Law
Investigating Crime ScenesEdmond Locard and his Principle of ExchangeDr. Edmond Locard was the director of the world's first forensic lab in Lyon, France. In this capacity, her came up with what we now call Locard's Principle of Exchange. The idea is that whenever a person/place/thing comes in contact with another person/place/thing, there is some exchange of trace evidence. He also noted that the intensity and duration of the contact, and nature of the materials determine the extent of the transfer. For example, if you bump into someone on the sidewalk, there will be less exchange than if you spent four hours in their home.Lessons from the JonBenet Ramsey CaseJonBenet RamseyThe 1996 homicide (murder) investigation of six-year-old JonBenet Ramsey provides valuable lessons in proper crime scene investigation procedures. From this case, we learn how important it is to secure a crime scene. Key forensics evidence can be lost forever without a secure crime scene.In the Ramsey case, the police in Boulder, Colorado, allowed extensive contamination of the crime scene. Police first thought JonBenet had been kidnapped because of a ransom note found by her mother. For this reason, the police did not search the house until seven hours after the family called 911. The first-responding officer was investigating the report of the kidnapping. The officer did not think to open the basement door, and so did not discover the murdered body of the girl.Believing the crime was a kidnapping, the police blocked off JonBenet's bedroom with yellow and black crime scene tape to preserve evidence her kidnapper may have left behind. They didn't, however, seal off the rest of the house, which was also part of the crime scene. Then the victim's father, John Ramsey, discovered his daughter's body in the basement of the home. He covered her body with a blanket and carried her to the living room. In doing so, he contaminated the crime scene and may have disturbed evidence. That evidence might have identified the killer.Once the body was found, family, friends, and police officers remained close by. The Ramseys and visitors were allowed to move freely around the house. One friend even helped clean the kitchen, wiping down the counters with a spray cleanerpossibly wiping away evidence. Many hours passed before police blocked off the basement room. A pathologist did not examine the body until more than 19 hours after the crime took place. Ransom NoteTo this day, JonBenet Ramsey's murder remains unsolved.Your TaskTell me about mistakes made in the handling of the crime scene in the JonBenet Ramsey case. IN AT LEAST 1 FULL PARGRAPH of 4-6 sentences (don't number the questions!), answer the following:What did investigators do wrong in the JonBenet Ramsey case? Consider the 7 Ss of Crime Scene Investigation. Were they all done?Thinking in terms of Locard's Principle of Exchange (this means you have to talk about Locard's Principle of exchange), how did investigators' action (or lack thereof) influence what trace evidence was available to investigators? Someone please help me
