7.4: Make-up of a Crime Scene Team

The ideal composition of the crime scene team is as follows:

• Lead investigator (Crime Scene Analyst or Senior Crime Scene Analyst – Overall responsibility for the processing of the scene)
• Assistant to the Lead (Crime Scene Analyst responsible for the well-being and needs of the team)
• Scribe (The Scribe documents everything in the scene from the location of the evidence, to team duties and actions, to all of the details of the scene)
• Photographer (Photographs the crime scene in a methodical manner, and all of the items of evidence in the scene)
• Evidence Collection Officer/Field Evidence Technician (Crime Scene Investigators responsible for preserving, identifying, collecting, and processing the evidence)
• Diagram technician (Takes measurements of the crime scene and creates 2-D or 3-D drawings of the scene)
• Specialists: Latent print, bloodstain pattern analyst, crime scene reconstructionist, forensic photographer, or any other specialist

Responsibilities of the Crime Scene Team

Although there are numerous responsibilities within the crime scene, it is not necessary to have a dozen technicians in the scene, unless it is an exceptionally large scene, which can be separated into grids or sections. Your author finds that the ideal number of technicians crime scene is that which can be efficiently managed, perhaps five or less. Any more than that and you risk contamination and destruction of evidence. Some scenes in the correctional setting, like a cell, are too small to permit more than one or two people to even enter the scene. There have been, of course, many occasions when your author has processed scenes without the assistance of a team. This is fine, but as they say two sets of eyes are far better than one. It is, however, necessary that all the duties of a crime scene team are met, regardless of the number of people employed in the task of processing the scene.

Lead Investigator or Crime Scene Analyst

It is the responsibility of the lead investigator or crime scene analyst to ascertain the known details of the crime from the primary responding units, medical and/or fire department personnel, and any witnesses who remain on the scene. It is also their responsibility to get a copy of the crime scene log; to ensure that the crime scene perimeter is properly established; that perishable evidence is documented and collected, and that the scene and team are safe. Furthermore, it is the responsibility of the lead investigator to determine the legal authority to be in the crime scene and to work with the incident detective and District Attorney’s Office (prosecutor) personnel to obtain a search warrant, if necessary. The lead investigator will brief the crime scene investigation (CSI) team and assign tasks. Following this, the lead investigator will visually inspect the crime scene, preferably using a forensic or clean white light, looking up, down and all around, considering the crime scene as a whole; and by holding the light at an oblique angle to ground. The lead investigator will dictate the conditions of the scene and point out obvious items of evidence that need to be documented and collected. The lead investigator will coordinate with officers and investigators conducting witness canvasses or who had accompanied victims to the hospital. The lead investigator will send technicians to search areas outside of the perimeter for ingress and egress evidence. The lead investigator will coordinate with the photographer to identify items of evidence and to determine the placement of evidence markers and photographic scales and will make sure that proper evidence processing, and personal protection equipment is present and used. The lead investigator will also provide for the well-being of the team by making sure that they are hydrated and that they do not spend more than 90 minutes -45 minutes in warmer climates- in a Tyvek suit without resting, re-hydrating, and changing suits. They will also coordinate with analysts from other agencies who have specialized training, such as bloodstain pattern analysis or latent print development. Furthermore, one of the most important roles of the lead investigator or crime scene analyst is to provide continuous updates of the progress of the crime scene processing to the detectives, as well to the administrative assistant or public information officer who may need to make announcements to the media.

The Assistant to the Lead

The assistant to the lead investigator helps to identify evidence, places markers, and to develop a processing plan of action. The assistant’s focus is the crime scene and keeping the lead investigator informed of developments when they are away from the scene. The assistant acts as a second set of eyes making sure that the team is using all equipment properly, that all efforts are made not to contaminate the scene and the evidence within the scene; and that the team is safe. It may also fall on the assistant to the lead to make arrangements for special equipment or for personnel who have specialized training, such as bloodstain pattern analysts, latent print development technicians, and crime scene reconstruction experts. It is also the duty of the assistant to the lead investigator to ensure that agency policies and protocols associated with crime scene investigations are properly followed.

The Scribe

The scribe has one of the most important roles in the crime scene team and is often the individual with responsibilities that are ignored. It is the responsibility of the scribe to document EVERYTHING in the crime scene: from the conditions in which the crime scene was found, to maintaining a running time-log of events, and documenting the location, description, finder, and processor of every item of evidence discovered and collected. The scribe will also document what notifications were made, and to whom they were made, while in the crime scene. In the prison or jail setting, the scribe also has an important role not usually found outside of the jail or prison crime scene. Following a major incident in a housing unit, dining hall, exercise yard or program where numerous inmates are assembled, it is the responsibility of the scribe to document the presence and position of every inmate detained in the area. The scribe must positively identify each inmate using a photographic means of identification and must accurately record the exact position of each inmate. Failure to document the presence of a suspect detained during an incident might provide him with an alibi that he might later use in court.

The Photographer

The photographer is responsible for documenting the crime scene with images that capture the visual aspects of the crime, which are needed to convey the look of the scene to investigators, attorneys, judge, and jurors, who will not have the opportunity to view the scene firsthand in the manner in which it was viewed by the first responder and the crime scene investigator. The photographer must capture overview scene establishing, medium view evidence establishing, and close-up or evidentiary photographs of the scene and its evidence; as well as photographs that depict the relationship of items of evidence to other items of evidence and to the crime scene. It is essential that the photographer captures images of the scene before any alteration has occurred. That means that they must photograph the scene prior to the placement of markers and the movement or collection of evidence. Evidentiary photographs must be taken with the film plane parallel and perpendicular to the item of evidence, and with scales placed on the same plane as the item being photographed. The photographer must maximize depth of field; may need to control, add, or eliminate lighting in the scene; and must ensure that the image is sharp, centered, in focus and fills the frame. The photographer may be required to take photographs that are representative of the natural perspective of the crime scene, and of the line of vision of victims, witnesses and first responders. When photographing items of evidence depicted with scales or rulers, the photographer should always photograph the item with and without the measuring device first. The photographer must also maintain a log, file, or contact sheet containing a description of each frame or image captured, along with its metadata.

The Evidence Collector

In a major crime scene, it is best to assign one member of the team as the evidence collector. In this regard the chain of custody for the item of evidence can be restricted to the finder and the collector. Furthermore, in some jurisdictions the evidence collector can testify on behalf of the evidence finder during preliminary courtroom proceedings, thus eliminating the need for additional staff to be away from their duties. The evidence collection officer must follow all procedures for the collection of the items of evidence, avoid contamination, and document in their report the identification of the person who found the evidence, the description of the evidence and the location where it was found as well as its disposition.

The Diagram Technician

The diagram technician is the too often forgotten member of the crime scene team. It is the responsibility of the diagram technician to accurately record the dimensions and measurements of the crime scene, horizontally and, in some cases, vertically, as well as documenting the relative positions of items of evidence in the crime scene and the size, shape and dimensions of the items of evidence collected. The diagram technician may be called upon to “map” the scene for bloodstain evidence analysis and therefore must have training in this regard, although it is not necessary for the technician to be a bloodstain pattern analysis. There is more on bloodstain mapping later in this book. It is your author’s belief that diagram technicians should be taught the “old” ways of sketching and measuring a crime scene. Modern computer-assisted “mapping” systems are wonderful devices, but your author’s opinion of technology will always be that either it will take longer to use the device on small scenes or, as technology will often do, it will fail when you need it most. The diagram technician will need to have that old-fashioned back-up plan. The old-fashioned way is discussed in a later chapter.

Other Specialist

Other specialists, such as bloodstain pattern analysts, impression evidence comparison analysts, specialized latent print development technicians, forensic videographers, forensic pathologists, crime scene reconstructionist, or any other specialized forensic discipline practitioner may be requested when needed.

Remember, it may not be possible to have the number of people described above in the crime scene team, but all these functions must be accomplished regardless of whether it is just one person or six doing the job.