Criminal Investigations
9 total works
The relatively new field of criminology and criminal science has been a boon to law enforcement agencies worldwide. In the past, police often relied on eyewitness testimony to identify criminals and solve crimes, and criminals who fled to other regions could readily avoid arrest. Today, modern forensic techniques give police a wide range of tools with which to identify criminals and prove guilt. But successfully investigating a crime scene requires expertise and attention to detail.Using landmark cases to illustrate forensics in action, ""Crime Scene Investigation"" details the emergence of modern crime-fighting techniques from the mid-1800s to the present, focusing on how crime scenes are treated, how evidence is processed, and how evidence is used in court to build a case for conviction. Chapters of this title include: Fingerprinting; Identification of Remains; Offender Profiling; Questioned Documents; Ballistics; Blood Spatter Analysis; DNA; Explosives; and, Time of Death. Cases covered in this title include: Colin Pitchfork, serial killer; George Metesky, mad bomber; Steve Benson, lethal electronics whiz; John Branion, deadly doctor; and, Angelo John LaMarca, killer kidnapper.
In ""Unsolved Crimes"", famous, unresolved cases from the past 120 years are examined to review what police and experts in forensic science did (or failed to do) while trying to resolve each crime. For each case covered, the key theories and suspects are described. Though technology is much improved since the time of Jack the Ripper in 1888, some recent crimes defy the best equipment and best scientists, leaving open-ended mysteries to occupy the minds of amateur sleuths everywhere. Still, it may not be too late to solve these riddles. By reexamining old evidence with modern techniques, police can often breathe new life into a cold case. This book includes such chapters as: Red Jack; The Black Dahlia; The Boy in the Box; JFK: Case Closed?; and, Deadly Medicine. Cases covered include: Jack the Ripper, unidentified serial killer; the murder of Elizabeth Short, aka 'The Black Dahlia'; the assassination of John F. Kennedy, officially solved but often disputed; the disappearance of Teamsters' leader Jimmy Hoffa; the Tylenol poisoning murders and related cases; Lizzie Borden, accused then acquitted of murdering her parents with an axe; Harry and Harriette Moore, murdered during the early days of the Civil Rights movement; and, the murder of JonBenet Ramsey.
From ancient times to the present, serial killers have terrorized the public, claiming their victims with a variety of methods, including poisoning, stabbing, and shooting. Modern law enforcement agents have developed sophisticated techniques, such as DNA analysis and psychological profiling, to track and identify these killers. Covering key historical and contemporary cases, ""Serial Killers"" is a concise, objective introduction to this field of criminal investigation. This book includes such chapters as: Murder by Numbers; Monsters Among Us; Lethal Ladies; Still at Large; and, The Mind hunters. Cases covered include: Erzsebet Bathory; the Beltway Snipers; David Berkowitz, a.k.a. 'Son of Sam'; John Wayne Gacy; Micajah and Wiley Harpe; Jack the Ripper; Herman Webster Mudgett, aka 'H.H. Holmes'; Gary Leon Ridgway, a.k.a. 'The Green River Killer'; and, Aileen Wuornos.
West, from Prohibition bootleggers to modern-day drug gangs, ""Gangs and Gang Crime"" details the history of criminal gangs and their crimes. Today, most gangs exist on the streets or in prisons, and law enforcement agents have developed numerous techniques for identifying gangs, tracking their activities, breaking up illegal rackets, and addressing the social issues that can be contributing factors in the formation of gangs. This book includes such chapters as: Public Enemies; Hell on Wheels; Crips and Bloods; Gangs in Fiction and Film; and, Coping with Gangs. Cases and gangs covered include: The Plug Uglies, the Dead Rabbits, the Whyos, and other gangs of New York's Five Points; Prohibition-era bootlegging gangs; The Wild Bunch; The Hells Angels, the Outlaws, and other motorcycle gangs; The Black Guerilla Family, the Aryan Brotherhood, Nuestra Familia, and other prison gangs; Crips and Bloods; and, The Yakuza, the Jamaican Posse, the Russian mafia, and other international gangs.
From offers 'too good to be true' to presenting false information, confidence schemes are employed worldwide for illicit financial gain. Some criminals, known as confidence men (or women), con artists, or grifters, rely on a gift for gab or lies and deception to steal money or commit other crimes. When on top of his or her game, the con artist can manipulate or trick a victim into willfully handing money over, usually in anticipation of a bogus financial return. ""Cons and Frauds"" looks at the history of these moneymaking scams, how individuals and police can fight them, and what signs to look for to avoid being the next dupe on a con artist's list.Chapters include, Anatomy of a Con, How to Avoid Common Scams, ID Theft, E-Cons: Scamming on the Grifter Superhighway, and Educating the Public.
Organized crime has long posed one of the greatest criminal challenges to law enforcement. Considered a different type of crime than those committed by individuals or small groups of criminals, these are crimes committed by an organized mob that work together and share in the profits. From the criminal gangs in early American history, to the outlaw gangs of the Old West, to the bootleggers of Prohibition, organized crime has a long history in the United States. Today, numerous organized crime families still exist - the best known, perhaps, is the Mafia - but there are many other types of criminal groups. ""Organized Crime"" details the range of tactics police use to identify, combat, and prevent organized crimes.Chapters include, Informants: They Call Them Rats; Surveillance: Wiring Informants and Tapping Phones; The Big Bust; Famous Rubouts; and When the Government Declares War.
The public's fascination with celebrities can reach a fever pitch when celebrities commit or are involved in a crime. Famous victims like the Lindbergh baby and Sharon Tate have raised public outcry against the cruel crimes that claimed their lives. And the trials of celebrity criminals such as Jim Bakker and O.J. Simpson are proof that even the rich and famous are not above breaking the law. ""Celebrities and Crime"" examines the crossroads where fame and the underworld meet, looks at special types of crime targeted at celebrities, and discusses how law enforcement handles celebrity victims and celebrity perpetrators.The chapters include: The Devil's Business; Stalked!; Murder in Brentwood; Number One with a Bullet; and The Price of Fame. The cases covered include: Charles Lindbergh Jr. kidnapping; Charles Manson and the Manson Family murders; The unsolved murder of actor Bob Crane; Celebrity stalkers and assassins, including the murder of John Lennon; Celebrity frauds Jim and Tammy Bakker; The O.J. Simpson murder trial, and other famous athletes' encounters with crime; Tupac Shakur, and the gangsta rap feud between the East Coast and West Coast rappers; Celebrity shoplifters and the Winona Ryder case; and Robert Blake, accused of murdering his wife.
Cons and Frauds. Criminal Investigations.
by Michael Benson and John L French
Published 1 January 2008