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CRIMINAL INVESTIGATION
Introduction Criminal investigations are conducted in accordance with the dictates of the law. The conduct of an investigation is governed by information obtained from people, records and physical evidence. Victims or witnesses still provide the bulk of facts as to what, when, where, who, why and how the crime was committed. Investigation – Is a science or an art deals with the collection, preservation of physical evidence, is planned and organized, determining the material facts concerning a specific crime. It has three – fold aims to accomplish:
- To identify the victim and perpetrator
- To arrest the perpetrator, and - To provide evidence of his guilt.
Phases of criminal investigation
- The identification of living and dead persons - The field work carried out by specially trained crime scene investigators; and - The laboratory methods used to examine and analyze physical evidences by the criminalistics.
In dealing with unique cases such as murder, homicide, bombing, rape with homicide, or any other capital offenses, the creation of the Special Investigation tasked Group (SITG) will be formulated and the Chief of Police concerned will request to create the same with the approval of the Police Regional Director.
Characteristics of an effective investigator
1. Intellectual characteristics – Investigator must try and apply it to their work. They must know the elements of crime understand and be able to apply investigative techniques and be able to work with many different types of people. Exceptional intelligence is not requisite trait of an effective investigator ; objectively common sense is more important.
2. Psychological characteristics – effective investigators are emotionally well balance,
detached, inquisitive, suspecting, self-disciplined and preserving. Investigation is highly stressful and involves many decisions. Therefore, it requires emotional stability.
3. Physical characteristics – effective investigators are physically fit and have a good vision and hearing. Good health and high energy level are beneficial because the hours spent performing investigative duties can be long and demanding. In addition to being physically fit, investigators are aided by keen vision and hearing. If uncorrected, color blindness, and farsightedness may impair investigative effectively.
Tools of investigation / 3 I’s:
1. Information 2. Interrogation 3. Instrumentation Kinds of information:
1. Public records Information acquired from regular sources such as public spirited citizens, company records, and files of other agencies. 2. Private records taken by the investigator from paid informants, bystanders, cab drivers or acquaintances. 3. Modus Operandi File. Information gathered from a CCTV camera, witnesses, and arrested suspect/s, and from Police and other law enforcement files.
An effective criminal investigation requires accurate information. Information is required
about the characteristics and peculiarities of previous cases similar to the one under current investigation; guidance towards suspect identification, development of leads.
Of the three tools of investigation, Information is the most important since it answer the question- “who is the victim?” if identified, and “WHO DID IT?” so as soon as possible after the occurrence.
Assault and homicide are usually incidental to crimes of greed, are the by- product of disputes over divisions of spoils of a real rights. And this perpetrated by professional criminal and is most frequently solved by information. Professional criminals in a homicide case, which the killer has a past record is usually broken by a tip from paroled convict.
Interviews are used in an investigation to gather information — objective facts — by asking
open-ended questions and allowing the witness to supply the evidence. ... Interrogations, on the other hand, are designed to extract confessions where police already have other concrete evidence connecting the suspect to the crime.
Instrumentation. The 3rd “I” is meant to include the application of instruments and methods of the physical sciences to the detection of crime. Example: photography, microscopy. Instrumentation also includes technical methods by which fugitive is traced, examined and in general, the investigation is advanced.
Theft and assault for example are usually committed without leaving physical evidence in the form of traces. In Homicide, clue materials and other forms of physical evidence are paramount importance. In the absence of eyewitnesses, and admissions by the accused, it is only rarely that available circumstantial evidence is strong enough to support a conviction. The physical evidence may serve to place the suspect at the scene or associate him with the weapon used.
Corpus Delicti – latin for “ Body of the Crime” it is the legal term used to described physical / or material evidence that a crime has been committed such as the corpse of a murder victim or the gleaned of a torched building. It is used to refer to the underlying principle that, without evidence of a crime having been committed, it would be unjust to convict someone. Corpus delicti is one of the most important concepts in a murder investigation.
If during the course of investigation of the missing person, the investigating detectives believe that he/she has been murdered by another individual, then a body or all collected evidentiary items will includes physical, demonstrative and testimonial evidence.
Dying declaration – Requisites, in order that a dying declaration may be admissible, the following requisites must concur; 1. It must concern the crime involve in and the circumstances surrounding the declarant’s death. 2. At the time of the declarant, the declarant must be conscious of impending death; 3. The declarant must be competent as a witness. 4. The declarant must be offered in a criminal case for homicide, murder or parricide in which the declarant was the victim.
The Anatomy of Crime.
For any crime to happen, there are three (3) elements or ingredients that must be present at the same time and place. 1. Motive 2. Opportunity 3. Instrumentality
a. Motive. This refers to the reason or cause why a person or group of persons will perpetrate a crime. Examples are: dispute, economic gain, jealousy, revenge, insanity, thrill, intoxication, drug addiction and many others.
b. Opportunity. Consist of the acts or omission and/or commission by a person (the
victim) which enables another person or group of persons ( the criminal/s) to perpetrate the crime. Example: (1) leaving one’s home or car unattended for a long time, (2) walking all alone in a well-known crime prone alley, (3) wearing expensive jewelries in slum area, readily admitting a stranger into one’s residence and the like. Opportunity is synonymous with carelessness, acts or indiscretion and lack of crime prevention-consciousness on the part of the victim.
c. Instrumentality Is the means or implement used in the commission of the crime. It could be a firearm, a bolo, a fan knife, an ice pick, poison or obnoxious substance, a crow bar motor vehicle, etc. both the Motive and Instrumentality belong to and are harbored and wielded respectively by the criminal.
Four (4) Reasons Why Crime Should be Investigated:
1. Future deterrence of offenders. The identification and punishment of a criminal offender will hopefully deter him from other misconduct in the future. 2. Deterrence to others. Identification and punishment of an offender may likewise deter others from engaging in similar undesirable activities. 3. Community Safety- The investigative process also promote public safety by identifying and bringing to court persons who pose a serious threat to the safety of the community due to violent otherwise strong anti-social behavior. 4. Protection of the innocent- Finally, accurate investigations helps to ensure that only conduct which is in fact criminal is punished, and the innocent parties will not be subjected to prosecution. Two (2) Types of Criminal Investigation.
a. Investigation while the suspect is under arrest and detention;
General Rule ; a person arrested by virtue of warrant of arrest is not covered by criminal investigation and must not be placed under custodial interrogation for obvious reason that he is already held accountable to that particular crime before the court of justice. Exemption to the Rule: 1. When the person arrested by virtue of a warrant of arrest is likewise being held for a separate distinct criminal complaint which is the subject matter of another criminal investigation.
2. When the person arrested by virtue of a warrant of arrest is charge in court as “ John Doe” or Richard Doe”, and for which criminal investigation is a necessary incident to establish his real identity, name, surname through facial composite and available witnesses. A person placed under arrest as an incident to the execution and implementation of a search warrant found in possession of recently stolen articles.
Police operation distinguished from police investigation
Police operation is a lawful clandestine intelligence and detective networking to gather information and evidences to determine with certainty the commission of a crime, the identity of the perpetrators thereof, as may be necessary to arrest the culprits under those instances as authorized by law. The action of initiating as meticulous inquiry to a formal complaint filed by the private aggrieved party or public complainant after the fact of the incident, but not arrest can be legally affected against the suspect as circumstances attendant thereto are not those specifically allowed by law , is what is called Police investigation.
The main objective of a police investigator is to gather all facts in order to: A. Phase I – Identify the suspect/s through
1. Confession as defined in section 29, rule 130, rules of court, is: “The declaration of an accused expressly acknowledging his guilt of the charged, may be given in evidence against him.”Voluntary”, for purposes of confession, means that the accused speaks of his free will and accord, without inducement of any kind, and with a full and complete knowledge of the nature and consequences of the confession, And when the speaking is so free from influences affecting the will of the accused, At the time when the confession was made, that it renders is admissible in evidence against him.
2.Admission – an admission is a voluntary acknowledgement in express terms or by
implication, by a party in interest or by another whose statement he is legally bound, against his interest, of the existence or truth of a fact in dispute material to the issue. Admission may either be express or implied. Admission may also be classified as judicial admission or extra judicial confession. Express Admission is one made in express terms in definite, certain, and unequivocal language. Implied Admission are those who may be inferred from the acts, declaration or omission of a party.
B. Phase II – Locate and apprehend suspects/s
The second phase of investigation is concerned with locating and apprehending the offender. This is not only frustrating but dangerous on the part of the investigator. Locating and apprehending the suspects/s can be done through the use of informants, by conducting surveillance, and by conducting undercover assignments.
C. Phase III – Gather and provide evidence to establish the guilt of the accused. In proving the guilt of the accused in court; (1) The facts of the existence of crime must be established (2) The dependant must be identified, and associated with the crime scene (3) Competent, credible witnesses must be available (4) Physical evidence must be appropriately identified and (5) The proof of guilt will depend on the establishment of essential elements of a specific crime.
Evidence: In general, Evidence is anything that may be presented in determining the truth about the fact in question. Evidence is that which supplies the means of arriving at the truth. Everything at the scene of the crime constitute evidence. Evidence can be obtained through one or more senses ; touch, seeing, hearing, smelling or tasting.
Real Evidence – is also known as physical evidence, scientific evidence or forensic
evidence. Real evidence refer to tangle objects those can be hold or seen and are produced by a direct result on the commission of the crime. Example: blood splatters on a wall, semen recovered from the victim, and the knife used to kill the victim.
Kinds of Evidence a) May serve various purpose or function in establishing proof. 1. Direct or positive evidence Proves the fact in dispute directly without need of any inference or presumption. 2. Cumulative Evidence - Evidence that duplicates but does not necessarily confirms already existing evidence. For example: cumulative evidence would be when investigators find five witnesses ( as opposed to just one) who can provide the same, the incident. 3. Corroborative Evidence - Evidence that is supplementary to the evidence already available, and strengthens or confirms. For example: A suspect is apprehended near a burglary scene and his fingerprints are collected from the scene. 4. Eyewitness Testimony- The ideal identification is made by several objective on a person familiar with the appearances of the accused or suspect and who personally saw the commission of the crime.
5. Associative Evidence- the physical evidence may serve to identify the criminal by means of the clue materials, personal property, or the characteristic pattern of procedure deduced from the arrangement of objects at the crime scene. The fruits of the crime is in his possession. 6. Tracing Evidence. These refers to evidence that may assist the investigator in locating the suspect. Physician’s clinic record showing medical treatment of suspect for injuries sustained in an encounter; bloodstain recovered from the area traversed by the wounded suspect infer direction of the movement are example of tracing evidence. 7. Testimonial Evidence. This is the product of interview and interrogation from which the witness smell, hear taste, and touch are being described through oral and written testimony. a. Ordinary witness. Any person who perceived the commission of a crime and testified before the court is just considered as an ordinary witness. b. Expert witness. A person deemed as an expert witness if his /her testimony concerning the investigation of crime is based on his training and experience. For example, the Physician who confirmed the death of the victim.
8. Documentary evidence. Refers to the writings, including official
records, or contents” could speak for themselves” when read by the investigators and the court. Example: medical examination, physical examination, necropsy, laboratory, birth, death certificate. 9. Circumstantial Evidence- in the absence of confession and eyewitness, the identification of criminal may be established indirectly by proving other facts and circumstances from which either alone or in connection with other facts, the identity of the perpetrator can be inferred.
Following requisites must be present before a circumstantial evidence will
become sufficient for conviction : There is more than one circumstance; The facts from which the inferences are derived are proven, and; The combination of all circumstances is such as to produce a conviction beyond reasonable doubt ( sec 4, Rule 123 Rules of Court).
The handgun used in killing the victim is the best evidence in a case of homicide or murder. In a case of robbery, the force upon things like forced entry to the window shown by broken jealousy of the recovered stolen articles found on the possession of the suspect are the best physical evidence.
Investigators notebook. Considering the mass of details and the number of cases which is some instances the investigator is handling. It is possible that he might forget some details. Many of the details associated with the investigation, while not essential to report, might become points of interest to the court when the case is brought to trial.
Since investigative notes are permanent records of information, they should be written in a manner which furthers this purpose. A good set of notes will have the following characteristics: Ink does not smudge or fade. Each page identified; the top of each page in the notebook should bear the investigators name, the date and case number or number. Concise phrases; notes should be written in concise phrases containing enough facts to refresh the investigator’s recollection upon a later interview. Details; should be taken to accurately record names, numbers, address, descriptions and other details. Variations between the evidence at trial and information in the notebook may prove embarrassing to the officer and damaging to the case. Negative information; the results of non productive leads should be included in the notes, so that time is not wasted contacting witnesses or re-examining areas which have already prove futile.
Standard Methods of Recording Investigative data:
1. Photographs 2. Sketching the crime scene 3. Written notes (what you have seen or observed) 4. Developing & lifting fingerprints found at the scene. 5. Gathering physical evidence 6. Plaster cast 7. Tape recording sound 8. Video tape recording of objects 9. Written statements of subjects(s) and witnesses.
