ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to provide practical information and guidelines for the homicide investigator to follow when confronted with additional responsibilities and specific duties at the scene. A section on handling buried-body cases has been included, which may prove useful as a general guide for the investigation of this unique type of scene. The following subjects will be dealt with in this chapter:
The suspect in custody Interview and interrogation of the suspect at the scene Examination of a suspect for evidence Evaluation of the suspect’s demeanor and mental capacity Obtaining a dying declaration Handling buried-body cases
The chapter concludes with an investigative checklist, which can be used by the homicide investigator and detective supervisor to check and review their actions at the scene systematically. Actually, I recommend that the investigator use the
Practical Homicide Investigation Checklist and Field Guide
,
which is a laminated set of checklists from the
Practical Homicide Investigation
textbook designed to provide direction and protocol during the various stages of the initial investigation. It also contains an appendix instructing the detective about exactly how to retrieve and handle evidence in the field as well as maintain chain of custody.
