Curriculum Information

Introduction to crime scene investigation: To include crime scene protocol, crime scene protection – crime scene safety, securing and isolating the crime scene. Crime scene processing – Recording the crime scene: written documentation, crime scene sketching, crime scene photography, crime scene video recording. Systematic searching of the crime scene.
Recognition of physical evidence. Basic technical equipment for crime scene investigation. Health & safety of crime scene: The Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 2006, Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992, Personal Protective Equipment at Work Regulation 1992).

Crime scene: Processing a mock Crime Scene reconstruction, Simulated Evidence examination and collection.

Documentation, collection and preservation of physical evidence: Crime scene evidence collection and preservation related to body fluids (blood, semen, saliva etc.), body tissues (bite marks, broken fingernails etc.), controlled substances and medical preparations, fibres, finger, palm, foot, shoe and tyre prints, fire and explosive materials, firearms and projectiles, glass, fracture matches, hair, oils and greases, soils, tool marks and documents.

Interpretation of Crime Scene Evidence: Bloodstain analysis: Patterns of stains falling on different surfaces, at different velocities. Determination of the point of origin. Blood Typing: Tests for blood and species. ABO and enzyme typing, including typing of dried bloodstains.
DNA fingerprinting: How DNA typing works: description of restriction fragment length polymorphism and short tandem repeat DNA analysis. Fingerprints: Classification and identification of fingerprints. Methods of latent print development. Fibre: type, relevance, damage, sources. Hair: Characteristics of hair and its use as trace evidence. Drugs and Toxicology: Description of different classes of poisons and famous case studies. Description of different types of drugs and their manufacture and analysis. Questioned Documents: Handwriting, typewriters, watermarks, indented writing, ESDA, infrared and UV examination, voiceprints. Fire and Arson Investigation: Motives for arson, accelerants, fuses, collection and analysis of debris. Glass: Different types of glass. How glass shatters, and how to characterise glass by refractive index , density and elemental analysis.

Laboratory/Simulation Exercises to include but not be restricted to: Taking and classifying elimination (inked) fingerprints, Chemical Development of latent fingerprints, dusting for fingerprints, Bloodstain analysis, Plaster cast of a footprint. Presumptive testing: To include (but not be restricted to) the detection of saliva, blood and semen at crime scenes and on recovered items.