Criminal Investigation
A criminal investigation is the process of looking , collection , and gathering
of evidences and facts of a crime for identification of the guilty person and to provide
evidence of his guilt.
The criminal investigation has three parts –
Investigation - The investigation officer involve in investigation , established
that a crime was committed and looking for the suspects or accused. The evidence
is gathered for suspect identification. If sufficient evidence is present
then the suspect is arrested.
Arrest – Next step of investigation involves the arrest of
the suspect or accused.
Court Proceedings – In this step all the evidence gathered during the investigation
is presented before the court in a charged file and a decision is made by the court in
this regards for punishment.
If all three parts are successfully attained , then we said that the crime is solved.
Recovering
stolen property and satisfying crime victims are associated with the process.
Every crime is an action that is against the rules of law and menace towards a community.
A criminal trial is pursued by the government different from a civil trial , as in civil
trial individuals debating their rights but in criminal acts , such as sexual assault ,
murder , theft , vandalism etc. its a call for investigators to collect and gather evidences
so
that charges could be made against the criminal.
The basic principle of crime scene investigation is based on Locard's Exchange Principle.
This principle link suspects to victims, to physical
objects, and to the scene of crime.
Types of Criminal Investigations -
Theft investigations
Kidnapping investigations
Assault investigations
Fraud investigations
Crime scene investigations
Sexual crime investigations
Homicide investigations
Criminal defense investigations.
The two possibilities are always exist in criminal investigation .
First the active Event , when the criminal act is or may still be in progress
at the crime scene or the suspect is or may still be at the crime scene. This
situation is dangerous to the life of surrounding persons or for the safety of
attending police officers. Second situation is as inactive Event , where the
criminal act has concluded and the suspect or suspects have left the crime scene
or have been detained.
Criminal Investigation Techniques –
Criminal investigation need several technique according to the crime and crime scene. Some of them are Interviews , Surveillance , Background checks , Document searches. A systematic and discipline approach is needed in crime scene examination. Evaluation of the crime scene needs some basic steps like protection of the scene of crime , crime scene photography , sketching of crime scene , searching of clues and physical evidences , after that collection and preservation of physical evidence , next step is packaging of physical evidence , documentation , dispatch of evidence and maintain chain of custody.
Criminal investigation need patience with task skills and it
is equally need thinking skills. To become a good and effective investigator,
these skills need to be developed with experience and resulted in
problem-solving process that is criminal investigation.
Criminal investigators are trained and they have access to a
wide variety of tools including networks of information , surveillance
equipment , and records checks. Their experience allows them to understand the
evidence and they use best practices to perform their investigations
effectively. They are adhere to laws and regulations and their investigation / information
is obtained in a legal manner which aids in court processes.
The criminal investigation required information and evidence which leads to
some questions , decisions , actions ,
and outcomes such as -
What is on the focus (how many person involved) of a
criminal investigation?
Needed best plan to apprehend the criminal responsible for a
criminal act?
Is the search of a person or his home needed ?
Is suspect detention or arrest and questioning for a crime required
?
Is there any previous criminal charges against him .
Chain of Documents needed to proceed for criminal trial .
Is liberty of a free person be at risk ? (if a wrong person
was arrested).
Was all information shared among police agencies ?
Did the investigation miss something ?
Was all the evidence found and proceed properly ?
Is the investigative theories proper and based on existing
facts and leads to the correct conclusion ?
Compared to early policing , presently the forensic experts are very helpful to identify suspects and in
examination of physical evidence. Forensic specialties has increased and contributed
to the development and evolution of chemical analysis , fingerprints , toxicology
, odontology, ballistics, hair and fiber , entomology , Photography and
photomicrography, document examination, biometric analysis , and in DNA
analysis.
In which manner the evidence was located, preserved , analyzed,
interpreted, and presented described the quality and the competency of the
investigators.
The most important function of criminal investigation is the
Interrogation of suspects .The confession gained in violation of the suspect’s
rights can be repudiated in court. The use of lie detector is subject to widespread courtroom
limitations.
For conducting a criminal investigation the major problem
for the police is that the relevance of the information is often unknown , the
information is often incomplete or often inaccurate. For proving guilt in court the evidence must
be certain other qualities , and certain rules and procedures should be
followed by the officer in collecting the evidence.
MR. DEEPAK PAWAR has been working as Finger Print Expert / Police Officer in Finger Print Bureau , Delhi Police at New Delhi since 2001 . He is the senior most Finger Print Expert , attending / visited several scene of crime and solved many crime cases .He has passed M.Sc (Chemistry) and he is the Member of International Association of Identification . He is the Member of Delhi Police welfare association . He is supervising the Forensic , New Delhi District , Mobile Crime Team . He is one of the Expert in the Special Investigation Team held for investigation of important cases . He has been giving fingerprint proficient training to Delhi Police personnel's . He has been Presented / giving lectures on topics related to forensic science . He is also making examination paper of Finger Print proficient course . He is awarded with Police Medal by MHA and Delhi Police.