ABSTRACT
Uniformed officers and detectives do not possess the full range of special skills and expertise needed to process an entire crime scene. A wide range of specialized support personnel-some employed regularly and others occasionally-can provide these talents when called into a crime scene investigation. Sometimes a particularly serious case may warrant outside assistance, such as hazardous material specialists in the case of clandestine drug laboratory cases or federal authorities (e.g., Federal Bureau of Investigation, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, or Drug Enforcement Administration) when investigating mass disasters, terrorist acts, bombings, or major fires.
