case interpretation in general. Using all the existing and vitally important technologies the investigator acts in a proactive manner and thereby limits the opportunities for those who commit offences.

With the exception of all listed expertise, it is important to mention that there hundreds of other examinations widely used in the investigation practice. They include establishment of age, determination of drunkenness, the exclusion of fatherhood and motherhood, the identities of individuals. In this cases the researchers study the external development (skin, teeth), but rontgenography of bone apparatus must be carried out more accurately (more frequently hand, foot, shin and skull). The expert’s conclusion about the age determination should be formed in the normal pattern with obligatory presence of photos and roentgenogram. This is one of the most difficult types of forensic examination.

The forensic examination of physical evidence or forensic biological examination is one of the most frequently used kinds of examination.

This type of examination performed in forensic biology departments by specially trained experts. The investigator should specify in detail the circumstances of the case and put the specific questions the expert in the resolution. A mandatory requirement is the application of exhibit requisitioning in such a way that allows them to remain unaltered, without loss of specific properties. The investigator together with the expert pack and send the exhibit for the examination. Each detail is packed separately in clean paper or packet, which is marked with an indication of the subject, its accessories and room inventory, and then the investigator puts them into a box, puts the accompanying inventory, which is signed in a special list of exhibits. Together with the resolution a copy of the inspection site, a copy of the forensic examination of the corpse, a protocol of samples requisitioning are sent to the laboratory for the subsequent analyses. The study includes a description of methods, progress and results of studies and conclusions in the form of expertise document.

The most trustworthy and exact examinations, but unfortunately held not in all places, are the forensic examination of blood, urine, hair and sperm.

The detected traces of blood on the items are seized and if it is not possible, some areas can be cut out with traces in such a way in order to have free spots places (control), and when it is not possible, the scrapes or wash-out can be done. The spot can be transferred to the gauze soaked with water, drying it up at room temperature. In order to take spot of blood from the snow, you need to saturate the gauze with melting snow with blood signs, and then dry it. It is necessary to determine the existence of species, group and type of blood. Establishing the presence of blood – the presence of red blood cells or hemoglobin by spectral and microscopic studies of reactions in which hemoglobin and its derivatives under the influence of a number of chemicals elements precipitate as crystals.  The establishment of blood type, whether it is man’s or animal’s, is carried out with the help of immunologic method. The establishment of blood group is also vitally important in the case of criminal’s identification.  The blood contains particular specific elements in erythrocytes and serum. Blood type is determined with the help of standard sera, there are 4 standard blood groups. In addition to blood, the expert can set the regional origin of the blood (lungs, intestine, heart). The number of liquid blood is also determined, the same as the blood on exhibits, dry weight of blood and   then it can be converted to its total volume. The expert can easily identify the remoteness of spots, which is based on the method of changing spots’ color taking into account the speed with which it is dissolved in a special solution.

By the way the expert can set if it the blood of an infant or an adult. On more important result of blood investigation is the establishment of sex due to the identification of sex chromatin in the nuclei of leukocytes cells. Blood examination also marks the signs of blood poisoning, carboxyhemoglobin can be a blood poison, which is detected by chemical reactions and spectral studies. Moreover blood samples can give the information about victims’ or criminals’ DNA, but this method is rather expensive and prolonged. The exactness of this method is nearly 99 per cents, it means that DNA being the unique code of every person can be the evidence or the disproof of the committed crime.

The forensic examination of sperm is completely the same as blood. Requisitioning of sperm is produced in accordance with the rules adopted for requisitioning of blood traces. The examination can determine the presence of sperm (the presence of sperm can be proved only after displaying some spermatozoa), the origin of sperm from a particular person (group of human blood is identical to a group of sperm).

And at last the forensic examination of hair.

At the scene of an accident different types of hair can be detected (from head and other body parts that can occur on the hands of the victim after a struggle, self-defense. They can be found everywhere: on the floor, on the furniture, instrument of crime, clothes. With the help of fingers or tweezers the expert removes hair from subjects and places in separate bags, which are packed closely. The examination can set:

Ӣ the determination of the hair (microscopy, three layers)

Ӣ the Establishment of human hair belonging (length, width)

Ӣ the establishment of regional hair origin (the study of shape, length and thickness for different parts of the body- head, face, legs)

Ӣ the establishment of method of hair separation and damage (the microscopy of ends)

Ӣ the establishing of hair similarities (a group of hair on the blood group system)

There is also a forensic medical examination of sweat and saliva, urine and faeces. In all cases the specific properties of blood and other biological excreta are identical.

Conclusion

   To sum up everything said before, it is necessary to underline that the investigator must do everything in order to reach the wishful result – clearance of crime. It means that all technologies, examinations and analyses will never lead up a blind alley, but vice versa they lighten the crime from all sides, making the picture full and complicated. The variety of examinations helps the investigator to learn everything about the criminal, without giving him a chance to hide or slander another person. Nowadays modern technologies help the investigators on every step, beginning from the locus delicti, material evidence and up to communication with the supposed criminal. Applying new technologies in the analyses and examinations the investigators act in a reactive and proactive manner. It means that new technologies help in solving and answering different questions of expertise, making investigator’s work more efficient, profound, well-grounded and sound. At the same time new inventions in the scientific field depersonalize or so to say rob the criminal’s personality more and more. It is one of the positive sides for the prevention and precautions of different offences.

All in all the result of the carried-out case will be the appearance of truth. Unfortunately, in some countries underdevelopment of technology and science and at the same time law material and finance maintenance does not allow to reach the results of progressive countries in the questions of crime decrease. Thus crime detection depends not on the investigators brain and wish, but on technically unequipped research groups. That is why we unfortunately see that fight with criminality never stops, but its process, results and consequences are still different.