ABSTRACT
Many investigations begin in the field with the first responders. It is this initial response that often determines the success of the investigation. The identification of witnesses and obtaining their statements, securing the crime scene, gathering and securing of evidence, and review of available video must happen to ensure the incident at hand can be investigated. It is at this point that investigations may begin to fail and never recover if the field investigation isn’t performed properly. On the other hand, a thorough and well-documented field investigation immediately puts the investigation on track and normally contains the elements needed to solve crime or resolve the issue.
