Report Writing and Presentation of Evidence in Court

Stage 12 – Report Writing and Presentation of Evidence in Court

This is the final stage of the investigation process, when the suspect/s has been arrested, interviewed and charged with the crime following a consultation with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS).  The case is now prepared for Court which entails the major incident team (MIT) members preparing all of the written evidence that will be presented to the prosecution counsel and in court at the trial.  This includes witness statements, forensic evidence, exhibits that are recorded and labelled properly and any previous convictions the suspect/s has.

 All of the previous stages in the investigation have been leading up to this one stage with the objective of finding the suspect, charging the suspecting, bringing the suspect to trial and a positive outcome that sees justice done and reflected in the length of sentence handed down by the judge to the perpetrator of the crime.

This makes this stage as important as the first stage in the investigations process as there is no point in the other stages of the investigation being carried out without this stage acting as the conclusion to the case.

In the case of Aileen Wuornos the findings from the members of the investigation and their written evidence would be required; the pathologist, medical examiner, Scene of Crime Officer (SOCO), forensic scientists, detectives, witnesses, police officers, and prior to a trial taking place.

The various stages of this investigation led to the successful conviction of Aileen Wuornos through the forensic evidence gathered from the victims and the crime scene, the witness statements, proof that Wuornos had pawned some of the victims personal belongings, her lover, Tyria Moore, obtaining a confession that from Wuornos that she committed the murders which was recorded by a police ‘tap’ on the phone and Aileen Wuornos’s own confession that she did kill each of the victims but she stated that it was in self defence.

The case file presented in the case of Aileen Wuornos would have included her previous arrests and convictions;

Aileen Wuornos committed various crimes between August 1977 and November 1986:-

“4 August 1977 – Fined for assault and battery”

“4 May 1982 – Imprisoned for robbery”

“1 May 1984 – Arrested for passing forged cheques”

“30 November 1985 – Suspect in the theft of a pistol and ammunition”

“4 January 1986 – Arrested and charged with auto theft”

“2 June 1986 – Arrested for threatening a man with a pistol and demanding money”

“8 June 1986 – Ticketed for speeding”

“November 1986 – Arrested for Grand Larceny”

Key Members Of Each Process Of The Criminal Investigation

Richard Mallory

Detectives  -  Deputy John Bonnevier, County Deputy Sheriff John Bondi,  Detective James Malady and Investigator Charles James Lau

Medical Examiner  -  James Downing

Forensic Pathologist  -  Dr Arthur Botting

Forensic Scientist  -  Daniel Radcliffe  

David Spears

Police  -  Attended the scene of the crime

Forensic Pathologist  -  Dr Janet Pillow

Charles ‘Chuck’ Carskaddon

Police  -  Trooper Rickey

Detectives  -  Marion County’s Deputy Lawing

Peter Siems

Detectives  -  Marion County’s Deputy Lawing

Eugene ‘Troy’ Burress

Detectives  -  Marion County’s Deputys

Charles ‘Dick’ Humphries

Police  -  Wildwood Police Department

Walter Gino Antonio

Police

Detectives        

American Justice System

The American Justice System is based around the application of various criminal investigative processes. These are governed by the ‘U.S. Constitution and Bill of Rights, state constitutions, the U.S. Code, State Codes, court decisions, federal rules of criminal procedure, and department and agency rules and regulations.  The Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure, for example, govern the procedure in all criminal proceedings in courts of the United States.’

The following are the stages of the criminal justice process that would have been applicable in the Aileen Wuornos case:-

Investigation  -  The arrest of a suspect/s is based upon the evidence gathered from a criminal investigation.

Arrest  -  To make an arrest in the American justice system ‘probable cause’ is required in order to arrest and detain a suspect/s.

Prosecution  -  This is based on the district attorney’s decision that the evidence gathered supports the decision to prosecute the suspect/s.

Indictment  -  In this stage probable cause needs to be shown in order for a suspect/s to be indicted.

Arraignment  -  At this stage of the process the defendant/s will appear in court in order to enter a plea of either guilty or not guilty.

Pretrial Detention(Bail Hearing)  -  This stage is when the defendant/s can apply for bail while awaiting trial subject to the defence and prosecution’s case.

Plea Bargaining  -  This stage of the process may involve the defendant/s admitting their crime with a plea of guilty in order to received a lesser charge or sentence.

Trial/Adjudication of guilt  -  This is when the prosecution and defence present their cases before a judge and jury and await their decision. Guilt is based on a case proved beyond a reasonable doubt.

Sentencing  -  If a guilty verdict is given the judge will then decide on the appropriate punishment for the crime the defendant/s has been convicted of and if a not guilty verdict is given the judge will release the defendant/s.

Appeals  -  These can be lodged by the defence and prosecution attorneys following the verdict given at a trial.

Punishment/rehabilitation  -  This is the final stage of this process and is governed by the local, state or the federal correctional authorities.  The convicted person/s will serve their sentence, be paroled or pardoned during this stage.  However in certain cases the final solution is the administration of the death penalty