ABSTRACT
This chapter proposes the basic steps to follow in carrying out a systematic fire investigation. If a fire is erroneously called incendiary because an investigator failed to keep an open mind, or failed to start with a presumption of accidental cause, the unwitting survivor will be denied his or her right to the presumption of innocence. Private-sector investigators may need to coordinate their efforts with both public-sector investigators and private fire investigators retained by other parties. For an excellent discussion of safety issues at fire scenes, investigators are urged to read Jim Munday's Safety at Scenes of Fire and Related Incidents. The purpose of fire scene reconstruction is to recreate as nearly as practicable the pre-fire positions of contents and structural components. The documentation of a fire scene, and indeed the entire investigative process, should entail moving from the general to the specific, "zooming in" on the relevant evidence and ultimately the cause of the fire.
