Chapter 7

Question 1

1. Q: What are the two main expectations of police regarding crime?

Answer 1

A: Police are expected to prevent crime and identify and apprehend offenders.

Question 2

2. Q: What is criminal investigation?

Answer 2

A: The process of collecting crime-related information in order to determine whether a crime occurred, identify the offender, and achieve investigative goals.

Question 3

3. Q: What are the three main components of criminal investigation?

Answer 3

A: The process, crime-related information, and goals.

Question 4

4. Q: What is criminal evidence?

Answer 4

A: Information related to a crime or perpetrator that can help investigators solve the case.

Question 5

5. Q: What are the primary goals of criminal investigation?

Answer 5

A: Solving the crime, obtaining a conviction, satisfying victims, and ultimately reducing crime.

Question 6

6. Q: What must investigators do to solve a crime?

Answer 6

A: Determine if a crime occurred, identify the perpetrator, and apprehend the offender.

Question 7

7. Q: What is meant by “clearing a case by arrest”?

Answer 7

A: When a suspect is identified and apprehended, and the case is considered solved.

Question 8

8. Q: What are the main objectives of criminal investigations?

Answer 8

A: Detect crimes, identify suspects, collect and preserve evidence, arrest offenders, recover stolen property, and prepare cases for prosecution.

Question 9

9. Q: Where do the roots of American criminal investigation originate?

Answer 9

A: England.

Question 10

10. Q: Who were the Bow Street Runners?

Answer 10

A: Early English investigators who were paid for capturing criminals.

Question 11

11. Q: What was the significance of the Pinkerton National Detective Agency?

Answer 11

A: Founded in 1850 by Allan Pinkerton and influenced the organizational structure of the FBI while handling cases local police could not investigate.

Question 12

12. Q: What are major federal agencies involved in criminal investigations in the United States?

Answer 12

A: The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), United States Secret Service, Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).

Question 13

13. Q: What are reactive investigations?

Answer 13

A: Investigations that occur after a crime has already been committed.

Question 14

14. Q: What happens during the initial investigation in a reactive investigation?

Answer 14

A: Patrol officers interview victims and witnesses, canvass for additional witnesses, and secure the crime scene.

Question 15

15. Q: What is a follow-up investigation?

Answer 15

A: Additional investigative work done after the initial investigation when no immediate arrest has been made.

Question 16

16. Q: What are cold case investigations?

Answer 16

A: old unsolved crimes reopened

Question 17

17. Q: Why are cold case investigations difficult?

Answer 17

A: Witnesses may be unavailable or uncooperative, suspects may be deceased, and evidence may be missing or degraded.

Question 18

18. Q: What are undercover investigations?

Answer 18

A: Investigations where officers hide their identities and initiate actions to detect criminal activity before or during the crime.

Question 19

19. Q: What is a sting operation?

Answer 19

A: When an undercover officer poses as a buyer or seller of illegal goods in order to catch offenders.

Question 20

20. Q: What is a decoy operation?

Answer 20

A: When an officer creates an opportunity for someone to commit a crime and arrests them when they attempt it.

Question 21

21. Q: What is an undercover fencing operation?

Answer 21

A: When police pose as buyers of stolen property to identify and arrest offenders selling stolen goods.

Question 22

22. Q: What is surveillance?

Answer 22

A: Monitoring a specific person.

Question 23

23. Q: What is a stakeout?

Answer 23

A: Monitoring a specific location.

Question 24

24. Q: What is entrapment?

Answer 24

A: When police induce someone to commit a crime they were not previously predisposed to commit.

Question 25

25. Q: When is a crime considered solved?

Answer 25

A: When enough evidence establishes probable cause that a crime occurred and a suspect committed it and the suspect is arrested.

Question 26

26. Q: How does the type of crime affect the likelihood of solving it?

Answer 26

A: Violent crimes often produce more evidence than property crimes like theft.

Question 27

27. Q: Why are crimes in private locations often easier to solve?

Answer 27

A: Because the offender is often known to the victim.

Question 28

28. Q: Why are homicides harder to solve if not solved quickly?

Answer 28

A: The chances of solving the case decrease significantly after the first 24 hours.

Question 29

29. Q: How does investigator effort influence case outcomes?

Answer 29

A: More time and effort can produce more evidence and increase the likelihood of solving the crime.

Question 30

30. Q: What is inculpatory evidence?

Answer 30

A: Evidence that implicates or incriminates a person as the perpetrator.

Question 31

31. Q: What is exculpatory evidence?

Answer 31

A: Evidence that eliminates or clears someone as a suspect.

Question 32

32. Q: What is direct evidence?

Answer 32

A: Evidence that immediately proves a fact without requiring inference.

Question 33

33. Q: What is indirect (circumstantial) evidence?

Answer 33

A: Evidence that requires inference or reasoning to establish a conclusion.

Question 34

34. Q: What is physical evidence?

Answer 34

A: Tangible items produced during a crime that can help establish what occurred.

Question 35

35. Q: What is chain of custody?

Answer 35

A: The documented process that tracks who handled evidence to ensure it has not been altered.

Question 36

36. Q: What is biological evidence?

Answer 36

A: Evidence such as blood, saliva, semen, hair, or touch DNA that can identify individuals.

Question 37

37. Q: How is DNA commonly used in criminal investigations?

Answer 37

A: To confirm suspects, link individuals to crime scenes, and sometimes clear innocent individuals.

Question 38

38. Q: What types of information do witnesses and victims provide?

Answer 38

A: Descriptions of suspects, actions, vehicle information, or the offender’s identity.

Question 39

39. Q: What is eyewitness identification?

Answer 39

A: When a witness identifies a suspect as the person involved in the crime.

Question 40

40. Q: What are common methods of eyewitness identification?

Answer 40

A: Composite sketches, show-ups, photo lineups, and live lineups.

Question 41

41. Q: Why can eyewitness identification sometimes be unreliable?

Answer 41

A: Small errors in memory or identification can lead to mistakes.

Question 42

42. Q: What is an interrogation?

Answer 42

A: Questioning intended to obtain incriminating information from a suspect.

Question 43

43. Q: What is the Reid Technique?

Answer 43

A: A confrontational interrogation method that assumes the suspect is guilty.

Question 44

44. Q: Why are some interrogation methods controversial?

Answer 44

A: Because they can sometimes produce false confessions.

Question 45

45. Q: What is criminal profiling?

Answer 45

A: An investigative technique that identifies likely personality and behavioral traits of an offender.

Question 46

46. Q: What are tip lines used for in investigations?

Answer 46

A: To collect information from the public about crimes.

Question 47

47. Q: What is an AMBER Alert?

Answer 47

A: A system that rapidly broadcasts information about a suspected child abduction through media and electronic alerts.

Question 48

48. Q: How do social media and the internet assist investigations?

Answer 48

A: They provide photos, videos, posts, and information that can serve as evidence.

Question 49

49. Q: What are confidential informants?

Answer 49

A: Members of the public who provide ongoing information to police, often in exchange for benefits.

Question 50

50. Q: Why are confidential informants controversial?

Answer 50

A: Because many are offenders themselves and their reliability may be questioned.

Question 51

51. Q: What is gang intelligence?

Answer 51

A: Information gathered about gang activities, members, and operations to assist investigations.

Question 52

52. Q: What is crime analysis?

Answer 52

A: The collection and analysis of data about crimes, offenders, and locations to identify patterns.

Question 53

53. Q: What are electronic databases used for in investigations?

Answer 53

A: To store and retrieve records such as pawnshop transactions and police contact histories.

Question 54

54. Q: What is digital evidence? \

Answer 54

A: Data from electronic devices such as phones, computers, texts, emails, and location information.

Question 55

55. Q: How is video evidence used in investigations?

Answer 55

A: Footage from CCTV, body cameras, and surveillance systems can document crimes and identify suspects.