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| Major crime such as homicide, aggravated assault or robbery. Usually carries a penalty of imprionment in a state penitentiary or death. |
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| Person's risk of being sued. Any person acting under the authoerity of law who violates another person's constitutional rights can be sued. |
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| Photographs of those who have been into custody and booked. |
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| Checking a report for mistakes in spelling, punctuation and capitalization. |
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| Established that the courts cannot accept evidence obtained by unreasonable searches and seizures, regardless of its relevance to the case (Weeks v. United States). |
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| Branch of forensic science involved with the recording, identification and interpretation of the minutiae (minute details) of physical evidence. |
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| Nonfactual; drawing inferences for example, "The man was nervous"; to be avoided in police reports. |
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| Established that vehicles may be searched without a warrant if there is probable cause for the search and if the vehicle would be gone before a search warrant could be obtained. |
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| First, pencil-drawn outline of the crime scene, which shows the location of objects and evidence. Basis for the finished scale drawing. |
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| Taking pictures through a microscope to help identify minute particles of evidence (e.g., hair of fiber). |
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| Geographic areas with a higher incidence rate of criminal activity. |
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| Establishes a straightline from one fixed point to another from which measurements are taken at right angles. |
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| In which the subject performs the action of the sentence; contrasts with passive voice. |
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| Non-opinionated, fair and impartial. |
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| Search warrant that contains a special provision permitting officers to execute the warrant without first announcing themselves. |
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| Act or omission forbidden by law and punishable by a fine, imprisonment or even death. Crimes and their penalties are established and defined by state and federal statues and local ordinances. |
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| Smallest unit of a digital image, also referred to as a dot. |
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| Including only one side of a story or only facts that tend to prove or support one side's theory; result of a lack of objectivity. |
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| Synonymous with protective sweep; the authorized search by police of areas immediately adjoining the place of arrest. Held constitutional in MAryland v. Buie |
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| Crime scene where no evidence has been introduced or removed except by the person(s) committing the crime. |
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| Philosophy that the police must work with the community through partnerships and problem solving to address problems of crime and disorder; a belief that by working together, the police and the community can accomplish what neither can accomplish alone. |
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| Focuses on the location of crime-the hot spots where most crimes occur-rather than on a criminal |
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| Performing an unlawful act on purpose, knowing the act to be illegal. |
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| Seeking all facts associated with a crime to determine the truth: what happened and who is responsible. |
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| Legislative act relating to crime and its punishment. |
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| A person who searches for, collects and preserves physical evidence in the investigation of crime and suspected criminals. Also called a crime scene technician, examiner or investigator. |
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| Skilled in interacting across gender, ethnic, generational, social and political group lines. |
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| Process that uses powerful analytical tools to quickly and thoroughly explore mountains of data to discover new patterns or confirm suspected patterns or trends. |
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| A logical process in which a conclusion follows from specific facts; a reconstructive process based on specific pieces of evidence to establish proof that a suspect is guilty of an offense. |
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| Conditions that must exist and be proven to exist for an act to be called a specific kind of crime. |
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| Physical evidence favorable to the accused, that would clear the accused of blame; for example, having a blood type different from that found at a homicide. |
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| An action, an event, a circumstance or an actual thing done. |
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| Science applied to criminal and civil laws. |
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| Making a generalization and establishing it by gathering specific facts. |
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| A process of reasoning by which a fact may be deduced. |
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| A "sudden knowing" without any conscious reasoning or apparent logic. Based on knowledge and experience or what is commonly called street sense. An intangible urge; a "gut feeling" developed by experience. |
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| To observe or study closely; to inquire into something systematically in a search for truthful information. |
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| Avenues bearing clues or potential sources of information relevant to solving crime. |
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| Locard's principle of exchange |
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| Basic forensic theory that objects that come in contact with each other always transfer material, however minute, to each other. |
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| Minor crime such as shoplifting or pilferage; less serious than a felony. Usually carries a fine or a short sentence in a county or municipal jai. |
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| Characteristic way a criminal committs a specific type of crime. |
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| Act of legislative body of a municipality or county relating to all the rules governing the municipality or county, including misdemeanor crimes. |
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| Spontaneous statements made at the time a crime is committed and closely related to actions involved in the crime. Considered more truthful than later, planned responses. |
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| Marking photographs on their back with a felt-tip pen or label to indicate the photographer's initials, date photo was taken, a brief description of what it depicts and the direction of north. Evidence can be circled on the back of the photo in the same way. |
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| Uses a protractor to measure the angle formed by two lines. |
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| Accurately represents what it purports to represent, is properly identified and is properly placed in the chain of evidence and secured until court presentation. |
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| Presents the floor and walls of a room as though they were on the same surface. |
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| Final drawing, drawn to scale using exact measurements, done in ink and usually on a better grade paper. |
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| Technique of making 3-D measurements of the real world directly from two-dimensional photographs. |
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| 360-degree photographic view of a crime scene that allows viewers to virtually "walk through it" as though they were there. |
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| An imaging process that reveals evidence indiscernible to the naked eye, such as the outline of a footprint in a carpet. |
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| That part of a crime scene sketch containing the case number, name of victim or plainant, location, date, time, investigator, person (s) assisting, scale direction of north and name of the person making the sketch. |
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| Photographic enlargement of a suvject to show details of evidence such as fingerprints or tool marks. |
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| Item included in a photograph to show accurate or relative size. |
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| Image that relates to the specific case and the subject being discussed. |
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| Pixels are the dots making up a digital image; one megalpixel is about a million dots. |
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| Photographic technique whereby the entire scene is photographed in a clockwise direction so that a specific object is on the right side of the first photograph, on the next photo the same object is on the left side of the photo and so on until the entire scene is photographed. |
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| Unique, patented information system that uses computer technology and high-tech applications of aerial photography to integrate various aerial shots of a land-based artifact taken straight down (orthogonal) and from numerous angles (oblique) to generate a high-resolution 3-D image of the object. |
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| Rectangular-coordinate method |
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| Uses two adjacent walls of a room as fixed points from which distances are measured at right angel from each wall. |
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| Image that assists or explains testimony regarding the matter in question. |
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| Fineness of image detail either captured with a camera, displayed on a monitor or printed on paper, commonly quantified by pixels. |
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| Mug shots gathered in files and displayed in groups. |
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| Used in sketching, determined by taking the longest measurement at the scene and dividing it by the longest measurement of the paper. |
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| Drawing (noun), or to create a drawing (verb). May be a rough or a finished sketch, and it accurately portrays the physical facts, relates to the sequence of events at the scene, establishes the precise location and relationship of objects and evidence at the scene, helps create a mental picture of the scene for those not present, is a permanent record of the scene and is usually admissible in court. |
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| Photos that prove an incident occured, can assist in identifying suspects and the weapons used and can corroborate witness testimony and identification. Also called surveillance photography. |
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| Uses straight-line measurements from two fixed objects to the location of the evidence, creating a triangle. The evidence is in the angle formed by the two straight lines. |
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| Ultraviolet-light photography |
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Definition
| Uses the low end of the color spectrum, which is invisible to human sight, to make visible impressions of bruises and injuries long after their occurrence. In addition, the type of weapon used can often be determined by examining its impression developed using ultraviolet light. |
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Definition
| One based upon prior knowledge or an affidavit showing probable cause that at some future time (but not presently) certain evidence of crime will be located at a specified place. Such warrants are constitutional if a proper showing is made that contraband or evidence will likely be found at the target location at a given time, or when a specific triggering event occurs. |
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| Established that in a search incidental to a lawful arrest, the search must be made simultaneously with the arrest and must be confined to the area within suspect's immediate control. |
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| Begins at the center of the crime scene and then spreads out in ever-widening concentric circles. |
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| Portion of the residence that is not open to the public and is reserved for private owner or family use, in contrast to sidewalks and alleys, which are used by the public and which hold no reasonable expectation of privacy. |
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| "Elephant-in-a-matchbox" doctrine |
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| Requires that searches consider the probable size and shape of evidence they seek; for example, large objects cannot be concealed in tiny areas. |
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| Emergency situations; they do not require a warrant. |
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| External search of an individual's clothing. Also called pat-down. |
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| Fruit-of-the-poisonous-tree doctrine |
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| Established that evidence obtained as a result of an earlier illegality must be excluded from trial. |
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| Established that illegally obtained evidence may be admitted into trial if the police were truly not aware that they were violating the suspect's Fourth Amendment rights. |
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| Inevitable-discovery doctrine |
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| Established that if the evidence would in all likelihood eventually have been discovered, it may be used even if it was obtained illegally. |
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| Divides a crime scene into lanes by using stakes and strings or by having officers walk shoulder to should or at arms length. |
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| Particularity requirement |
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| Dictates that a search conducted with a warrant must be limited to the specific area and specific items named in the warrant, as held in Standford v. Texas. |
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| Plain feel/touch evidence |
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| Object discovered by a police officer who is lawfully patting down a suspect's outer clothing and that is immediately identified, by touch, as contraband; a warrantless seizure is justified because there is no invasion of the suspect's privacy beyond that already authorized by the officer's search for weapons (Minnesota v. Dickerson, 1993). |
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| Unconcealed evidence that is seen by an officer engaged in a lawful activity. |
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| Warrants a person of reasonable caution to believe that a crime has been committed. |
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| Authority for the police to search areas immediately adjoining the place of arrest, justified when reasonable suspicion exists that another person might be present who poses a danger to the arresting officer; also called a Buie sweep. |
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| Adaptation of the lane search pattern that is used when only one officer is available to search. |
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| Detaining, questioning, and possible frisking of an individual based on an officer's reasonable suspicion of that individual's involvement in criminal activity. |
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| Totality-of-the-circumstances test |
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Definition
| Principle upon which a number of legal assessments are made; refers to the sum total of factors leading a reasonable person to a course of action. |
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| Avoiding wordiness; making every word count without leaving out important facts. |
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| Adjective describing words that have an emotional effect, with meainings that impart either positive or negative overtones. |
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| What is said in a narrative, as opposed to form, which is how a narrative is written. The content of an effective report is factual, accurate, objective and complete. |
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| Adjective describing words that have little emotional effect and are objective in their meaning. |
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| Use of I, me, we and us in speaking and writing; in contrast to the second person you) and hte third person (he or this officer). |
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| How a narrative is written ,in contrast to content, which is what is said in a narrative. The form of a well-written report is concise, clear, grammatically and mechanically correct and written in Standard English. |
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| Use of spelling, capitalization and punctuation in written communication. |
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| Technical report structured in chronological order describing a sequence of investigative events. |
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| Use of verbs that indicate that the action has already occurred, for example, live rather than lives. |
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