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About Jack Toomey
Expertise
Please do NOT ask questions about potential jail sentences that you or your friends may receive in court. There is no way for me to know that. I am NOT a probation officer or a parole officer so questions about those subjects will be rejected. I am a police officer with 26 years experience. Can answer questions about crime, police procedure, investigations, criminal law, search and seizure, traffic offenses. Prefer not to answer questions on the death penalty. Please do not ask homework questions. Remember this. The law in every state is different so questions about laws that are specific to your state could be difficult to answer.
I also cannot give you legal advice on what to do or not to do in court.
I have worked with authors in the past and will be happy to review scenarios or plots with authors to check for believability or accuracy.
Experience
Police officer with 26 years experience. Ten years in patrol and sixteen years in the detective bureau investigating every type of crime including murder, rape, robbery, theft, fraud, missing persons, etc, etc. Also taught at the police academy in areas such as constitutional law, search and seizure, and lineups.
Education/Credentials
B.S. in Criminology from the University of Maryland.
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You are here: Experts > Arts/Humanities > Social Science > Crime & Law Enforcement Issues & Death Penalty > DNA/Fingerprints, Etc.
Expert: Jack Toomey - 11/4/2009
Question
QUESTION: Hi,
I'm a writer and have some questions about police procedure that I'm hoping you can help with. Here are the burning questions:
1. If a victim is strangled, can you get DNA from the deceased (other than from under the victims fingernails, assuming there was a struggle)? What about fingerprints?
2. Under what circumstances will an officer/detective work with a civilian to obtain evidence (e.g., wearing a wire or some sort of recording device to get the suspect to make admissions on tape?)
3. In an analysis of fibers found at the scene, how specific is the report? Can the results identify color and type of fabric?
Thanks a million!!
ANSWER: Head and/or public hair could be recovered from the victim. Saliva and semen could also be found in/or the victim. I have heard of cases where fingerprints have been lifted from dead bodies but never have had any experience in any of my cases.
In MY state a recording device can be used without a court order in cases of murder and a few other assorted crimes. That does not apply to any other state but I am sure that some states have similar laws. In all my years I never had a case where a civilian wore any type of "wire" in a criminal case but I am sure that it has been done.
A good lab examination can not only identify the color of a fabric but also identify the type. This has been the case for many years.
---------- FOLLOW-UP ----------
QUESTION: Re: Q # 2, when someone does wear a wire to get the suspect to make admissions on tape, what are the logistics of the recording? How does a person wear the microphone? How is it hid under the clothes? Where are the people listening in on the conversation? How many people are typically listening?
And a few more, if that's ok!...
4. How many people typically work on an investigation? Who is responsible if the case goes cold after a year? When does a prosecutor get involved in a case?
5. How do you go about finding the identity of a person attempting to blog anonymously? How long does it take?
Thanks again. I sincerely appreciate your help!
Answer
Melissa,
I'd have to defer to someone else about the logistics of a wire case. Having never been involved in such a case I would not want to give you bad information.
4. That would depend on the complexity of the case and what kind of city/town/county you in. If it was New York City they probably could devote many more people to the case than Podunk County, Iowa.
Its hard to say who is responsible for a case after a year. It would depend on the department. On a busy department that is averaging a homicide a day the detectives are swamped and no sooner do they get involved in one case then they are responding to another case. On a slower department that has ten homicides a year then the original detective would most likely keep his own case forever or until his retirement. Then someone else would take over.
Prosecutor. Again this would depend on the tradition/workings of the juristiction you are writing about. In MY county the prosecutors office was never consulted until after the arrest and they called for a pre-indictment conference. However I have been to places where the prosecutors office has to approve almost every warrant before it is served. So wherever you go there could be different procedures.
5. Are you talking about finding the identity of someone posting comments on the Internet?
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