There are different laws and regulations that guide searching a personal property. One of the permission required searching this workplace is a warrant of search. The American constitution through the 4th Amendment protects private citizens from any manner of search if the searching authority does not have the probable cause for a search (Dutelle, 2016). Therefore to search this property, there is a need to find probable cause to search this facility.
As an investigation officer, there is a need to obtain a court order and a police abstract detailing the need for the search and the probable cause for the search. There is a need to demonstrate facts and evidence for the need to search for a particular property. There is also a need to prove the illegal activity and the police should have strong links and connections to the scene of the crime (Casey, 2010).
After all the permissions and authorities are granted, there is a need to have proper documentation strategies for any activity at the search place. Each item that is related to the crime under investigation should be documented. All the parties should be presented during the search. They should attest their signatures on the search document and should agree to any item being fund at this scene. The documentation should highlight the items that were found, the place, and its states (National Institute of Justice (U.S.), 2010).
In this photo, there are three potential items of digital evidence being discovered in this search area. One of the noticeable digital evidence found in this case is the laptop computer. The laptop is conspicuously seen in this case (Dell laptop). This item is a significant source of digital evidence. It can store data in many forms and of different sizes. For instance, it can store videos, audio files, Word documents, programs, and other information technology data.
The laptop can also be used for internet communication. In this case, the laptop can be used for communication over the web. Therefore, there is a need to examine the browsing history in this computer and identify sites browsed that are related to the case. It can also store different digital contents across multiple locations. Secondly, there is a flash disk. The flash disk is white and black in colour. This can also store digital content in a variety of ways.
Besides, this flash disk, there is a desktop computer. It has the same capabilities like the laptop. Furthermore, the computer can be used to design programs that can be used for criminal activities. As seen from the picture the desktop computer can be used to edit documents and other files. Thus, there is a need to look at all the programs and applications on the computer and their potential use concerning the case.
The third source of digital evidence and data is the external hard disk that is near the keyboard of the desktop computer. The flash disk and the hard disk can be used store programs, audio files, videos, files, and other records. This digital device is easily portable and can be used to share information from one computer to another. It can also be used to steal or manipulate information from one computer to another.
In this case, there are also three other potential items of non-digital evidence. One of such item is the notebook placed at the table. This notebook could contain significant information used by Mr. Yourprop in his criminal activities. The drawers in the room could also be used to store other evidence materials that are crucial to this case. The paper files in the room can also be used as evidence in this case.
The potential use of these materials could be to record transactions. They could also serve as primary documented where data is gathered before it is transferred to other digital platforms. They could be containing data and other information significant to this case. Evidence will be collected from this case through a careful analysis of the content in these books and how they are related to the events in this case.
The colleague was able to identify correctly the digital devices .the first item, and Olympus voice recorder is one of the vital sources of digital evidence. This item can be used to recorded voice for different purposes within the case. The second item identified is the Western Digital, 1TB, silver and black with a green label, roughly rectangular, affixed with a torn sticker on the front. This item is one of the critical items in this case. This item can be used to store data of different formats. Besides, it has a huge capacity to store data hence can be used to a significant amount of date for a long time. An analysis of this source of evidence will be vital in revealing many things for this case.
One of the things that this colleague should have added to this case is the laptop and desktop computers. These items are also critical since they are used to store data. They are also used to convert data into various formats. They can also use to manipulate data and transmit data to different forms. Thus, their analysis and documentation are significant for this case.
There should also be more description for the voice recorder. There is need to mention the size of the voice recorder and its capacity. The way the voice recorder was placed in the room should have been added in this description since it is essential to establish its source. The investigator should have analysed the amount of data in this voice recorder.
The items collected in this care are electronic materials which are vulnerable to different security and physical threats and must be preserved to make it suitable for presentation in court (National Institute of Justice (U.S.), 2010).Some of the environmental concerns include humid conditions which may make the items to rust or lose the data stored in the items. High temperatures may also destroy the files stored in these items. All items must also be free from dust and other particles that they may cause the items to be damaged. The room storing this data should be free from these environmental considerations. They must be kept in a secure environment. Moreover, there must back-ups for all this files and data stored in this material. Backup data will ensure that data has not been manipulated (White, 2007).
All the items must be sealed in an envelope with and documented with the person’s name, data, and the case number. There is also the need that all data has relevant software which can be used to open the files. Some of the data may require updated software. Thus, all the information must be stored alongside appropriate software materials.
References
Casey, E. (2010). Digital evidence and computer crime: Forensic science, computers and the Internet. London: Academic.
Dutelle, A. W. (2016). An introduction to crime scene investigation.
National Institute of Justice (U.S.). (2010). Electronic crime scene investigation: A guide for first responders. Darby, PA: Diane Publishing.
White, P. (2007). Crime scene to court: The essentials of forensic science. Cambridge: Royal Society of Chemistry.
