Crime Detection

7 Pages 1756 Words

e 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 when, where, how, why, and by whom the crime was committed.
One of the oldest ways of detecting criminal activity is through surveillance. This method is used when it is likely that a crime will take place at a specific location or when certain persons are suspected of criminal activity. The first situation usually is handled by fixed police observation known as a stakeout; the second circumstance may require mobile observation as well, perhaps on foot or by automobile. Some situations may call for aerial observation, using helicopters, or electronic procedures, using listening devices that monitor telephone lines.
The observation method must be legal. Surveillance techniques, for example, may include placing personnel in strategic locations and equipping them with optical aids, such as binoculars or scopes with the capacity to detect an object illuminated only by moonlight, or with electronic devices, sensitive to a conversation taking place at a considerable distance. Where a possibility exists of invasion of privacy, a court order is required to make the police action and the information obtained acceptable at a trial.
Allied to surveillance are covert or undercover observations, which usually are confined to activities such as gambling, dealing in narcotics, and other major org...