Individuals who perpetrate murder sometimes pose or reposition victims, weapons, and evidence to make it look like events happened in a different way than what actually transpired. Until now, there has been scarce literature published on crime scene staging.Crime Scene Staging Dynamics in Homicide Cases is the first book to look at this practice, p

This unique text has been written as a practical reference for detectives, crime scene investigators, and prosecutors on how to recognize a staged scene and how this offender behavior could be used as evidence in subsequent trials. The book is designed to help those actively engaged in conducting criminal investigations identify the red flags or those common findings at a crime scene that point to the scene being staged or altered and thereby assist the investigative process. The text is not only research based but also includes the authorsf 30-year experience and personal observations in conducting hundreds of different crime scene investigations ranging from homicide and death, burglary and other property crimes, to rape and other sexual crimes. This experience also includes interviewing hundreds of victims and suspects, and conducting investigations from initiation of cases through prosecution. The authors have located hundreds of examples of staging and have included many of them as case studies throughout the text. Many of the case studies presented are based on the authorsf personal involvement in them. In addition to defining and categorizing the various aspects of staging, the reader is also introduced to new terminology describing the different elements of staging based on offender motive and the dynamics of the events. Other major discussions include primary and secondary staging as well as the two subcategories of primary staging: premeditated and ad hoc staging. Staging by individuals other than the offender and victim, described as tertiary/incidental scene alterations, are included as are several chapters on a variety of crimes and how to identify the red flags relevant to them. A final chapter is written especially for prosecutors and offers suggestions and references on how the concept of staging might be introduced in court. A very thorough Appendix provides reviews of many appellant court decisions from across the U.S. and Canada specifically addressing issues of staging.

Detection Avoidance in Homicides: Debates, Explanations and Responses presents theory and research on how offenders avoid detection and the challenges and opportunities these efforts pose to investigators. From a scholarly perspective, the book presents a continuing history of research on detection avoidance by offenders, discusses the features of complex death investigations involving detection avoidance, and critiques the current frameworks used for conceptualizing these behaviors. Dr. Ferguson focuses on the key debates in the literature, argues for collaborations between researchers and practitioners to remedy siloing, and explores the reality of detection avoidance in homicides as complex and multifaceted. While detection avoidance behaviors have the potential to negatively impact sudden death investigations and frustrate criminal investigations specifically, their use also creates broader problems. These include many problematic effects on family members of the deceased, police officers, police agencies and the communities they serve. Offenders choosing to use detection avoidance behaviors challenges the efficient use of public resources, puts at risk the successful adjudication of homicides, and creates a public safety issue. The book explains detection avoidance using learning, situational, individual and gender-based theories, including proposing whether it may be a form of coercive control used by intimate partner abusers. Finally, how detection avoidance by offenders is recognized and responded to in sudden death investigations is addressed, with specific reference to useful examples of policy reform implemented by various police agencies internationally. Providing research and theory to explain detection avoidance and best practice for responding to it, this book will be of great interest to students and scholars of criminology, forensic science and psychology. It will also be useful to professionals working with homicide offenders.

Forensic psychology plays an increasingly important role in criminal investigations and legal decision-making. Homicide: A Forensic Psychology Casebook guides readers through the practical aspects of homicide cases across the entire criminal justice system, from the investigative process to the criminal trial process, and beyond. Each chapter contains a description and analysis of selected cases and offenders, and provides a crime narrative and offender narrative to illustrate the underlying theory and practical considerations of homicide investigations. Criminal justice students and practitioners alike will benefit from the comprehensive scope of this text. In order to ensure fair and efficient criminal justice practices in the field of forensic investigation, there is still a need for conformity and standardization of sound protocols and approaches based on improved knowledge and education. This book is part of that effort to understand homicidal behavior and offenders better in order to prevent similar crimes.

This book describes how forensic doctors’ registrations have been used to describe different types of deaths in the Netherlands. The book consists of two parts. Part 1 describes the gradual increase in the number of suicides where helium is used combined with an exit-bag since the publication of the book ‘Uitweg’ published in 2013 in Amsterdam and the rest of the Netherlands. It recounts which kind of individuals choose this method, as well as which individuals choose to use a barbiturate overdose. It also describes in which cases the forensic physician in the presence of the Crime Scene Technicians investigates a suicide. Part 2 describes which individuals had a risk of lying unnoticed dead in a home for more than two weeks (‘domestic setting corpse’) and how common this phenomenon is in the four largest cities in the Netherlands. In addition, it describes whether preventive measures against loneliness in both Amsterdam and Rotterdam, deployed after the media attention following the discovery of a 10-year-old housing corpse in Rotterdam, led to a decrease in the number of domestic setting corpses. This study shows that there is no difference in the number of domestic setting corpses before and after the implementation of the preventive measures.

Home is where the heart is. But home is also the most common site for murder. The grimly fascinating new book from the UK's leading criminologist David Wilson uncovers the dangers that exist where we least expect them - perfect for fans of The Dark Side of the Mind and The Mind of a Murderer. The home is the place where murder most commonly occurs. In England and Wales, each year on average 75 per cent of female murder victims and 39 per cent of murdered men are killed at home. This gripping new title from the author of My Life with Murderers and A Plot to Kill explores the tragic prevalence of domestic murder and how, for so many victims, their own home is the place they are most in danger. David Wilson is the UK's leading criminologist and his knowledge of murder is unparalleled. By walking through each part of the house, he explains how each room's purpose has changed over time, the weapons they contain, and ultimately, how these things combine in murder. Delving into infamous as well as lesser-known true crime cases, this examination of the tragic, ordinary nature of murder is both a chilling read and a startling insight into the everyday impact of violence and how it can touch us all.

This book offers an interdisciplinary perspective on femicide, using Israel as an illuminating case study, given its diverse communities and common-law-based legal system. Utilizing analytical alongside practical perspectives, the book offers a novel crimino-legal approach to femicide. In addition to its interdisciplinary novelty, the book presents originality in going beyond the more usual focus on the central victims and the common legal tools. Here, the authors extend the analysis to secondary victims of femicide and examine the applicability of second-tiered relevant legal tools, mostly tort law, as a means for gaining justice for the victims. This explorative journey culminates with the authors’ definition of femicide as a quintessential "crime of distinct nature". In the context of current international pledges to better understand and consequently better fight femicide, this work allows readers to comprehend the phenomenon and the ways to abolish it. The book will be an invaluable resource for academics, researchers and policy makers working in the areas of criminal law, tort law, family law, criminology and gender studies, as well as for legal theorists and criminologists seeking integration of both disciplines.

The two-volume World of Forensic Science is a convenient, comprehensive guide to the scientific processes and the legal, social and ethical issues involved in the forensic sciences. Approximately 600 entries cover the individuals, techniques and principles of biology, chemistry, law, medicine, physics, computer science, geology and psychology involved in the multidisciplinary approach of examining crime scenes and evidence to be used in legal proceedings. Topics range from types of evidence (fingerprints, hair, weapons) to specific techniques and methods of analysis (ballistics, DNA identification), organizations (Federal Crime Lab), individuals (Alphonse Bertillon) and famous trials (O.J. Simpson case).

Criminal Profiling: An Introduction to Behavioral Evidence Analysis is a unique work centered on the Deductive Profiling method developed by the author. Deductive Profiling is different from other forms of profiling because it centers the process on forensic evidence and does not involve the use of averaged, statistical profiles. It approaches each criminal incident as its own universe of behaviors and relationships. Criminal Profiling includes a thorough rendering of the features of the deductive profiling method, an overview of the legal aspects involved in profiling, and an exploration into specific profiling issues that arise in different types of serial crime. It also includes the author's unique analysis of the Whitechapel Murders (Jack the Ripper) of 1888 and the JonBenet Ramsey homicide of 1996. Criminal Profiling is a perfect companion for students and professionals in the law enforcement, mental health, criminological, and legal communities. Key Features * A unique approach--centered on the author's Deductive Profiling method * Addresses related issues, such as ethics, clinical perspectives, and the essential role of the task force * Provides a unique analysis of the Whitechapel Murders (Jack the Ripper) and the JonBenet Ramsey case * Boasts the support of the world's leading forensic authors and profilers (Saferstein, Lee, Gebeth, Hare, and Teten) * Written in a style accessible to a wide audience--from the detective performing hands-on casework to the academician in the classroom