Finding the Truth with Criminal Investigation: Suspect, Subject, Defendant

by Daniel A. Reilly

Overview

The way a crime is defined is through criminal investigation. Criminal investigation is a multi-faceted effort that involves the study of facts presented by a criminal act or pattern of criminal conduct. These facts are then used to identify, locate and prove the guilt or innocence of a person or persons. Criminal investigation is usually carried out by a law enforcement agency using all of the resources available to discover, locate or establish evidence proving and verifying the relevant facts for presentation to a Court or other judicial authority.

But how are these facts discovered? What resources do law enforcement use to uncover them? What is the process for a successful criminal investigation? In fact, how can we even define what is “criminal” in the first place? Daniel A. Reilly answers all these important questions, while providing the step by step process to gather facts, information, data, and evidence.

Finding the Truth with Criminal Investigation is intended to answer all of the questions of who, what, where, when, why and how a violent crime occurred and/or was committed. It is intended for students in the field of criminal justice who wish to become criminal investigators – exposing them to the tools and processes needed to conduct a proper criminal investigation, but also real-life of working to support others as a team. Reilly spent a great deal of his professional life working on homicide cases, and he offers students his expertise in criminal investigation by successfully incorporating real-world context throughout this book.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781538113851
Publisher:	Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc.
Publication date:	08/15/2019
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	424
Product dimensions:	7.00(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Daniel A. Reilly is the professor of Criminology, Law, and Society at George Mason University. He worked for the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) for thirty years, including as a Special Agent Criminal Investigator. As an FBI agent, he worked on a wide variety of criminal cases and helped start the FBI's Safe Streets Program. He headed the FBI's Evidence Response Team at the Washington Field Office and supplied extensive experience and training on crime scene examination. After his retirement from the FBI, Reilly worked as a private consulting analyst with the High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) task force operations in the Mid-Atlantic region. Reilly has also served as an expert witness in street gang and bank robbery cases. Along with his professional career in law enforcement, he has published a book on crime scene examination, entitled Working the Scene (2008), and taught other law enforcement professionals in the U.S. and worldwide in a variety of fields related to criminal justice.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Preface xi

1 Criminal Investigation Defined 1

2 Criminal Code 23

3 Constitutional Rights 61

4 Teamwork 97

5 Prioritizing Investigations 121

6 Victims and Witnesses 139

7 Crime Scene Analysis 159

8 Investigative Plan 183

9 Goals and Steps for an Investigation 209

10 Physical Evidence 231

11 Administrative Procedures 257

12 Bringing the Case to Court 271

13 Interviews and Interrogations 291

14 Confidential Informants 307

15 Investigative Intelligence 325

16 Tactical Considerations 333

17 Covert Investigations 345

Epilogue 375

Glossary 377

References 385

Index 391

Editorial Reviews

Finding the Truth with Criminal Investigation lays the foundation for the untrained investigator. It is a how-to book for the student lacking criminal investigation experience. Reilly covers the main areas needed for an investigation, covering evidence, criminal law, forensic evidence, constitutional law and interviewing techniques. Also emphasizes that criminal investigations is a team effort.

Michael J. Palmiotto

As a homicide detective for 18 years, and an adjunct college instructor for 15, I really appreciate this text. I believe the goal of every investigation is only to prove the truth, and I really appreciate the title of this text as well as the content! Finding the Truth with Criminal Investigation is practical, real, and understandable without any trendy filler.

Ivan M. Kaminsky

Reilly has fashioned an ambitious text that follows the development, progression, and closure of criminal investigations through the experienced lens of a seasoned specialist in the field.

Lindsay Nelson

Dan Reilly has created a comprehensive and informative book with Finding the Truth with Criminal Investigations. Reilly has taken the time to not only detail the important steps and pitfalls in law enforcement criminal investigations but, to weave his work and life experience into cautionary lessons and instruction a layperson can understand. As a retired law enforcement professional and instructor in criminal investigations, I found a plethora of text books on this subject but, not one that presents the material with the tradecraft so clearly explained and detailed. In my opinion, Reilly’s book is a well-organized compilation of facts and experience, honed from years of professional public service to citizens from all walks of life – most especially the victims and their friends and families. Law enforcement professionals take pride in establishing integrity and a sense of duty to their work but the most significant and singular thread is their desire to serve the victims. Finding the Truth with Criminal Investigations: Suspect, Subject, Defendant follows that tradition as well.

Steven D. Remick