Category Archives: The Armchair Detective
The Armchair Detective: Unusual Marks
This is the second installment of The Armchair Detective series. Remember, there are no “wrong” answers. This exercise is designed to get your creative juices flowing and hopefully pull you out of any creative ditch you may be stuck in. Here is the fictional scenario;
There have been at least three rapes over the Winter months wherein the suspect forcibly enters the victim’s ground floor apartment. The male suspect enters by prying open sliding windows after removing the screen. Once inside he makes his way to the bedroom and covers her mouth with whatever he can find (victim’s clothing). He then rolls them over and presses a “weapon” into their back. The women couldn’t identify the weapon but said it was cold, heavy, and solid like steel. The women were not injured by that object and showed no “marks” on their skin. The victim’s report that the man wore all black including a face mask and leather gloves. The suspect has worn a condom and the rape kits have come back with negative or inconclusive results. One woman remembered a strong cologne but didn’t know what brand it was. Two of the women originally didn’t report the rape but revealed the crime to friends days later. Detectives are sure there are other rapes not being reported but they don’t really have much to go on.
The police set up a tip line and one unknown woman called in to say a man she dated acted strangely including wanting to “role play” a rape. The man did live within a five mile radius of the victim’s homes so detectives decided to pay him a visit. They found the man working on his car in the garage and he invited them in to talk. The man vehemently denied having anything to do with the rapes. While the detectives talked to him they spotted some strange marks on the garage floor and took a quick photograph before being asked to leave. The marks had general class features but no identifiable marks. Here are some questions. Do you have a theory as to what caused the marks, are they important, and can they be used to search for other similar cases? The ruler in the photograph is 13″ (32.5cm) long
Leave your comments below and I’ll chime in after a few days.
Unknown marks on garage cement floor
The Armchair Detective: Case #1 The Traffic Stop
I wanted to try something new with you folks and I’m calling it the Armchair Detective series. Basically, I’m going to post photos and pose questions in order to teach you a little about the investigative process and forensics. This is a little trick I used to use with students and interns and I think it might be fun to try it here with you too. These exercises can be very helpful in teaching individuals how to view and value evidence and as authors I thought you might reap some of the same benefits. So here is how it works. I pose a question or series of questions usually connected to some kind of imagery and then I give all of you several days to a week to respond with your observations. Most of the time you won’t have all the information you think you want or need but that is precisely the same challenge of the CSI. If nothing else, these will provide you with a handy excuse to take a break from writing and exercise another portion of your brain. Ready?
Case #1: The Traffic Stop
Imagine the images below were taken from a “traffic stop” and you are the CSI. What clues can you discern from the content of the images submitted by the officer? Can you tell me anything about the driver? In short, tell me what you see that a law enforcement officer should take notice of. Since this is a theoretical exercise don’t be too concerned about taking a leap or generating a theory. While I am looking for certain answers treat it as if there are no right or wrong answers. Have fun and comment as often as you like. I’ll give you my observations after several days. Good luck!
