NCJ Number
183871
Journal
Law Enforcement Technology Volume: 27 Issue: 6 Dated: June 2000 Pages: 102-106
Date Published
June 2000
Length
5 pages
Annotation
A general case detective describes a fire investigation involving a fire in a large home worth $1 million; he comments that he made several mistakes, starting with believing the homeowner’s story about how the fire started.
Abstract
The author is a member of a countywide arson task force and conducts scene investigations for suspicious fires all over the county. The two opinions regarding processing crime scenes and fire scenes are: (1) that it is better to know the story prior to processing the scene and (2) that investigators should process the crime scene with no knowledge of the preceding events. The homeowner stated that he lit a fire in the master bedroom, left the room, and discovered that the blanket had caught on fire, and ultimately set the window treatments and the house on fire. Neighbors either were not at home or had no information to contribute. The investigator checked for easily degradable evidence in risk of immediate destruction, sketched the home’s interior and exterior, photographed the entire scene, and conducted a layer-by-layer examination of the master bedroom. Further analysis with the assistance of a colleague revealed that the fire had actually originated in the wiring of a recessed lighting fixture. A properly conducted scene investigation can yield accurate results; the investigator needs to remain objective and let the scene be the guide instead of relying on a witness’s accounts. Photographs