1 book cover here chapter 17 homicide criminal investigation: a method for reconstructing the past,...

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Book CoverHere

Chapter 17

HOMICIDE

Criminal Investigation: A Method for Reconstructing the Past, 7th Edition

Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Inc. All Rights Reserved

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Homicide• Justifiable Homicide• Excusable Homicide • Suicide• Criminal Homicide• Murder• Manslaughter


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Definitions

• Homicide: The killing of one human being by another.

• Justifiable Homicide: Intentional but lawful killing of another– The state commits justifiable homicide in carrying

out a death sentence handed down by a judge after conviction

• Police officer kills someone who shoots at him/her• Individual kills in defense of self or family


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Definitions

• Excusable Homicide: One person killing another by accident without gross negligence and without intent to injure– Hunter that mistakes a person for game– Police officer firing and killing a suspect that is

believed to have a weapon and is threatening the officer

• Suicide: The taking of one’s own life– Not a crime, but considered a grave public wrong

in many jurisdictions.Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Inc. All

Rights Reserved

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Definitions

• Criminal Homicide: Unlawful taking of a human life.

• Murder: Unlawful killing of another human being with malice aforethought.– Killing a person during the commission of a felony,

even when the killing is unintentional

• Manslaughter: Unlawful killing of another without intent — expressed or implied — to effect death


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Corpus Delicti

• The collection of basic facts establishing that a crime has been committed and that some person is responsible

• Investigator must marshal evidence for each element of the corpus delicti in order for the prosecutor to obtain an indictment or for the judge to hand the case over to a jury


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Elements for Unlawful Homicide

• The death was not the result of suicide, natural causes, or accident, thus establishing that it was a homicide

• Some person was responsible for the unlawful death

• Circumstances surrounding the death will determine whether the charge will be murder or manslaughter


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Homicide Demographics

• Most reliable of all crime statistics• UCR data reveal three 20th Century peaks

– 1933: 9.7 per 100,000– 1980: 10.2 per 100,000– 1991: 9.8 per 100,000

• U.S. in 2010: 4.8 per 100,000• Canada: 1.62 per 100,000


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Homicide Statistics

• More than 16,000 murders are reported in the U.S. each year– Most occurring in large metro areas– July and August– On weekends, holidays, and at night– Region

• Southern states account for more murders than do states in other parts of the country


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Homicide Demographics

• Majority of Offenders– Male– Black

• Majority of Victims– Male– Black

• Dominant Weapon– Firearms


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Investigative Activities in a Homicide1. Record crime scene (photographs, sketches,

notes)2. Recognize, collect, and preserve all physical

evidence3. Identify the victim4. Establish the cause, manner, and time of death5. Ascertain the motive for the crime6. Seek additional information7. Question suspects (after administering Miranda

warnings)Copyright © 2014, Elsevier Inc. All

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Partitioning Responsibilities

• Different responsibilities belong to various parties involved:– Evidence Technician– Criminalist– Forensic Pathologist– Forensic Anthropologist– Detective


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Responsibilities

• Evidence Technician– Recording crime scene– Recognizing, collecting, and preserving physical

evidence

• Criminalist– Recognizing, collecting, and preserving physical

evidence– Sometimes responsible for recording crime scene


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Responsibilities• Forensic Pathologist

– Identifying the victim– Estimating the time of death– Establishing the cause and manner of death– Sometimes contributes to recognizing, collecting, and

preserving physical evidence / ascertaining the motive for the crime

• Forensic Anthropologist– Recognizing, collecting, and preserving physical

evidence– Identifying the victim


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Detective (Investigator) Responsibilities

• Recording the crime scene• Recognizing, collecting, and preserving

physical evidence• Ascertaining the motive for a crime• Seeking additional information• Questioning suspects• Develops authentic info for identifying the

victimCopyright © 2014, Elsevier Inc. All

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Motive• Importance• Categorizing Motives

– Financial Gain– Sexual Gratification– Apparently Sex-Connected Homicides– Emotional Factors – Self-Protection (e.g., Interrupted Crimes, Eliminating

an Eyewitness, Slaying a Potential Informant, Removal of an Inconvenience or Impediment)


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Apparently Motiveless Homicides

• Stranger killing stranger• Far less frequent, but on the rise• Gang shootings• “Thrill” killing

– Homeless, vagrants, individuals based on race or ethnic background

• Mistaken Identity– Infrequent– Absence of motive is significant


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Determining Motive

• Crime Scene– Crime picture

• People– Thorough background on the deceased may

provide insight into a likely motive for the homicide

• List of people can then be compiled and narrowed• Records

– Insurance policies– Business practices


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The Crime Scene as the Focus of the Investigation

• Is This an Unlawful Homicide?• Is This Homicide Simulated as Suicide?• Who is the Deceased?• What Was the Motive?• Is There Associative Evidence Present?• Reconstructing What Happened• May have only ONE Opportunity


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The Body as the Focus of the Investigation

• Who is the Deceased?• Establishing the Cause and Manner of Death –

the Autopsy – External Examination (clothing; weapon;

circumstances of death; if body was moved after death)

– Internal Examination (incisions to remove organs, tissues, fluids; samples for chemical analysis; cause and manner of death)


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Reconstructing the Crime

• Was the body moved after death?• What occurred, and how did it occur?• How much time would it take to inflict the

injuries?• Circumstances and where found• Postmortem lividity (Livor mortis)• Forensic entomology


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What Time or Times are Involved?

• Last Person to See the Victim Alive• Checking a Witness’s Story• Time of Death

– Rigor Mortis– Body Temperature

• Other Factors– Stomach Content– Insect Growth – External Factors


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What Time or Times are Involved?

• Victim’s Residence (e.g., news or mail not picked up; blinds or shades; lights on or off)

• Personal Habits • Time Sequence

– Accuracy – Was There Sufficient Time?– Delayed Departure – Its Significance– Time Line


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What Occurred? – How Did It Occur?• Autopsy Reports – Injuries:

– Abrasion– Contusion – Fracture– Incision – Laceration – Wound– Trauma


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Wounds

• Gunshot Wounds– Entrance Wounds – Firing Distance– Characteristics of Entrance and Exit Wounds – Number of Wounds

• Cutting and Stabbing Wounds– Suicidal Wounds – Homicidal Wounds

• Blunt Force Wounds


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Wounds• Asphyxiation

– Smothering– Strangulation

• Manual • Ligature • Hanging

• Poisoning • Drowning • Burns

– Are the Remains of Human Origin?– The Victim: Alive or Dead When the Fire Started?

• Antemortem and Postmortem Injuries


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Those Who Knew the Victim• Information that may be elicited by

interviewing a victim’s associates include:– The suggestion of a motive for the crime– The naming of a suspect or suspects and providing

the reasons for such charges or beliefs– Describing the unusual activities and habits of the

deceased permits his or her movements to be traced at the time of, and just before, the death

• The last person to see the victim alive may provide valuable insight


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Canvassing

• Generally confined to the immediate crime scene area

• Places and locations visited by the deceased should be revisited


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Informants

• Some perpetrators appear to have successfully avoided detection, but will relax their guard and talk after the initial fear of apprehension passes– Brag about exploits– Example: Conversations overheard in a

neighborhood bar


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The Value of Records in Homicide Investigation

• Insight into Motive– Who Benefits?– Written Materials– Computer Records

• Tracing Ownership • Previously Recorded Activities • Follow-Up Action


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Cover-Up Attempts• Accidental Means

– Vehicles– Firearms – Fire – Poisons

• Explainable Means – Simulated Felony – Self-Defense

• Diversionary Means – First Person to Report the Crime – Contrived Alibi – Ruse

• Partial Cover-Ups


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Missing Persons• Apparently Involuntary Disappearances

– Children • Family Abduction • Non-Family Abduction• Runaways• Thrownaways • Lost, Injured, or Otherwise Missing

– Adults – Adolescents

• Misleading Reports


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Multiple Deaths

• Several Mortalities – All Part of One Event– Double Homicide – Family / Residence Murders

• Intrafamily Killings • Home and Workplace Invasions

– Home Burglary-Turned-Homicide – The Clutter Case

– Mass Murders• [Crime spree (spread over a period of time)]• One event

– Random Shootings – All Victims Die in One Event


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Multiple Deaths

• Multiple Killings – Separate Events Spread Over Time

• Crime-Spree Mass Murders – Occur infrequently– Generally solved

• Serial Murders – Value of motive is nullified (usually committed by a

male prompted by a sexual or aggressive drive to exert power through killing)


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Violent Criminal Apprehension Program (ViCAP)

• Criteria for Submission/Acceptance– Homicides– Missing persons– Unidentified dead bodies


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The Role of Routine Police Work in Solving a Serial Murder

• “Lonely Hearts” Killings• Poisonings

– Investigating a suspected poisoning– Significance of acute and chronic symptoms– Physical evidence at the scene of death– Body excretions– Transmission of evidence– Checking records


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Dying Declarations• Antemortem statement• Hearsay evidence; subject to cross-examination• Several conditions must be met; generally not

admissible in court; it is allowed into evidence in homicide cases in certain jurisdictions

• May be oral, written, or recorded• Has to be persuasive• When close to death, supposedly, people don’t lie


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For Dying Declaration to Be Admissible

• The victim must believe he or she is about to die

• The victim must have no hope of recovery• Declaration must

– Identify the person responsible for his or her condition

– State the circumstances and manner by which the mortal injuries were inflicted

• Victim must be rational and competent• Victim must die from the injuries received


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Conclusion

• Homicide more rare than other major crimes• Higher “solve” rate than other crimes:

1. Greater allotment of resources2. Particularized motives narrows suspect pool3. Physical evidence availability4. Reconstruction possibilities5. Forensic pathology assistance


1 book cover here chapter 17 homicide criminal investigation: a method for reconstructing the past,...

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