FCJ 6003Crime Scene Invest & Recons

Catalog

The course Crime Scene Investigation and Reconstruction develops advanced competencies in the systematic documentation, processing, and reconstruction of crime scenes, emphasizing scene security, search strategies, contamination control, and defensible evidence recovery. Students practice comprehensive recording methods (notes, sketches, photography, videography, 3D scanning/photogrammetry), pattern-evidence interpretation (bloodstain pattern analysis, shooting incident/trajectroy, footwear and toolmarks), and event sequencing through hypothesis testing and falsification. Topics include environmnental and human-factor considerations; death-scene triage and time since-event estimation; integration of laboratory results with scene findings; chaine of custody and quality assurance; and legal/ethical issues affecting search warrants, consent, and expert testimony. Field and laboratory exercises use mock scenes and case files to produce courtroom-ready reports and reconstruction narratives.