AC 1.1: 10 marks – 45 minutes.
include cases for expertise.
The the police are the first responders to a crime scene.
Police
priorities: (1) to preserve life by providing first aid and safeguarding the public at the scene, (2) to arrest
Role suspects and (3) to secure the crime scene by taping off a perimeter.
securing the crime scene preserves evidence within the ‘golden hour’ by preventing contamination or loss of
evidence.
police collect testimonial evidence by identifying and interviewing witnesses for statements.
police prepare case files of evidence for further investigation and presentation in court that are sent to the
crown prosecution service for a charging decision.
Strength cost – inexpensive compared to other personnel and funded by the central government through council tax.
s (£21.5 billion per year, average cost for one police officer is £30,000 per year).
availability – 24/7.
expertise – the police department includes various specialised units (e.g. canine units, counter-terrorism
units, tactical units, and traffic units) that require specialist training.
Limitati cost – insufficient funding and resources impacts the investigations of all reported crimes especially summary
ons offences.
(19% cut in funding between 2010 and 2018).
availability – limited by lack of staff.
(police numbers fell by 20,000 between 2010 and 2018).
expertise – institutionalised biases and professional incompetence:
Cases 22nd of April 1993: Stephen Lawrence was stabbed to death in a hate crime by a gang of white youths in
South-East London. In July, suspects were charged with murder, but the CPS dropped the charges on the basis
that ID evidence was unreliable.
, The Macpherson Report (1999) concluded that the investigation into the murder of Stephen Lawrence had
been “marred by a combination of professional incompetence, institutional racism and a failure of leadership”.
The Report made seventy recommendations aimed to improve police attitudes with a “zero tolerance” for
racism in society.
The Hillsborough Disaster
15th of April 1989: John Motson (football commentator) noticed an uneven distribution of supporters in the
Leppings Lane end of Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield. Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield ordered exit
gate C to be opened, and an estimated 5,000 fans entered the two overcrowded pens within the Leppings
Lane stand. Within the Liverpool stand, hundreds of fans were pressed against each other, and the fencing, by
the weight of the crowd behind them.
The FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest was stopped at 3:06pm. Police
response was disorganised and slow with inadequate communication and resources. 96 Liverpool supporters
were killed and 766 more were injured.
Lord Justice Taylor’s report found that the main reason for the Hillsborough Disaster was the failure of police
control. In 2016, the inquest jury found that the killings of ninety-six individuals were unlawful.
The the crown prosecution service is an independent body that advises the police in criminal cases.
Crown
Prosecut the full code test is used to decide whether the evidence submitted by the police meets the required legal
ion standards for a realistic prospect of conviction.
Service
solicitors and barristers work for the crown prosecution service to prepare the case and present it as the
Role ‘prosecution’ in court.
Strength availability – 24/7.
s
independence - prevents bias to base decisions on evidence rather than police pressure.
Limitati cost and availability – limited by lack of staff and significant workloads.
ons (Alison Saunders, head of the Crown Prosecution Service, reported that its budget had been cut by 23% and it
had lost a third of its staff in 2018).
, expertise – failure to quality check work.
Cases November 2000: Damilola Taylor (aged 10 yrs) was found bleeding out on a stairwell of the North Peckham
estate, South-East London and was later pronounced dead at King’s College Hospital.
On the 26th of June 2001, four youths were charged with murder. In court, the judge ruled that the
prosecution’s key witness ‘Bromley’ was lying and ordered the 17-year-old to be found not guilty of all
charges, the case collapsed against the 15-year-old and the jury found the two 16-year-olds not guilty of all
charges.
Reports found that "the absence of any process to test the veracity of Bromley's testimony before trial left the
prosecution of the case vulnerable to problems.” Reports also stated that the crown prosecution service must
be "proactive" in advising the police on matters of most evidential significance at trial.
Liam Allan (aged 22yrs) was arrested in relation to a series of allegations made against him by his ex-
girlfriend. Liam Allan was charged with twelve counts of rape and sexual assault, but his defence claimed that
any sexual contact between himself and the victim was consensual.
On the 15th of December 2017 (the third day of trial), undisclosed evidence was brought to the attention of
the Prosecuting Barrister, and he ordered it to be handed over. The entire download of messages from his
phone was not passed to the defence with the officer in the case claiming that there was “nothing relevant on
it.”
Forensic the evidence that is recovered from a crime scene is sent to forensics scientists in a laboratory.
Scientist
forensic scientists examine and interpret evidence to international standards that ensures that it is
Role admissible in court.
forensic scientists sometimes appear in court as expert witnesses.
Strength expertise - the forensics department includes various specialised scientific disciplines (e.g. ballistics,
s odontology, and toxicology) that require specialist training.
objective – the forensic scientists produce scientific reports to provide evidence to the police, the crown
prosecution service, and the courts.
, Limitati cost – expensive compared to other personnel.
ons
Forensic Science Service closure (31st of March 2012) - the duties that were previously performed by the
service were transferred to individual police forces.
(Sue Black, Professor of Forensic Anthropology at Dundee University, argued that this runs “the risk of
developing a patchwork quilt approach which cannot be the best servant for justice.”)
expertise – lower standards risk cross contamination and misinterpretation of evidence.
Cases 23rd of October 2011: Adam Scott was charged with the rape of a woman after a plastic tray containing a
sample of his DNA from a ‘spitting incident’ in Exeter was reused in the analysis of a swab from a rape victim
in Plant Hill Park, Blackley. LGC forensics detected a false match from the contamination between the sample
from Adam Scott and the sample of the rape victim.
Adam Scott was held in custody for five months before it emerged that a DNA sample had been contaminated
and the charges were dropped. Forensic Science Regulator Andrew Rennison’s report concluded that the
contamination was the result of human error by a technician who “failed to follow basic procedures for the
disposal of plastic trays used as part of a validated DNA extraction process.”
Forensic forensic pathologists are qualified medical doctors who conduct post-mortem examinations on behalf of
Patholog the coroner to determine the cause, manner (e.g. accident, homicide, suicide, natural or undetermined), and
ist time of death.
Role they provide interpretation of pathological findings and unbiased legal and medical opinions to the police,
lawyers, and the court.
forensic pathologists sometimes appear in court as expert witnesses.
Limitati cost – expensive compared to other personnel (the cost of a single autopsy in the UK is between £3,000 and
ons £5,000).
availability – only 35-40 Home Office registered pathologists in the United Kingdom.
expertise – misinterpretation of evidence and professional incompetence:
Cases Dr Alan Williams in Sally Clark case
December of 1996: Sally Clark’s first son died (Christopher, aged 11 wks) + January of 1998: Sally Clark’s
include cases for expertise.
The the police are the first responders to a crime scene.
Police
priorities: (1) to preserve life by providing first aid and safeguarding the public at the scene, (2) to arrest
Role suspects and (3) to secure the crime scene by taping off a perimeter.
securing the crime scene preserves evidence within the ‘golden hour’ by preventing contamination or loss of
evidence.
police collect testimonial evidence by identifying and interviewing witnesses for statements.
police prepare case files of evidence for further investigation and presentation in court that are sent to the
crown prosecution service for a charging decision.
Strength cost – inexpensive compared to other personnel and funded by the central government through council tax.
s (£21.5 billion per year, average cost for one police officer is £30,000 per year).
availability – 24/7.
expertise – the police department includes various specialised units (e.g. canine units, counter-terrorism
units, tactical units, and traffic units) that require specialist training.
Limitati cost – insufficient funding and resources impacts the investigations of all reported crimes especially summary
ons offences.
(19% cut in funding between 2010 and 2018).
availability – limited by lack of staff.
(police numbers fell by 20,000 between 2010 and 2018).
expertise – institutionalised biases and professional incompetence:
Cases 22nd of April 1993: Stephen Lawrence was stabbed to death in a hate crime by a gang of white youths in
South-East London. In July, suspects were charged with murder, but the CPS dropped the charges on the basis
that ID evidence was unreliable.
, The Macpherson Report (1999) concluded that the investigation into the murder of Stephen Lawrence had
been “marred by a combination of professional incompetence, institutional racism and a failure of leadership”.
The Report made seventy recommendations aimed to improve police attitudes with a “zero tolerance” for
racism in society.
The Hillsborough Disaster
15th of April 1989: John Motson (football commentator) noticed an uneven distribution of supporters in the
Leppings Lane end of Hillsborough Stadium, Sheffield. Chief Superintendent David Duckenfield ordered exit
gate C to be opened, and an estimated 5,000 fans entered the two overcrowded pens within the Leppings
Lane stand. Within the Liverpool stand, hundreds of fans were pressed against each other, and the fencing, by
the weight of the crowd behind them.
The FA Cup semi-final match between Liverpool and Nottingham Forest was stopped at 3:06pm. Police
response was disorganised and slow with inadequate communication and resources. 96 Liverpool supporters
were killed and 766 more were injured.
Lord Justice Taylor’s report found that the main reason for the Hillsborough Disaster was the failure of police
control. In 2016, the inquest jury found that the killings of ninety-six individuals were unlawful.
The the crown prosecution service is an independent body that advises the police in criminal cases.
Crown
Prosecut the full code test is used to decide whether the evidence submitted by the police meets the required legal
ion standards for a realistic prospect of conviction.
Service
solicitors and barristers work for the crown prosecution service to prepare the case and present it as the
Role ‘prosecution’ in court.
Strength availability – 24/7.
s
independence - prevents bias to base decisions on evidence rather than police pressure.
Limitati cost and availability – limited by lack of staff and significant workloads.
ons (Alison Saunders, head of the Crown Prosecution Service, reported that its budget had been cut by 23% and it
had lost a third of its staff in 2018).
, expertise – failure to quality check work.
Cases November 2000: Damilola Taylor (aged 10 yrs) was found bleeding out on a stairwell of the North Peckham
estate, South-East London and was later pronounced dead at King’s College Hospital.
On the 26th of June 2001, four youths were charged with murder. In court, the judge ruled that the
prosecution’s key witness ‘Bromley’ was lying and ordered the 17-year-old to be found not guilty of all
charges, the case collapsed against the 15-year-old and the jury found the two 16-year-olds not guilty of all
charges.
Reports found that "the absence of any process to test the veracity of Bromley's testimony before trial left the
prosecution of the case vulnerable to problems.” Reports also stated that the crown prosecution service must
be "proactive" in advising the police on matters of most evidential significance at trial.
Liam Allan (aged 22yrs) was arrested in relation to a series of allegations made against him by his ex-
girlfriend. Liam Allan was charged with twelve counts of rape and sexual assault, but his defence claimed that
any sexual contact between himself and the victim was consensual.
On the 15th of December 2017 (the third day of trial), undisclosed evidence was brought to the attention of
the Prosecuting Barrister, and he ordered it to be handed over. The entire download of messages from his
phone was not passed to the defence with the officer in the case claiming that there was “nothing relevant on
it.”
Forensic the evidence that is recovered from a crime scene is sent to forensics scientists in a laboratory.
Scientist
forensic scientists examine and interpret evidence to international standards that ensures that it is
Role admissible in court.
forensic scientists sometimes appear in court as expert witnesses.
Strength expertise - the forensics department includes various specialised scientific disciplines (e.g. ballistics,
s odontology, and toxicology) that require specialist training.
objective – the forensic scientists produce scientific reports to provide evidence to the police, the crown
prosecution service, and the courts.
, Limitati cost – expensive compared to other personnel.
ons
Forensic Science Service closure (31st of March 2012) - the duties that were previously performed by the
service were transferred to individual police forces.
(Sue Black, Professor of Forensic Anthropology at Dundee University, argued that this runs “the risk of
developing a patchwork quilt approach which cannot be the best servant for justice.”)
expertise – lower standards risk cross contamination and misinterpretation of evidence.
Cases 23rd of October 2011: Adam Scott was charged with the rape of a woman after a plastic tray containing a
sample of his DNA from a ‘spitting incident’ in Exeter was reused in the analysis of a swab from a rape victim
in Plant Hill Park, Blackley. LGC forensics detected a false match from the contamination between the sample
from Adam Scott and the sample of the rape victim.
Adam Scott was held in custody for five months before it emerged that a DNA sample had been contaminated
and the charges were dropped. Forensic Science Regulator Andrew Rennison’s report concluded that the
contamination was the result of human error by a technician who “failed to follow basic procedures for the
disposal of plastic trays used as part of a validated DNA extraction process.”
Forensic forensic pathologists are qualified medical doctors who conduct post-mortem examinations on behalf of
Patholog the coroner to determine the cause, manner (e.g. accident, homicide, suicide, natural or undetermined), and
ist time of death.
Role they provide interpretation of pathological findings and unbiased legal and medical opinions to the police,
lawyers, and the court.
forensic pathologists sometimes appear in court as expert witnesses.
Limitati cost – expensive compared to other personnel (the cost of a single autopsy in the UK is between £3,000 and
ons £5,000).
availability – only 35-40 Home Office registered pathologists in the United Kingdom.
expertise – misinterpretation of evidence and professional incompetence:
Cases Dr Alan Williams in Sally Clark case
December of 1996: Sally Clark’s first son died (Christopher, aged 11 wks) + January of 1998: Sally Clark’s
