Question one
True to this research, criminal investigations began in Europe during the industrial revolution, a time when criminal activities were rampant in this place particularly in England. This was followed by a major development, when, in 1837 and 1924, the federal US government established a professional police force and Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI) respectively. Since today crime has gone hi-tech, it is inevitably essential for the investigative authorities to make a lot of reforms that will greatly improve their roles in the society.
In this regard, I would like to strongly agree with the RAND for recommending that there should be an expansion in the investigative role of the patrol officers. This means that they will be carrying out first hand investigations, coming up with the most reliable information and evidence that they can label on the suspect. If they are given the authority to go ahead, the gap between the investigators and prosecutors will ultimately be eliminated making the case to be stronger (Lyman, M. D., 2011).
Besides, there should be a provision of additional resources, organization and seeking for latent prints. Well trained personnel forensic science should be used. They should be equipped with the necessary skills and materials to enable them use a combination of plastic, visible, latent and other finger print technologies. This will help in unveiling the truth to help in reaching a sound and just judgment.
Question two
Since crime may be so complicated to deal with, it is necessary for the investigation officers to carry out a well co-ordinated and organized work. This means that a series of officers should be deployed to the scene of crime to carry out all the operations that will lead to a proper investigation. For instance, it is important to make a good use of the first officer whose responsibilities include, but not limited to the following:
i) Getting the most basic and fundamental information and passing it on the subsequent officers
ii) Giving the necessary aids to the injured person in the scene of crime
iii) Evaluating the situation and coming up with a proper and reliable finding. This will be very useful in the further investigation process because it is what the follow up officers will rely on during their operations (Lyman, M. D., 2011).
iv) Interviewing the witnesses to get the useful information from them. This is very important because it is what will be relied on as the major source of information that will be used in the entire investigation, arrest, prosecution and subsequent legal actions on the suspect.
Reference
Lyman, M. D. (2011). Criminal investigation: The art and the science (6th ed.). Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice
