AC1.1
There are multiple personnel involved in criminal investigations. These range from Police
officers, Scenes of Crime Officers (SOCO’s), the CPS, forensic scientists and
pathologists.
The first example of personnel involved in the investigation of criminal cases are police
officers. Police officers are the very first personnel called to a crime scene, making their
initial response to crime extremely crucial. Police officers are responsible for making their
way to the crime scene as soon as possible, and to secure the scene whilst attempting to
preserve any possible evidence. They can also take initial statements from witnesses and
victims, and have the authority to arrest any suspected individuals when necessary upon
arrival. During their investigations, they can also decide whether the case is strong enough
to be sent to court whilst sending over all of their evidence to the CPS who then make the
decision whether the case should be brought to court. A strength of police officers is that
their first role is to preserve life. This can be by protecting the general public or by calling an
ambulance for anyone who may be injured. This is a strength because it not only makes
joining the police force an extremely rewarding job but also helps keep society safer. Another
strength is their expertise, as it takes a lot of training to become a police officer. A final
strength is the availability of police officers, as it is shown that since 2003 there has been a
10% increase in the number of police officers in the UK and as of 2023 there is over 170,000
so there is always more than one available at the crime scene at any time. However, there
are multiple limitations with the police service. A very current limitation is how the public
perception of the police is largely negative due to failure of acting appropriately towards
cases and the manhandling of many cases such as racist attacks and domestic violence. An
example of this can be seen in the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence. The Macpherson
report (1999) claims that the police had institutional racism and made 70 recommendations
on how to improve the service after charges were dropped for the murderers of Stephen
Lawrence. The Hillsborough disaster also shows how the police can act inappropriately
towards criminal investigations, as the inquest in 2016 showed that careless mistakes by the
police contributed to the disaster and that the victims had been unlawfully killed. These
failures can be marked down to either an officer’s personal discriminatory views and
attitudes or a failure within the system itself causing police officers to be improperly trained
for certain situations. Another limitation is the investigation techniques and tactics the police
use. One of these techniques is known as the “honeytrap” technique. This involves the use
of romantic or sexual relationships in order to gain information. A case example of this is the
case of Colin Stagg who ‘murdered’ Rachel Nickell, where an undercover police officer going
by the name of ‘Lizzie James’ pretended to show romantic interest in Stagg in order to gain a
confession to the murder. However, he never confessed. With the evidence of Stagg’s guilt
being inadmissible, the prosecution withdrew and years later it was discovered that the
murderer was in fact Robert Napper.
The second personnel involved in the investigation of criminal cases are Scenes of Crime
Officers (SOCO’s). Scenes of crime officers’ roles are to preserve and record the scene,
capture fingerprint evidence, produce statements and provide evidence details to any
There are multiple personnel involved in criminal investigations. These range from Police
officers, Scenes of Crime Officers (SOCO’s), the CPS, forensic scientists and
pathologists.
The first example of personnel involved in the investigation of criminal cases are police
officers. Police officers are the very first personnel called to a crime scene, making their
initial response to crime extremely crucial. Police officers are responsible for making their
way to the crime scene as soon as possible, and to secure the scene whilst attempting to
preserve any possible evidence. They can also take initial statements from witnesses and
victims, and have the authority to arrest any suspected individuals when necessary upon
arrival. During their investigations, they can also decide whether the case is strong enough
to be sent to court whilst sending over all of their evidence to the CPS who then make the
decision whether the case should be brought to court. A strength of police officers is that
their first role is to preserve life. This can be by protecting the general public or by calling an
ambulance for anyone who may be injured. This is a strength because it not only makes
joining the police force an extremely rewarding job but also helps keep society safer. Another
strength is their expertise, as it takes a lot of training to become a police officer. A final
strength is the availability of police officers, as it is shown that since 2003 there has been a
10% increase in the number of police officers in the UK and as of 2023 there is over 170,000
so there is always more than one available at the crime scene at any time. However, there
are multiple limitations with the police service. A very current limitation is how the public
perception of the police is largely negative due to failure of acting appropriately towards
cases and the manhandling of many cases such as racist attacks and domestic violence. An
example of this can be seen in the racist murder of Stephen Lawrence. The Macpherson
report (1999) claims that the police had institutional racism and made 70 recommendations
on how to improve the service after charges were dropped for the murderers of Stephen
Lawrence. The Hillsborough disaster also shows how the police can act inappropriately
towards criminal investigations, as the inquest in 2016 showed that careless mistakes by the
police contributed to the disaster and that the victims had been unlawfully killed. These
failures can be marked down to either an officer’s personal discriminatory views and
attitudes or a failure within the system itself causing police officers to be improperly trained
for certain situations. Another limitation is the investigation techniques and tactics the police
use. One of these techniques is known as the “honeytrap” technique. This involves the use
of romantic or sexual relationships in order to gain information. A case example of this is the
case of Colin Stagg who ‘murdered’ Rachel Nickell, where an undercover police officer going
by the name of ‘Lizzie James’ pretended to show romantic interest in Stagg in order to gain a
confession to the murder. However, he never confessed. With the evidence of Stagg’s guilt
being inadmissible, the prosecution withdrew and years later it was discovered that the
murderer was in fact Robert Napper.
The second personnel involved in the investigation of criminal cases are Scenes of Crime
Officers (SOCO’s). Scenes of crime officers’ roles are to preserve and record the scene,
capture fingerprint evidence, produce statements and provide evidence details to any
