Introduction
An investigation into criminal cases takes different forms depending on the case under question. The time period through which the case is heard and completely solved also depends on the nature of the case. Some cases may however take time due to the negligence of the investigators. Offenses that deal with homicide are more complex to deal with compared to other cases. The main witness of the case is usually unavailable and so the evidences that may be gathered to prosecute the offender do not work. In the process of searching for the guilty party which usually involves a lot of processes, the important information may be distorted rendering the investigations useless. The media can provide useful evidence if they are able to arrive at the place where the crime occurred at the right time.
Homicide or sex offense investigation
Homicide and sexual offences are described as ultimate crime and therefore, their investigation is complex. At the same time, they are sensitive because; they are labor intensive especially because they are conducted by law agencies. Research has shown that, this kind of investigation generates a lot of public interest than any other investigation. It also dominates most of the media houses for a lengthy period of time as the media people as well as members of public try to make follow up. Studies have shown that, every year, there are a lot of fiction as well as non-fiction books published regarding homicide and sexual offences. All parties are involved such as the victims and investigating officers in an effort to bring the case to justice. Television programs are designed to dramatize the dynamics of investigation, court processes, and incarcerations. Research has shown that, most of these media programs involving motion pictures provide inaccurate information and are more inclined to value entertainment instead of analyzing the facts on the ground (Gilligan, 2004).
Regarding the criminal investigation of homicide and sexual offences, research has shown that, there is a significant disparity between criminal investigation on the ground and the way it is depicted in the media. This is because; at the early stages of their careers, the officers involved in the enforcement of law are quick to discover that, there is very little resemblance between their jobs and what the media especially newspapers and television portray. This obviously acts as a discouragement for the police workforces who are initially enthusiastic to apply the training they have received regarding crime investigation. However, the same officers also tend to believe that, crime investigation can successfully be done in the same manner as it appears on the screen. For example, they believe that, murder scenes require a large number of detectives in blue uniforms filling the place taking photos and dusting the furniture as well as taking fingerprints. This is a great misconception for such officers because research has shown that, crime scenes are not supposed to be crowded but unfortunately the officers do not understand this. Compared to other crimes, homicide happens with the intent of the murderer to actually harm the victim. The murdered victims are usually held responsible for their own death as society feels that they were in the capacity to protect them from succumbing to it. The victim’s family is also blamed for not controlling the occurrence of the event. The co-victims are usually subjected to prosecution and are therefore not protected in the court of law. The traumatic experiences of homicidal death are deep and do last long due to the long procedures that are involved in investigations. The healing process of the co-victims may take a longer period considering the fact that, the pain may resurface when the case is mentioned in a court of law or by the media (Stack, 2002).
When such cases of homicide are reported, an investigation is done to find out whether it was done legally or not. Some of the legal cases of homicide include; capital punishment and killing in case of war. Homicide cases usually take a longer time in the court for them to be completed due to insufficient evidence and the need for advanced investigation to find out the situations that led to the case and the guilty party. Most of these deaths happen in mysterious circumstances and it is usually not easy to identify the guilty person. As a result, many of the cases are postponed and ultimately abandoned due to lack of enough evidence. Homicide deaths are given different names according to the law or in relation to the relationship that exists between the victim and the murder. According to the law, homicide may be felony or capital murder, it may be manslaughter, for instance; voluntarily or involuntarily, through intoxication, dangerous driving and reckless manslaughter. In relation to the killer of the victim, homicide could be sororities where one kills the sister, infanticide murdering an infant, parricide murdering your very own parents, fratricide murdering a brother, genocide killing a person on racial grounds, suicide causing death to yourself, matricide causing death to a spouse and so on (Stack, 2002).
Apart from sex offences that lead to homicide, the victims of sex offence are alive and in most cases, they are aware of their offenders. Cases of sex offence are treated according to the situations and circumstances that lead to the case. The case is usually easier to investigate if the offender is known and there is clear evidence of the same. It becomes difficult however to handle the case if the victim claims to know the victim yet he or she cannot produce justifiable evidence to prove the same (Gilligan, 2004).
In homicidal cases, the main witness who is the victim is dead which makes the cases complicated to handle. In most cases, they usually use the events that happened prior to the victim’s death which may include: the last people that were seen with him/her, the last people that were in touch with the victim, the location where the victims’ body was found and the people that were in disagreement with him. Most of this information may be misleading as some events may simply happen coincidentally and may not in any way be the cause of the victims’ death. This is the biggest challenge that the investigation of this cases face and justice is rarely administered concerning the cases. Many innocent people are prosecuted and the guilty ones are set free due to lack of valuable evidence regarding the reported cases. The court usually uses any communication device that was found with the victim which in most cases is the mobile phone to track the kind of conversation that the victim had with the different people prior to his or her death. The people that were with the victim are usually subject to intense interrogation that may at times result to torture (Rosenfeld, 2000).
The suspects of homicide are usually aware of what they are doing and when engaging in the act, they know the consequences that may face them incase they are found guilty. This subsequently makes them follow a strategy that will be hard for the investigators to find them out. Most of them after killing the victim drag them to a place far a way from the scene of the murder and tamper with any communication device of the victim that could act as evidence for their prosecution. Some of the humiliating incidences of the cases are that the bodies of the victims are at times found without some body organs.
Another bigger challenge that faces the investigations of these cases is the expenses that are involved. The families of the victims are either forced to drop the case or bear the huge expenses which may involve complex medical check ups and postmortems for the guilty party to be identified. However, there exists negligence on the part of the law or the medical staff which may be due to corruption. When the suspects realize that the investigations being done may prove them guilty, they tend to liaise with the investigators with the aim of making them censer some of the information that may lead to their arrest. This usually leaves the family of the victim distressed as they are denied clear reports concerning the victim’s death.
According to (Rosenfeld, 2000) Due to the mysterious circumstances through which the deaths occur, they receive a lot of attention from both the media and the public. Some of the cases are usually exaggerated and reported differently by the various media houses. They at times get the information from unreliable sources which may not be a clear perspective of the case. This causes even more pain to the family of the victims who are shocked by the situation. Due to the curious demand from the public, the media will always find opportunities to make more money by giving some information that is not clear. This is because; the case is still raw and little has been done in terms of investigation. Statistics of the cases are also at times misrepresented and the genuine cases are never reported. The media usually reports the cases immediately they occur and during this time the case is still raw and under investigation. The media collects only the suspected details and presents them as though they are genuine. This has always had a negative impact on the suspected murderers that are at times not guilty of the offense. They are usually harassed by society and at times murdered. In such situations, the public cannot be blamed for the act of killing the second victim but the media incited the public by giving them incorrect information about the case (Vernon, 2006).
Whenever an innocent person is prosecuted and punished by the public, it is never a solution to the cases of homicide. What happens instead is that the safe guilty killer is encouraged to commit more similar crimes with the hope that they will again escape prosecution. This only leads to the increased cases of the same. Justice can be found in complex cases although this will take a lot of cooperation from the media, the public and the law. When the concerned agency accurately carries out its responsibilities, there will be reduced cases of homicide and sexual offenses. This will not only bring great relief to the co-victims but also ensures that they endure the grief with ease.
(Vernon, 2006) argues that, Homicide should be thoroughly investigated and a clear report given after the completion of the investigation in order for justice to be done. When looking for information to report such cases using the media, they should be careful to engage only the most reliable sources which may include the close family members and friends of the victims. They should also not force information in the media if it is not valid. When they get different information concerning a particular case, they would rather not publish it rather than contradicting themselves and causing confusion to the public. The court should also ensure that they give the much needed attention to the cases and carry out the necessary investigations so that they can allow the co-victims to mourn and burry their dead for their quicker healing (Rosenfeld, 2000).
The justice administrators who include the doctors and the police carrying out the investigations to prove the guilty party should not condone any intention that is aimed at tampering with the research process. This is because; by allowing this, they are at risk of facing similar cases in future which may even be more disastrous. Dealing with such cases reduces the pain of the co-victims and the new forms of homicide cases that are being reported require the investigation officers to advance their investigation criteria. The current ones that are being used have become so familiar that the offenders keep engaging in the crime with the knowledge of the escape route.
References
- Gilligan P. (2004): crime, truth and justice: William publishing culmcott house pp. 34-48
- Rosenfeld R. (2000): patterns in adults homicide 1980-1995: Cambridge University press pp. 17-28
- Stack S. (2002): Gender and scholarly productivity the case of criminal justice; Journal of criminal justice: Elsevier pp. 23-29
- Vernon J. (2006): Practical homicide investigation: Published by CRC Press pp. 13-20