| Regionals & Nationals | ||
Nationals 2008 In Kansas City Regionals We go to the Regional Conference each Fall, usually at the end of October. The location of the conference is at a different city within our region, region 3, each time. At Regionals, only people from schools within the region attend. Each region has their own conference. At the conference, we compete in 4 different areas: firearms, physical agility, mock crime scene, and written tests. There are 5 written tests; juvenile delinquency, LAE knowledge, corrections, police administration, and criminal law. The conference is a great opportunity to represent Missouri Western, and to meet other criminal justice majors from different schools. Nationals (see our pics from 2008 here: 2008 Nationals in Kansas City ) The National Conference is held each spring, usually near or on our spring break. The location of this conference is in a different region each time, and criminal justice students come from all over the nation to compete. It is not necessary to have gone to the Regional Conference in order to attend the National one - but it does help you know what to expect from the competitions! The competitions are exactly the same as the ones from Regionals, only they are spread out over a longer period of time. Nationals lasts an entire week, whereas Regionals is only a weekend. This conference is also a great opportunity to represent Missouri Western - in front of our peers from all over the US! Helpful Tips for the Competitions Overall written tests: Each year the tests are based of different books. We have access to those books that the test writer has chosen to base the test on. USE THEM! There is no other better source of information that the book the information came from! LAE Knowledge Test: Visit the ACJA website and read about:ACJA history, objectives, ACJA emblem, member benefits, National executive board, National bylaws, National standing rules, frequently asked questions, becoming a member, and National competition standards. The site has a lot of good info on it that will be on the test, so if you read over the info, you will get a much better score on the test! This is really the only written test you can study for in a short amount of time, so I'd focus on it. Crime Scene: There are 3 people per team, so speak with your team members and designate one person to sketch the scene, one person to take measurements for the sketch, and one person to collect evidence. It is also a good idea to have one person be the "leader", in that they announce things to the proctor and keep the group organized so that everyone isn't just going all over the scene and not working together. Having a designated leader (even if it's mostly play-acting) keeps the group together and makes you look more organized. When you go to the mock crime scene, you may or may not be the first responders. Also, each scene is different, so since these are just some general tips, you may not need to use all of them. At any rate, here are my notes from Kip's presentation. - The most important thing you can do is be sure to announce everything you are doing to the proctor. You will not get points for something if you don't vocalize it. It's better to say everything than assume you don't need to and end u0p missing points because the proctor doesn't know you did something. FOR A "HOT" SCENE ( where no one else has arrived at scene before you) - When you arrive, announce that you've obtained a search warrant, or consent to search. Then announce that you are putting on protective gear, like gloves, booties, etc. - Knock on the door and announce that you are the police, and have a warrant to search. - Before going in, look through the doorway for any possible suspects in the room (and tell the proctor this is what you're doing). If you can see all of the room, and don't see any suspects, announce that the room is clear. If you can't see all of the room, move along the wall until you can see the rest of the room and declare it clear. If by chance there is a suspect, you will probably need to frisk them. Remember to have someone of the same sex frisk them. If they are already in custody, be sure to Mirandize them before questioning them. If they are not in custody, and you don't feel the need to arrest them, it isn't necessary to Mirandize them before questioning them. - As you are looking for suspects, also check for victims. If you see one, as soon as you've declared the scene safe, approach them indirectly and check vital signs to see if they are still alive. Try to touch them as little as possible, and remember to tell the proctor what you're doing. If they're dead, leave them as they are and continue with the search. If they are alive, radio for an ambulance. - Look for any other exits. If there is one, and it looks like it was possibly just used (door or window still open), announce that you are sending an officer that way to see if the suspect is still in the vicinity. Then announce that you are posting officers at all exits to guard the scene. Basic Scene - Look for unusual things, things out of place. - If you find a bomb, immediately announce that there is a bomb and you are getting out. Also get out of the room as fast as possible, and say that you are calling the bomb squad to disable to bomb, and you are re-entering the scene only after the squad has rendered the bomb safe. Remember to collect the bomb and all its parts as evidence. - Look for things that go along with the crime, like weapons or sign of struggle for a homicide. - Pay attention to the lights, and record if they were on or off. Record if the door was open or closed, locked or unlocked. - Tell the proctor how you're documenting the scene - sketch and photographs. And take notes to record everything! You obviously won't have any photographs of evidence to refer to when making your report, so take detailed notes of the items of evidence and everything you see in the room. - Make sure you announce the kind of photo you are taking Wide shot, close-up, general. - Evidence: - Collect perishables first, like a wet footprint that might dry. - Remember to say that you've taken a picture of it before telling the proctor how you're going to collect it. - When you're telling the proctor that you're documenting where the evidence was by drawing it on the sketch, be sure to tell them how you're finding its location, such as triangulation. - Biological evidence, such as blood or semen should be flaked up if it's dry, and packaged in a pharmacy fold or paper bag. Or, you can wipe it up with a damp cotton swab, let it air dry, and package in a paper bag. If it's wet, wipe it up with a cotton swab, let it air dry, then package in a paper bag. - Arson debris goes in an unused metal paint can. - Weapons go in special envelopes and boxes. - For paint samples, you should cut through all layers of paint, then chip up the piece and package in a paper or plastic bag. - Minute evidence can be collected with tweezers if it's large enough, then packaged in a pharmacy fold. If it's too small for tweezers, or there is a lot of it, you can collect it with tape liftings, or a vacuum. Remember to mark on the sketch the area you vacuumed the evidence from. If there is more than one area that needs to be vacuumed for evidence, you would use separate filters and mark each area and filter # on the sketch. - You can also pretend to use a forensic light source to look for biological evidence, or luminol to look for possible blood if the scene looks cleaned up. - Sketches: - Use graph paper. - Try to make it as close to scale as you have time to do. Make to take measurements with a tape measure. This can be done by one person, with help from the photographer. All the photographer has to do is hold the tape down! The other person will record the dimensions. - Reports: - Use first person. - Go in chronological order. - Use simple words, not big legal ones. - Use correct grammar. - Don't describe above your level of expertise. For example, don't call it "blood", call it "red substance resembling blood". - A report generally begins with a sentence stating who you are, where you are, and why. The next one generally gives the time you arrived. For example, "On 10-22-04, at 1500 hours, we, reporting officers Stout, Scearce, and Smith were dispatched to 123 Park St. for a possible homicide. We arrived at 1505 hours, and were the first officers on the scene." - Because you have a limited amount of time to do the report, and it is hand written, it is probably a good idea to have two people work on the report while the other sketches. Remember, announce everything! I cannot stress this enough. Also, keep in mind that the proctor might or might not give you additional info, so ask them as many questions as you can think of! If it isn't relevant, no big deal. Better to ask and have it irrelevant than not ask and it be the biggest clue you missed! At some Regionals, they give additional info if it was asked for it. For example, we'd say something like, "I'm collecting this red substance to test it and see if it's blood, and to see if there are any toxins present". The the proctor would hand us a paper with the toxicology screen results. If the case at Nationals is that they do give you papers with info on them, be sure to read them in the scene! Then, if you get another lead from that info, you can ask about it. If you wait to read them until you're writing the report, not only will you run out of time, but you will also miss the chance to ask further questions about that info.
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