Crime Scene Tech. VS Evidence Tech??

[dive_jamaica]

Good morning! I'm 26 years old and trying to figure out what type of career I would like to have. I'm starting from scratch because my husband left myself and my 2 kids a few months ago. I'm determined to make the best of myself.

What is the difference between these two?? What training is required for the two? And what types of agencies will hire them?

Thank you!

Katie

[MWATHRT]

Welcome dive. Try doing a search on these two jobs on this site. If not, I know you can find information about them through fbi.gov and possibly dea.gov.

You may also want to do a search on the web in general.

[The General]

Always nice to have another NJ person on board. :cool:

I recommend that you look at any of the 21 county prosecutor's offices in the state. Most, if not all, have a Crime Scene Unit or something similar. I would imagine that they employ both sworn and nonsworn personnel.

This site will get you started: www.prosecutor.info

Also, the NJSP may have some civilian opportunities in their crime scene unit.

www.njsp.org

As far as education, some of these jobs may require a bachelor's degree in a science, such as chemistry or biology. I am not sure of the difference between the two job titles you mentioned, it would depend on the particular agency and position you are applying for.

[jtrhino]

I won't try to speak for all possible situations, but I work for a county crime lab as a forensic drug chemist (testing the substances the police officers bring in from busts/traffic stops). I have a Biology degree with a Chemistry minor.

The evidence techs in our lab never go out to scenes. I am pretty sure that they don't have college degrees (maybe 2 year associate degrees). They basically collect evidence brought in by the officers, enter info. into our laboratory information system, assign barcodes to evidence, put evidence into the correct controlled areas, double-check reports, and release evidence to officers for court.

My understanding of crime scene investigators, contrary to the "CSI-type" shows, is that they go out to scenes, take photographs and make sketches about the scene, and package evidence to be tested by people like me. In general, they do not have the training to do most of the testing you see on TV. They may do some fingerprinting, but there job is not nearly as all-inclusive as it looks like on TV. I don't believe that they need to have a college degree either. They are usually employed by the police agencies and have a minimum requirement of a high school degree, although a 2 year associates degree may help you be more competitive for those jobs.

Hope this helps give you some insight...

Like I said, I can only speak in general - the way things are where I work...

[Josh4507]

I am currently a crime scene investigator. We are "investigators" because we are certified police officers, the techs are mostly uncertified. There are the occasional homicides, suicides, home invasions but here is the typical day on the job.....hold on to your hat:

Burglary at 0815, respond to take photos and dust for prints. Get really dirty and inhale lots of cancer causing black powder, cast a shoe impression, leave to office to start report. Entering auto at 1000, respond to take pictures and dust for prints. And so on. The life is not glamorous, the work is dirty and tedious and sometimes really gross (decomposing bodies, brain matter spatterd everywhere) but in one out of 100 cases, you really get to use your head and think one out.

Think before you persue this career. Attention to detail and organization are key, not just something everyone says you need for a job. email me if you have any questions: josh4507@bellsouth.net

[dive_jamaica]

Thanks Josh4507 for the details. I had a feeling the job wasn't the most interesting. That's why now I'm thinking about becoming an Evidence Tech for the FBI for a few years and then apply for an Investigative Specialist position. I don't have a college degree and can't really spend the next 7 years getting in done with 2 young kids. But it would be nice to get my foot in the door as an Evidence Tech.

[Goodmails]

Diva, this is not to discourage you. To be more competitive, you need a Master degree to work as an Investigative Specialist for the FBI. For really.
GM

[Badge11]

I'm also a police officer/crime scene investigator for my agency. Our evidence techs are non-sworn employees who basically collect our evidence, inventory it, store it and bring it to court when requested. They do not go to crime scenes or process evidence.

My primary job is patrol but when requested, which happens a lot, I respond to crime scenes and identify, process and collect evidence. Like Josh 4507 stated, nothing glamorous about the job. I typically respond to burglaries and car break-ins and since I'm now working on days :boring: there a plenty of them. Nothing like what you see on t.v. even though the general public thinks so. As a C.S.I., most of your calls will be mundane and repetitive in nature. You'll get frustrated with the general public when they continually ask you to dust everything they can think of like they see on television. You will also testify a lot in court.

Despite the drawbacks, it still is a very rewarding position. I love responding to major crime scenes and suspicious deaths. And once in a while, you do collect a latent which ties someone to the scene. As a patrol officer, I get the best of both worlds.

[ATF SAC]

One of the things that the CSI programs get right is that in some agencies Evidence Techs and/or CSI personnel may be either sworn officers or not or both. In some they are connected to the Forensic Science labs. One thing they do not get right is that 4 or 5 folks have such wide ranges of in depth specialization.

What you may want to research a bit are departments or agencies which hire people to help in logging and cataloging evidence and which have development and training programs that can lead you to career advancement and opportunities. Some CSI work may involve PhD chemists who are accredited by the American Socienty of Crime Laboratory Directors (do a search on ASCLAD). Others may be persons who are trained to support a particular expertise or program (Firearms and Toolmark examiners, Document Examiners, Fingerprint Classification Specialists). In some areas particular technolgy may provide for entry level positions with potential for further training. Automated Fingerprint Identification Systems (AFIS) and the National Integrated Ballistics Identification Network (NIBIN) are two I know where there may be system entry personnel who are getting started in the field.

Not to glamorize at all. Starting positions in a lab or unit may well be clerical and training and building the c.v. to be a court recognized expert is a long slog that might make a degree look like a viable option. At the same time, ATF several years ago began a National Training Academy for Firearms and Toolmark Examiners that yields a high level of certification. My old outfit gets more requests for the information on who is in the program than applicants for it because the specialization is so highly prized. Rather than train someone, agencies are trying to loot somebody else's employee with more money.

Again, most of these positions are in State and local organizations but you can look around at various agencies on the web and look for opportunities in this field.

[newbie31]

At my department the evidence techs are sworn officers. They are titled as Evidence Techs but they get the same pay as a detective. They get their own fan and equipment and work the same shifts as patrol officers. Whenever their is a crime scene they come out and process the evidence. Like someone mentioned before, it is hard, detailed work. You have to be detail minded and cautious so you dont destroy evidence.

[doorsmats]

In my agency, our crime scene investigators are called "evidence technicians". Bottom line - you've got to check w/ the agency. I know that the FBI and other agencies have evidence techs (or specialists) who don't generally respond to crime scenes but rather receive, organize, and manage the evidence that is submitted to the laboratory.

[BuMan]

OK, from an FBI perspective, there are four stages to the process...for a small or routine crime scene, Special Agents assigned to the squad which catches the case will probably collect evidence. For larger crime scenes, the Evidence Response Team in a division, which is comprised of Special Agents and support personnel, will respond and do the full crime scene response. Within the field office, there will be evidence technicians, who are primarily responsible for the day-to-day management of evidence within the division. Things like checking in, storing, shipping, receiving evidence, and assisting in trial exhibit preparation if required. Then there's the FBI Laboratory, which has evidence technicians, whose primary role is doing the inprocessing for evidence coming in from field offices and outside agencies and sending it to the appropriate coordinating examiners. Except in major cases, field examinations are typically not performed. If they are performed, they are performed by Laboratory examiners sent to assist at the scene.

The forensic work is conducted at the Laboratory, generally by very specialized examiners (for example, during the course of one case, a piece of evidence may go to: Trace Evidence Unit (looking for hairs and fibers), Latent Fingerprints Unit, DNA Unit (possibly multiple units looking at different kinds of DNA), Chemistry Unit (organic and inorganic chemistry), computer examinations, firearms and/or toolmark examinations, and documents examinations. In each of those units, there is a specialized examiner who does only one thing and generally has at least a Bachelor's degree (in a scientific discipline, the examiners generally have Master's degrees or higher in their discipline).

The impression that CSI gives is unrealistic for the FBI. For a smaller agency, particularly one at the state or local level, examiners may have multiple disciplines with lesser entry requirements, although guidelines to become a certified laboratory (by the aforementioned ASCLD) are generally getting brought into compliance.