ABSTRACT
Any item within the immediate area of the recovery must be considered to have evidentiary value until proven otherwise. Nothing should be touched or moved. If the body is removed from the scene due to resuscitation eorts, immediate documentation of the location and position originally found is mandatory. It is very important to protect and preserve the scene immediately to preserve any possible evidence. Documentation of the recovery location may prove to yield an abundance of physical evidence as well as potential witnesses. e scene boundaries are established with “Police Line-Do Not Cross” tape, and access is limited to only those required to be there, including potentially pathologists and coroner or medical examiner death investigators. Any location of the decedent’s personal eects or vehicle must also be secured for processing.
