4 Concepts to Understand Before CrowdSolve Chicago
CrimeCon Informant • January 6, 2020
Let us be clear: CrowdSolve
Investigators will, for all intents and purposes, become rookie detectives for the full three days of the event. The experts and detectives on site to provide guidance will treat Investigators as peers. In short, we know the Investigators who signed up for CrowdSolve know their stuff and they’re coming to Chicago ready to get down to business.
CrowdSolve includes a significant education component. Investigators will spend part of the day in intensive educational sessions to learn about investigative concepts relevant to the Kurt Sova case. To get a head start on the basics, Investigators may wish to begin researching these four concepts:
CrowdSolve includes a significant education component. Investigators will spend part of the day in intensive educational sessions to learn about investigative concepts relevant to the Kurt Sova case. To get a head start on the basics, Investigators may wish to begin researching these four concepts:
Victimology is exactly what it sounds like: the study of victims and the circumstances that contributed to the offense committed against them. Victimology also examines the connections between the offender and the victim and understand why the victim was targeted.
At its core, victimology focuses on the factors in the victim's lifestyle that may have contributed to their death. To be clear, victimology is not victim blaming. Rather, we will seek to understand how the circumstances around Kurt's death and how they may have attracted a potential killer or contributed to his demise.
Resources:
Victimology overview - West Virginia State University
Introduction to Victimology - Sage Publications
Victimology - Trusty ol’ Wikipedia
At its core, victimology focuses on the factors in the victim's lifestyle that may have contributed to their death. To be clear, victimology is not victim blaming. Rather, we will seek to understand how the circumstances around Kurt's death and how they may have attracted a potential killer or contributed to his demise.
Resources:
Victimology overview - West Virginia State University
Introduction to Victimology - Sage Publications
Victimology - Trusty ol’ Wikipedia
Language is an important tool in criminal investigations. The way suspects and witnesses explain their stories can tell a keen-eared investigator more than the words themselves. As CrowdSolve Investigators examine the statements given by the witnesses and persons of interest in the Kurt Sova case, it is important to know the small nuances that may indicate deception.
Resources:
Solving Crimes Through Language - Dr. Natalie Schilling, Professor of Linguistics
Analysis of Statements in Famous Cases - Mark McClish (Rabbit hole warning!)
Statement Analysis: What Do Suspects’ Words Really Reveal? - Susan H. Adams, M.A.
We don’t expect you to become certified crime scene technicians before February 21. Still, getting an overview of the basic procedures will put you ahead of the curve in understanding the Kurt Sova crime scene. In our recent sit-down
,
Chief Majoy said “Could the ME have been mistaken [about time of death] in 1981? Possibly, but even if that’s the case, it doesn’t explain where Kurt was for five days or how he died and ended up in plain sight in a ravine that was searched thoroughly just two days before he was found.” The scene where Kurt's body was found is particularly important in this case as it is the only source of any physical evidence. There are also aspects of the scene that closely resemble crime scenes from two other local deaths. As CrowdSolve Investigators, a basic understanding of crime scene analysis will prove invaluable as we review photos of the scene.
Resources:
Crime Scene Investigation - National Institute of Standards and Technology
Discover Forensics - Future Learn (For the really dedicated! Future Learn offers two weeks of free courses in crime scene and forensic analysis)
A Simplified Guide to Forensic Investigation - Forensics Simplified
Behavioral profiling is a relatively new tool in the investigator’s arsenal. The concept was developed in the early 1970s by famed FBI profiler John Douglas and Agent Robert Ressler. Profiling seeks to understand why the perpetrator committed a crime in an attempt to identify their habits, behaviors, and motives. The profile is then used to narrow the suspect pool to the most likely culprits.
Profiling is not a perfect science and is not without its critics. Given the infinite spectrum of human behaviors and motives, it is nearly impossible to accurately predict one person’s behavior. Still, profiling remains a useful tool in focusing an investigation - and preventing investigators from getting tunnel vision in cases with few suspects such as the Kurt Sova case.
Resources:
Forensics: Profiling the Perpetrator
- Dummies.com
FBI Method of Profiling: The 5 Phases
- Wikipedia
Does Criminal Profiling Work?
- Psychology Today
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