Chowdhury Mehzeb
Northumbria University, Faculty of Arts, Design and Social Sciences, 2 Sandyford Road, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 8SB, United Kingdom.
Sci Justice. 2021 May;61(3):271-279. doi: 10.1016/j.scijus.2021.01.002. Epub 2021 Jan 28.
This study proposes a comprehensive, scalable guide which police forces may use to advertise and recruit crime scene staff on a universal standard, as opposed to setting force-specific requirements. It also investigates the validity of staff descriptors such as 'examiner', 'SOCO', 'analyst' and 'investigator' and whether such classifications warrant continued existence. Using published crime scene job postings and internal human resource documentation from thirty-five (35) United Kingdom police forces, scene staff qualification requirements and their assigned responsibilities were collated. The main functions of scene practitioners were found to involve six (6) key aspects: (1) operational support; (2) police organisation and forensic intelligence support; (3) administrative support; (4) community support; (5) organisational support; and (6) investigative support. The study found a major misconception in the understanding of the roles and responsibilities of crime scene practitioners as merely evidence collectors with purely evidence-based functions. The data indicated that the duties were significantly more dynamic, requiring critical thinking. Forces consistently emphasized the need for an ability to adapt to unknown scenarios, react with an open mind and problem-solve using reasoning and thought. Scene staff were expected to be victim based, their approach geared towards assisting victims to cope with crime, advising them as to the next steps forward, and consoling witnesses. Key discoveries were made about the role of scene staff as community support actors, and that role-fulfilment involved not just scientific knowledge but also legal and investigative comprehension. Insights were gained on the move towards professionalisation of crime scene staff and the associated obstacles. Evidence of widespread and jurisdiction-wide discrepancy in definitions, roles and responsibilities, police status (whether they were officers or civilians) and classification of scene practitioners under official staffing data, prompted recommendations on unification of standards and redefinition of staff roles and their vocational boundaries.
本研究提出了一份全面、可扩展的指南，警察部队可利用该指南按照通用标准招聘犯罪现场工作人员，而不是设定特定部队的要求。该研究还调查了诸如“检验员”“犯罪现场勘查官”“分析师”和“调查员”等工作人员称谓的有效性，以及此类分类是否仍有存在的必要。研究人员通过整理来自英国35个警察部队发布的犯罪现场招聘信息和内部人力资源文件，汇总了现场工作人员的资质要求及其职责。研究发现，现场工作人员的主要职责涉及六个关键方面：（1）行动支持；（2）警方组织及法医情报支持；（3）行政支持；（4）社区支持；（5）组织支持；（6）调查支持。研究发现，人们对犯罪现场工作人员的角色和职责存在一个重大误解，即认为他们仅仅是证据收集者，只履行基于证据的职能。数据表明，其职责更具动态性，需要批判性思维。各警察部队一直强调，工作人员需要具备适应未知情况的能力，以开放的心态做出反应，并运用推理和思考解决问题。现场工作人员应将受害者放在首位，其工作方法旨在帮助受害者应对犯罪，为他们提供下一步行动建议，并安慰证人。研究还得出了关于现场工作人员作为社区支持角色的关键发现，履行这一角色不仅需要科学知识，还需要法律和调查方面的理解。研究还深入了解了犯罪现场工作人员专业化进程及其面临的相关障碍。官方人员配置数据显示，在定义、角色和职责、警察身份（是警官还是文职人员）以及现场工作人员分类方面，存在广泛且跨辖区的差异，据此提出了统一标准以及重新界定工作人员角色及其职业界限的建议。
