Arson and Bombing

Abstract

It's your first month on the job, then you hear the call and it's a fire in the financial district. Then you hear the radio dispatcher; a 911 caller said she heard what sounded like a bomb, about a block away from the fire. You think back to your academy training; trying to remember the investigation process. Looking for the clues and trying not to destroy the evidence; that's the goal. Searching for what will help you figure out if the bomb was a bombing and if the fire was an accident or something more sinister. In this essay I will try to explain the process of investigating a fire and a bombing.

Arson and Bombing: The Investigation Process

When you're called to a fire there is a process that must be followed and the same goes for a call to a bombing. Your investigation must be detailed; from the time you arrive at the scene, to the moment you begin typing your report, and all the way to the time the states attorney uses it against the alleged arsonist or bomber. You can never tell what minute piece of evidence might convict the unwholesome fire starter or blaster. "Arson is said to be on of the oldest crimes and it's defined as malicious. Bombings are utilized by terrorist organizations" (Lyman, Michael D. (2008). Criminal investigation the art and the science. Upper Saddle River, New Jersey: Pearson Custom Publishing). When using the investigation process it can be difficult or it can be easy. When following the process, it will be less likely that you'll blow the case by contaminating or losing the evidence and more likely that suspect will be found and found guilty.