The production team of the series or films, aiming at the entertaining nature of their creations, often turns a blind eye to scientific inaccuracies. This happens especially often with pictures of the detective genre, where it is difficult to consider all the features of criminologists’ work process. While viewers enthusiastically follow the plot twists of the “NCIS” series, forensic experts find many inconsistencies. Mistakes may be invisible to the general public, but with slightly deeper insight, gaps begin to catch the eye even of an inexperienced viewer. In the paper, an analysis of the American TV series “NCIS” was conducted, and scientific inaccuracies made in the work of criminologists were revealed.
Scenes of forensic medical examinations at crime scenes were selected for a more detailed study. This process has strict regulations and takes place in a complex ecosystem that must consider the context of each specific case, the types of trace materials, and the interconnected nature of the process (Morgan et al., 2020). Having this knowledge, the production team may make scientific inaccuracies and sometimes do it intentionally to improve the public image and simplify the plot. These tendencies may be traced in the mentioned series, which is especially clearly manifested in the moments at the crime scenes. The team of so-called professionals does not follow the clear rules and violates the basics of criminology, which causes several scientific inaccuracies.
The most obvious mistake in the scene of the forensic medical examination of one of the episodes is the non-compliance with employees’ uniforms. Crime scene analyst and investigator Matthew Steiner notes how professionals presented on a screen do not wear personal protective equipment (WIRED, 2018). Ignoring the wearing of uniforms, they substitute the progress of the investigation and risk leaving their DNA on the evidence. The evaluative interpretation of the material implies that not only the material itself is important, but also how it was transmitted (Morgan et al., 2020). This means that non-compliance with the rules leads to gross scientific inaccuracy and breaks the picture’s integrity. Nevertheless, when the characters themselves mention their incompetence, the error softens and becomes less noticeable against the general background.
The photographer’s behavior also attracted the expert’s attention. While capturing evidence, he wipes sweat from his forehead and breathes on material, leaving his DNA at the crime scene (WIRED, 2018). Such behavior is unacceptable since identifying biological remains can be extremely valuable in reconstructing a crime (Morgan et al., 2020). In real life, this would seriously complicate the work of criminologists and the course of the investigation. The production team decided to omit the accuracy and focus on other, more important aspects of the plot in the series.
The expert is also confused by the way workers of the investigative team make gross mistakes in collecting materials. This problem becomes an addition to non-compliance with general personal protective equipment wearing. While working with evidence that can store the DNA of a criminal, an employee must wear a mask, a special protective suit, gloves, and in some cases, even glasses (WIRED, 2018). However, even when collecting materials, the characters do not change their everyday jackets. The production team did not consider this factor, making a serious mistake following forensic accuracy.
Thus, scientific inaccuracies in criminology and the process of forensic medical examination were allowed in the series chosen for analysis. The creators neglected the accuracy of workers’ behavior at the crime scene, which interferes with the viewing process even after a small independent investigation. A large number of detective series are likely to follow the same patterns, which will be much easier to identify after the analysis provided.
References
Morgan, R. M., Meakin, G. E., French, J. C., & Nakhaeizadeh, S. (2020). Crime reconstruction and the role of trace materials from crime scene to court. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, 2(1), p. 1364.
WIRED. (2018). Forensics Expert Examines 20 Crime Scene Investigations from Film & TV | Technique Critique | WIRED [Video]. YouTube.