Unit III Topic Proposal

Unit III Topic Proposal

As part of Unit III, you will submit for approval a research topic along with a brief statement of the focus of your Research Paper, some possible sources that may be referenced, and how your topic relates to the information in the textbook. Your professor will then approve/disapprove the topic and provide some guidance on where to look for information and points that should be covered in the paper.

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Unit V Outline

In Unit V, you will submit an outline for your Research Paper. Your outline must include a clear topic sentence and thesis, as well as an outline of your intended paper. Your professor will provide feedback on your outline.

Unit VII Activity

For Unit VII, you will create a procedure for collecting and preparing evidence for admissibility in court. While a policy describes a principle or rule to guide decisions that should result in some desired outcome (describes what and why), a procedure outlines the steps to achieve the desired outcome (describes what, how, where, and when).

There are two activities offered. Select the one that you find the most interesting. For each activity, a PDF document containing an outline for creating the procedure has been provided. At the bottom of the document is a checklist that will be used to evaluate your submission. The information you need to fill in the outline can be located in the textbook chapters. This activity is worth 100 points.

Activity A relates to Chapter 13, which offers detailed information on what needs to be done so that physical evidence collected at a crime scene will be admissible in court. In court, the collecting officer must be able to identify the evidence and verify that it is in the same, or substantially the same, condition as when it was collected. This can only be accomplished if the proper chain of custody is maintained.

Activity B relates to Chapter 14, which focuses on photographic evidence and the factors that need to be addressed in order for this evidence to be admissible in court. In photographing a crime scene, a key consideration is that the photos, as well as videos, should be a fair and accurate depiction of the crime scene.

Activity A: Using the outline provided, you will create a procedure for maintaining the chain of custody for physical evidence for the presentation in a criminal case. If you wish, the procedure may describe how to handle a specific type of physical evidence such as a blood sample, a shell casing, a weapon, etc. Activity A Outline

Activity B: Using the outline provided, you will create a procedure for photographing a crime scene that would promote the admissibility of the photographs in court. If you wish, you may make the procedure specific to either still photographs or video.

Unit VIII Activity

For Unit VIII, you will prepare a What NOT to Do When Testifying list. As you read Chapter 15, take notes of what a professional law enforcement officer (PLEO) should NOT do when testifying, or preparing to testify, in a criminal case and why. Your list should contain a minimum of 21 items that a PLEO should not do.

The first item on your list will be that the PLEO should NEVER commit perjury while testifying. Perjury is knowingly telling a lie under oath about something that is important to the case.

Directions: As you read through Chapter 15, look for 20 more actions/behaviors that should be avoided. Prepare a document with the title: What NOT to Do When Testifying. Item # 1 has been provided for you. After each item, provide a brief statement giving the rational for the item. Use a format similar to that below.

What NOT to Do When Testifying

1. You should NEVER commit perjury while testifying. Perjury is knowingly telling a lie under oath about something that is important to the case.
2. If a PLEO commits perjury while testifying, the officer may lose his/her job, the officer may face imprisonment and a fine, the defendant may be acquitted, and it reflects negatively on the professionalism and integrity of law enforcement.
3. Continue with the next item.

Use the following checklist to ensure that you have addressed all of the requirements for this activity. The checklist will also be used by your instructor to evaluate your submission.

1. The list contains 21 items.
2. Each item is followed by a brief statement giving the rational for the item.
3. Your document follows the format provided in the example above.
4. Your document is reflective of the written communication skills required of a college student in that it is accurate, concise, and professional in appearance with proper spelling and grammar.
5. NOTE: APA formatting is not required, nor is there a requirement for a minimum/maximum word count. The goal is to create an understandable, easy-to-follow list of behaviors and actions to avoid while testifying so that your image and your organization’s image of professionalism and integrity of law enforcement is maintained. Although APA formatting and the inclusion of sources are not required, all sources used must be referenced; paraphrased and quoted material must have accompanying citations. Again, it is not a requirement to include outside sources within this assignment. Plagiarism is the offense of using another’s work as your own. To avoid plagiarism, identify the work of others (if it is within your document) and use your own words and ideas to create the majority, if not all, of the assignment. APA Style is simply the style used to identify the work of the original owner/author.

Research Paper

The submission of a Research Paper is a course requirement. The goal of the paper is to improve your investigative techniques through the understanding and application of the information and techniques presented in the textbook. The paper must reflect APA formatting and be 5 to 10 pages long. Other than the textbook, you must reference a minimum of 5 additional sources.

The final paper will be submitted in Unit VIII through Blackboard, which will check your paper for plagiarism.

From Academic Policies you may link to the CSU Grading Rubric, and from Student Resources you may link to  the CSU Writing Guide, the APA Guide, the Success Center, and the CSU Online Library. These five links are valuable resources that you may access for assistance and references. Additionally, you can use your favorite Internet search engine to locate more information.

Again, the focus of your paper will be on applying information from the textbook that will assist in improving your investigative techniques, which will hopefully result in increased convictions.

An example topic or title that can be taken from the material in the textbook is “Mistakes Made in the O. J. Simpson

Investigation and Prosecution.” The textbook refers to this case often, citing that evidence was mishandled and that the defense was able to show alleged misconduct by the Los Angeles Police Department. One interesting point in this case is that the defense was able to persuade the jurors that there was “reasonable doubt” as to whether Simpson was guilty, thus resulting in his acquittal. Later in a civil trial, a jury unanimously found that there was a “preponderance of evidence” and held Simpson liable for damages in the wrongful death of the two murder victims. In the preparing a paper on this topic, the student should first present a brief overview of the criminal and civil trials. In this overview, the alleged mistakes made by the LA Police Department should be highlighted. The paper could conclude with a discussion of how evidence should be handled and suspects interrogated, or a kind of “what NOT to do checklist.”

APA Guidelines

CSU requires that students use the APA style for papers and projects. Therefore, the APA rules for formatting, quoting, paraphrasing, citing, and listing of sources are to be followed. A document titled “APA Guidelines Summary” is available for you to download from the APA Guide Link, found in the Learning Resources area of the myCSU Student Portal. It may also be accessed from the Student Resources link on the Course Menu. This document provides links to several internet sites that provide comprehensive information on APA formatting, including examples and sample papers.