Exam 14: Computers, Technology, and Criminalistics in Policing

What Would You Do? You need to predict the escape route of the suspect vehicle. Over the last year, your department has acquired a large number of new computer technologies aimed at assisting officers in solving crimes. Given the sizeable financial investment, your superiors have requested that officers utilize them as much as possible. -What would you do?

Concerns about drones being used by police are primarily about __________.

Computers and other pieces of technology have drastically helped law enforcement detect, deter, and fight crime. For example, computer-aided dispatch, or CAD, allows almost immediate communication between a police dispatcher and officers in the field. The FBI developed Advanced Fingerprint Identification Technology, or AFIT, to enhance fingerprint and latent processing services, increase the accuracy and daily fingerprint processing capacity, and improve system availability. As technology increases, though, so does the sophistication of certain crimes and criminals. It is a constant struggle for police forces to keep up to date with emerging technologies, which can be cost prohibitive for certain low-funded departments. This scenario focuses on technology used in police work. You are a police officer for a moderate-size suburban police department. You are working your normal afternoon shift when your dispatchers assign you to an armed robbery that just occurred at the local bank. They inform you the suspect is a white male, about 30 years of age, driving a red Honda Accord, license ABC123, which is listed as a newly stolen vehicle equipped with OnStar location technology. As you are responding to the crime scene, you are assessing the escape route of the suspect and trying to determine your best course of action. -What technology allows almost immediate communication between a police dispatcher and an officer in the field?

Vehicle tracking systems can use radio frequency, cell phone tracking, or ________.

Sandy has been arrested for growing marijuana in her backyard. The evidence was obtained by police helicopter that flew over her property and photographed her garden. Martina's lawyer says this is a violation of her constitutional rights. How has the Court ruled in cases like this?

Which system digitizes a picture of a suspect and stores the image on a computer so that it can be retrieved later?

Which type of identification distinguishes one person from another and includes fingerprints and palm prints as examples?

What Would You Do? Crime scene investigators arrive at the location of the suspect's vehicle. They examine the vehicle in hopes of finding a fingerprint, but they are unsuccessful. You interview the teller of the bank that was robbed, and she tells you the suspect put his left hand down on the counter as he was reaching over the counter with his right hand to grab the money. -What would you do?

Computers and other pieces of technology have drastically helped law enforcement detect, deter, and fight crime. For example, computer-aided dispatch, or CAD, allows almost immediate communication between a police dispatcher and officers in the field. The FBI developed Advanced Fingerprint Identification Technology, or AFIT, to enhance fingerprint and latent processing services, increase the accuracy and daily fingerprint processing capacity, and improve system availability. As technology increases, though, so does the sophistication of certain crimes and criminals. It is a constant struggle for police forces to keep up to date with emerging technologies, which can be cost prohibitive for certain low-funded departments. This scenario focuses on technology used in police work. You are a police officer for a moderate-size suburban police department. You are working your normal afternoon shift when your dispatchers assign you to an armed robbery that just occurred at the local bank. They inform you the suspect is a white male, about 30 years of age, driving a red Honda Accord, license ABC123, which is listed as a newly stolen vehicle equipped with OnStar location technology. As you are responding to the crime scene, you are assessing the escape route of the suspect and trying to determine your best course of action. -License plate readers are an example of what type of technology?

Which of the following do law enforcement officers consider a valuable ability for a robot to have?

Choosing a likely escape route for the suspect with your license plate reader on seems like a good idea. You have increased the likelihood that the suspect will be captured quickly. However, it is a good idea to have dispatchers inform other officers involved that they should use their LPRs while heading to the scene from other directions. You locate the vehicle and, after a brief car chase, the suspect crashes the car and runs into nearby woods. You contact all other officers in the area and begin a grid search of the woods to find the suspect. -What is the name given to fingerprint impressions left on evidence at a crime scene?

The mother of a crime victim is angry with the police for taking so long to run DNA samples. She thinks it should be done before the end of the day, like on her favorite crime shows, and is surprised to hear that it could take months. She is exhibiting __________.

The ballistics section of the crime lab conducts scientific analyses of guns and bullets. Ballistics is the science of the study of __________.

What type of forensics is used to identify, collect, and analyze evidence from electronic devices?

Which organization certifies forensic laboratory employees?

Jamal has been jailed for many years for a murder he did not commit, with a death sentencing approaching. All his attempts at appeal have been denied. Jamal decides to contact an organization that freed more than 200 people since 1992 by using DNA evidence. What is the name of the organization Jamal decided to contact?

Aerosol subject restraints (ASRs) can cause eye irritation, coughing, and _________.

Which term describes a DNA sample collected from a crime scene that ties an unknown suspect to the DNA profile of someone in the national or a state's database?