James Geehan Mr. Christensen English 11B 28 Jan 2015 The Crucial Profession of a Criminal Investigator Investigation may be likened to the long months of pregnancy, and solving a problem to the day of birth. To investigate a problem is, indeed, to solve it (Zedong 1975). The determination and perseverance involved with investigating a crime can not be overstated. With that being said, nothing can compare to the rewarding feeling of success associated with the resolution of a troublesome situation. Every single day, people face many challenges, challenges that may shake a person s confidence in their ability to conquer or resolve a particular issue. The people who are capable of facing these challenges daily, and succeeding regularly, are the people who deserve the spotlight. Nobody faces more problems throughout the workday than the individuals involved in law enforcement, particularly criminal investigators, also known as detectives. Throughout the years, criminal investigators have become a critical part of society because of the demanding need for protection and order. Individuals involved in criminal investigation use their street skills and exceptional intelligence to catch criminals and protect society. Criminal investigators are considered to be the individuals who solve crimes or contribute to the solving of a crime. They are typically a part of a law enforcement agency, although some do work on their own. These individuals that work on their own are called private investigators, or private eyes. At larger law enforcement agencies, the group of investigators that work there
are usually split into different categories of crime. They are separated based on what types of crimes they typically work with. For example, some investigators may specialize in homicide, while some may specialize in missing persons cases. They are split into these groups to avoid confusion on jurisdiction and to keep the agency working smoothly. Any civilization without a set of rules and regulations in place to keep order and protect their citizens would not last long, especially in modern times. Most people would be amazed to know how long people have been using creative methods to keep people from breaking rules, and catching them when they do. Incredibly, people have been using fingerprint matching to catch criminals since prehistoric times. They would have people press their fingers into clay or rock to collect their fingerprints, then use those fingerprints to solve crimes, as well as catch the people who committed these crimes (Taylor 2009). It is mind blowing to think that even in prehistoric times, people involved in crime investigation were witty and creative enough to find ways to be able to sustain order in their society. Around 700 B.C., until about 44 B.C., criminal investigation continued to evolve and become more sophisticated. The Chinese began to record their thumb prints on clay sculptures and documents, even without any formal classification or system. The first lie detector was invented around 250 B.C. by a Greek physician, Erasistratus, who noticed the increase in the pulse of a liar as they become nervous. Furthermore, in 44 B.C., a Roman doctor studied Julius Caesar s body to find that of his 23 stab wounds, only one was fatal (Taylor 2009). In just a short span of roughly 650 years, forensic science took a huge step forward. It would simply be an understatement to say that criminal investigation had a significant leg up on the rest of the technological world before the calendar even hit A.D.
As time went on, criminal investigation did not lose it s edge. Throughout the 19th century and into the 20th century, investigative technology improved exponentially. Ways to measure body temperature were developed to determine possible sickness, as well as time of death, or even cause of death. Tests to determine gunshot residue were developed in 1933 (Taylor 2009). Not only does the ability to measure body temperature increase the accuracy of criminal investigators work, but it is also a major advance in the world of medicine, seeing as though the ability to detect a fever in a patient is one of the most basic parts of medicine today. Also, it is without a doubt that these advances improved law enforcement s ability to catch criminals and help keep their communities safer. When beginning an investigation, investigators have many different strategies that they use to open a case. The main focus of the criminal investigator is to collect evidence, expose suspects and create a case against the person that law enforcement is attempting to apprehend. They are not usually involved in the actual solving of the crime, considering most crimes are solved by interrogation of suspects and interviewing of witnesses. In addition to using their own brainpower and creativity, investigators sometimes rely on a group of informants they have likely developed throughout their career. They use these informants to gather crucial information about cases, then use that information to help them do their job better and more efficiently. The importance of criminal investigators in society can not be overstated. Without criminal investigators, it would be extremely difficult for law enforcement to solve crimes and keep the community in which they are responsible for, safe. They do the majority of the dirty work behind the scenes to keep the public from finding out about what happens out on the streets
when it seems that nobody is around. They take care of the dirty work, then afterwards allow the police chief, or whoever is in charge, to take all the credit for their ugly, yet brilliant, work. Becoming a criminal investigator is a reasonably long and enduring process. It is not so much the schooling that consumes the time of an individual attempting to become a criminal investigator, rather it s climbing the ladder, so to speak, as well as the promotions needed to become a criminal investigator. There are most likely a significant amount of people that wouldn t mind being a criminal investigator, but they decide not to pursue it because of the long process and many steps involved in getting to that point. The first step to becoming a criminal investigator is to go to college and earn a bachelor s degree. Some law enforcement agencies in smaller cities or smaller employers may not require applicants to have a bachelor s degree, but it is typically expected (Education Portal 2003). The reason why a bachelor s degree is everything but necessary when wanting to become a criminal investigator is because of the demanding nature of the job that requires investigators to be quick on their feet and be able to adjust themselves to their surroundings. Employers need to be confident in their employees, especially in areas of expertise such as law enforcement, specifically criminal investigation. The process of becoming a criminal investigator continues after schooling, as most aspiring investigators join a police academy. Much like the bachelor s degree, a program at a police academy is typically necessary en route to becoming a criminal investigator. A police academy is where an individual gets trained to become a police officer. The program usually lasts roughly twenty weeks, after which you are qualified to apply for a job as a police officer (Parker 2015). This is the point where most of the people who don t truly want to become a part of law enforcement are weeded out. This is because of the fact that the majority of people aren t
willing to be enrolled in a police academy for twenty weeks of their life. These are the people that don t have the determination and perseverance that is required to be a successful criminal investigator. After completion of a police academy program, and a reasonable amount of time on the streets as a police officer, (can vary depending on employer, promotions, changes in management, etc.) an individual can apply for a job as a criminal investigator. Whether an applicant receives the promotion or not depends largely on how well they performed as a police officer, as well as how well they re employer believes they will fit in and be able to adjust from the uniform of a police officer, to a suit and tie (Rankin 2005). The process of becoming a criminal investigator is a long and difficult one, but that is intentional in the sense that the people who couldn t make it through the preparation to become an investigator, surely wouldn t have made it as one. One thing in particular that makes criminal investigation especially unique is how the preparation to become a criminal investigator somewhat foreshadows the demand required from the job itself. Not only can investigation itself be compared to the fascination of pregnancy, but so can the process of becoming an investigator. There within lies the truth about how vital and admirable the profession of a criminal investigator truly is.
Works Cited "Crime Scene Investigation." Timetoast. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "FBI Founded." History.com. A&E Television Networks, n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "Fingerprint America History of Fingerprints." Fingerprint America History of Fingerprints. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "Forensic Science Central." History of Forensic Science. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "How to Become a Crime Scene Investigator: Career Roadmap." Education Portal. Education Portal, 2003. Web. 4 Feb. 2015. "Investigation Quotes." BrainyQuote. Xplore, n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "Overview of Criminal Investigation." Overview of Criminal Investigation. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "The History of Crime Scene Investigation." EHow. Demand Media, 30 Aug. 2009. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "The History of Fingerprints." The History of Fingerprints. N.p., n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015. "Timeline & History of Police Technology." About.com Inventors. About.com, n.d. Web. 02 Feb. 2015.