investigator

a scientist who devotes himself to doing research someone who investigates a police officer who investigates crimes

To see the article about the Nintendo game, see Gumshoe (video game).''A detective is

an officer of the police who performs criminal or administrative investigations,

in some police departments, the lowest rank among such investigators (above the lowest rank of officers and below sergeants),

a civilian licensed to investigate information not readily available in public records (a private investigator, also called "P.I." or, in a pun on "private i.", private eye), or

informally and primarily in fiction, any unlicensed person who solves crimes, including historical crimes, or looks into records.

Detectives and their work -

Becoming a detective - In most American police departments, a candidate for detective must have served as a uniformed officer for a period of one to five years before becoming qualified for the position. Prospective British police detectives must have completed two years as a uniformed officer before applying to join the Criminal Investigation Department. In European police systems, most detectives are university graduates who join directly from civilian life without first serving as uniformed officers. In fact, many European police experts cannot understand why British, American and Commonwealth of NationsCommonwealth police forces insist on recruiting their detectives from the ranks of uniformed officers, arguing that they do a completely different job and therefore require completely different training, qualifications, qualities and abilities. The opposing argument is that without previous service as a uniformed patrol officer a detective cannot have a great enough command of standard police procedures and problems and will find it difficult to work with uniformed colleagues.Detectives obtain their position by competitive examination, covering such subjects as:

Principles, practices and procedures of investigations

Principles, practices and procedures of interviewing and interrogation

Local criminal law and procedures

Applicable law governing arrests, search and seizures, warrants and evidence

Police department records and reports

Principles, practices and objectives of courtroom testimony

Police department methods and proceduresPrivate detectives are licensed by the state in which they live after passing a competitive examination and a criminal background check. Some states, such as Maryland, require a period of classroom training as well.

Organization of detectives - The detective branch in most larger police agencies is organized into several squads or departments, each of which specializes in investigation into a particular type of crime or a particular type of undercover operation, which may include:

Homicide

Robbery

Stolen vehicles

Fraud

Burglary

Narcotics

Forgery

Criminal intelligence

Sex crimes

Street crime (mugging etc.)

Computer crime

Crimes against children

Surveillance

Arson

Techniques of detectives -

Street work - Detectives have a wide variety of techniques available in conducting investigations. However, the majority of cases are solved by ''interrogation'' of suspects and witnesses, which takes time. In a policeman's career as a uniformed officer and as a detective, a detective develops an intuitive sense of the plausibility of suspect and witness accounts. This intuition may fail at times, but usually is reliable. Besides interrogations, detectives may rely on a network of informants they have cultivated over the years. Informants often have connections with persons a detective would not be able to approach formally.In criminal investigations, once a detective has a suspect or suspects in mind, the next step is to produce evidence that will stand up in a court of law. The best way is to obtain a ''confession'' from the suspect, usually in exchange for a plea bargain for a lesser sentence. A detective may lie or otherwise mislead and may psychologically pressure a suspect into confessing, though in the United States suspects may invoke their Miranda rights.

Forensic evidence - Physical forensic evidence in an investigation may provide leads to closing a case.Examples of physical evidence can be, but are not limited to:

FingerprintFingerprinting of objects persons have touched

DNA analysis

Luminol to detect blood stains that have been washed

Bloodstain pattern analysis

Footprints or tire tracks

Chemical testing for the presence of narcotics or expended gun propellant

The exact position of objects at the scene of an investigationMany major police departments in a city, county, or state, and the Federal Bureau of Investigation, maintain their own forensic laboratories.

Records investigation - Detectives may use public and private records to provide background information on a subject. These include:

Fingerprint records. In the United States, the FBI maintains records of people who have committed felonyfelonies and some misdemeanormisdemeanors, all persons who have applied for a Federal security clearance, and all persons who have served in the U.S. armed forces

Records of criminal arrests and convictions

Photographs or mug shots, of persons arrested

Motor vehicle records

Credit card records and bank statements

Hotel registration cards

Credit reports

Answer machine messages

Court testimony - Unless a plea bargain forestalls the need for a trial, detectives must testify in court about their investigation. They must seem reliable and credible to a jury, and must not give the impression of personal vindictiveness or cruelty. A detective's background often comes into question in courtroom testimony. A famous example came in the murder trial of O. J. Simpson, when Detective Mark Fuhrman of the Los Angeles Police Department testified for the prosecution. Attorney F. Lee Bailey first asked Fuhrman if he had ever used the "n-word" (see nigger_(word)Nigger). Fuhrman denied this. In court, Bailey produced taped interviews with Fuhrman using this offensive word.

Famous detectives - The detective story has been a popular genre in books, radio, television, and movies since the early 19th century. In many police drama series, detectives are depicted as being something of an elite, with most uniformed police officers deferring to them.Famous fictional detectives include:

Police detectives -

Detective Andy Sipowicz, played by Dennis Franz in the television series ''NYPD Blue''

Lennie Briscoe, played by Jerry Orbach in the television series ''Law & Order''

Sergeant Joe Friday, portrayed by Jack Webb and later by Ed O'Neill in the television series ''Dragnet (drama)Dragnet''

Lieutenant Columbo, played by Peter Falk in the television series ''Columbo'' (and also some television movies)

Detective Chief Inspector Jane Tennison, played by Helen Mirren in ''Prime Suspect''.

Detective Chief Inspector Morse, in the novels of Colin Dexter and played by John Thaw in ''Inspector Morse''.

Detective Inspector Jack Regan, also played by John Thaw, and Detective Sergeant George Carter, played by Dennis Waterman, in the television series ''The Sweeney''.

Private detectives -

Monk (TV series)Adrian Monk, played by Tony Shalhoub

Auguste Dupin, created by Edgar Allan Poe

Hercule Poirot and Miss MarpleMiss Jane Marple, both created by Agatha Christie

Jim Rockford, created by Roy Huggins and Stephen J. Cannell, and portrayed by James Garner in the television series ''The Rockford Files''

Magnum P.I.Thomas Sullivan Magnum, played by Tom Selleck in the television series ''Magnum P.I.''

Philip Marlowe, created by Raymond Chandler

Sam Spade, created by Dashiell Hammett and portrayed on film by Humphrey Bogart

Sherlock Holmes, created by Arthur Conan Doyle

Thompson and Thomson, from the comic Tintin, created by HergéSee Detective fiction and Crime fiction for more details.

See also -

Criminal Investigation Department

Private investigator

Eugène François Vidocq

Special Agent

External links -

!my-private-investigator.com - Online Detective Tools

detectivechoice.com - Online Investigation Tools

diydetective.com - Do it yourself detectiveCategory:Law enforcementCategory:Law enforcement workersCategory:Detectives and criminal investigators*DetectiveCategory:Police !officerscs:Detektivde:Ermittlu ngnl:Detectiveja:探偵pl:Dete ktywzh:侦探 DEBUG REDIRECT (detective)

Private Investigator
UK Investigator, Leicestershire, England
http://www.investigate4u.net/

L.M. Paul P.I.
Kingston Ontario private investigator, providing investigation services in Ontario.
http://www.lmpaul.com/

Private Investigators
Famous Private Investigators
http://www.laprivateeye.com

Cotter Services Inc.
Investigator and business risk consultant. Conducts Due Diligence in China and Canada
http://www.cotter.ca/

Private Security Consulting Firm based in the Washington D.C. Metro Area with National and International capabilities
We are a private security company focusing on three main areas; Executive Protection, Confidential Investigations and Security Consulting. We offer corporations and private clients risk management services aimed at discovering possible threats within their organization. These threats could involve; losses/potential losses, hiring/firing practices, exposure to Intellectual property theft, terrorism, work place violence, industrial espionage, etc. Customized programs are then developed to streamline the hiring process, initiate a quality control element, eradicate occupational fraud and abuse (internal theft, conflicts of interest, unfair hiring procedures etc). Some time this may involve the use of undercover investigators to uncover serious problems such as theft, drug abuse or any other ilegal activity likely to have a negative impact on the company and personnel. obtain
http://www.sextonsecurity.com/

John Cook & Associates
Private Investigation
http://www.johncookpi.com/

WinWhatWhere
Quietly monitors and reports virtually all computer activity. Records date, time started, time elapsed, program captions, and keystrokes.
http://www.winwhatwhere.com/

Crime Scene Investigation
Crime scene investigation resources, training, articles and related links, maintained in Temecula, California.
http://www.crime-scene-investigator.net/

Psychic Investigator
A unique way of presenting a look into past and future happenings, giving views for both the believers and the skeptics.
http://psychicinvestigator.com/