CSI for the First Responder: A Concise Guide

Critical to the successful apprehension and prosecution of criminals, the job of collecting evidence at a crime scene requires knowledge, technical skills, patience, and perseverance. Often this task falls on just one individual — the officer on routine patrol duties who is the first to arrive at the scene of a crime. Written by an expert with seventeen years experience in law enforcement, CSI for the First Responder is a succinct guide on how to secure, search, identify, document, collect, and preserve physical evidence essential for solving a case and making the evidence stand up in court.


A practical, hands-on resource to all aspects of crime scene investigation, this book covers:


The approach to the scene
Securing the scene
Searching for and identifying evidence
Documenting the evidence through notes and reports
Photography and videotape
Sketches and diagrams
Collection and preservation
The investigative value of different types of evidence
Testimony and presenting evidence in court



Enhanced with real-life examples, the book presents case studies implementing the described techniques. The case studies include examples of successful scene security and documentation as well as cautionary tales of erroneous practices with lessons learned. Also included with this book is a Quick Reference Guide on CD-ROM, which can be downloaded to patrol car laptops or printed and kept in a pocket for easy access. Spanning the entire scope of a case from initial discovery of evidence to courtroom presentation, this one-stop resource enables law enforcement to nail down the evidence they need to prove the crime and get the conviction.