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My thoughts and reflections:
- Ethics in the process of law supports law enforcement
Unethical behaviour casts a shadow over credibility. (Lochner & Zinn)
This was the first time that I have read academic material on crime scene investigation. I thought it was an appropriate introduction for a newby such as myself.
- You can't rush forensic reports but the lack of resources and infrastructure, mismanagement, staff shortages = unjust outcomes especially for the poor who can't afford private forensic services.
Justice delayed is justice denied.
- I have not seen many dead bodies, not in person nor in photographs. Looking through the photo essay made my tummy turn, but it reminded me of the importance of human dignity and closure for loved ones left behind.
I also started noticing things on the photos that I would not have noticed before doing the readings.
-I have always found S v Der Vyver fascinating, especially after reading Fruit of a Poisoned Tree. For me this is a good example of how things should not be done.
Visser's Dilemmas of Science and Criminal Law: A SA Perspective was quite insightful as to the difficulties faced by forensic science and justice in South Africa. Every section of the criminal justice system needs reform. Collaboration is NB!

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I found the photoessay to be so profound. Firstly as I am beginning the course- it gave a sobering view and gave me a more realistic perspective of what forensics entails; contrary to my sanitised view of a scene on CSI New York.  The expressions or the staff dealing with the bodies, the lifeless bodies, the general morbid feel and looks really stood out to me. I could not ascertain whether the way these bodies were being handled was normal or abnormal- they seem to have been handled in an unprofessional way; but could that be because there is no other way of handling them? The pictures made sense after reading the 2 media articles that emphasise the issues being faced in the department. The relationship can be seen.

I was left questioning why such an investment would be put into infrastructure and technology if the service does not equate to those levels. I also questioned how the ordinary person who needed closure about a death of a loved one could surely wait for as long as 60 days  to get accurate feedback.

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For the reflection, I looked at the photo essay first before looking at the two articles. The photo essay was very sobering. Titled, 'Life is what death leaves behind', it shows a pretty grim reality that is nothing like the more glamourised scenes of cop and detective shows. I immediately sympathised with the people who work in forensics and deal with scenes like that every day. It did provide an alternative perspective to the articles, which are critical of South Africa's current forensic field. While there are a lot of criticisms, one part of the News24 article I found interesting was about low morale in this sector. I think that this is at the heart of issues like short staffing. I know that it's also an issue in criminal courts, in that there is a high turnover rate of lawyers in these courts since they can't cope with the stress and trauma of working in that environment. So one thing I thing would be good to look at is how people working in these sectors are being supported and not just trained.

Other issues that I found interesting were how the wealthy are able to get around issues of delay by paying for private work and also, while there is an issue with short staff, there is also a pool of unemployed BSc graduates to pull from.

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Lochner and Zinn’s piece on the crime scene investigation brings us to an important intersection between the commission of crime and the administration of justice. Throughout the reading, there is a clear overemphasis of ethics and integrity that must be upheld by investigators at all times during the execution of their duties. This is done to ensure the smooth running of the criminal justice system processes as well as the avoidance of any discrepancies that could arise out of a closer scrutiny of the scene of investigation in the court of law, especially through cross examination. The trial of Oscar Pistorius as well as the recent trial of Senzo Meyiwa are a clear demonstration of what Lochner and Zinn are referring to in terms of ethics and integrity. On the one hand, forensic expert Captain Chris Mangena conducted the crime scene in the Oscar Pistorius trial with integrity and precision, without contradicting himself. While on the other hand, Sergeant Thabo Mosia in the Senzo Meyiwa case contradicts himself in terms of how he approached the crime scene on the night Senzo Meyiwa was murdered. From this revelation, it is clear that the crime scene in the Senzo Meyiwa case might have been tampered with for nefarious aims because of a lack of professionalism, ethics and integrity. The notion that our forensic division is ill-equipped with expertise cannot be true when the likes of Captain Mangena and others have made inroads and greater strides in the past to assist in the adjudication of cases.

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The reading by Lochner and Zinn was especially informative in understanding the fact-finding process from the initial scene of the incident to the courtrooms. As the authors highlighted, the goal of the investigation is to find out the truth and the collection and preservation of evidence are crucial to this fact-finding mission.

I especially enjoyed learning about Locard’s exchange principle and the continuity of possession principle.
Locard’s exchange principle also highlights that the crime scene technicians or first responding police officers will too inevitably leave some trace.

The reading also stressed the importance of the continuity of possession which allows us to account for where the physical evidence was found and the continued safeguarding of the evidence (chain of custody). It was then interesting to read in the IOL news report about the ‘RailCar’ they have designed and used to provide a chain of custody and prevent the evidence from being tampered with or contaminated.

Another point that sparked my interest was that in the 2016 NEWS24 report, they mentioned how many forensic labs (aside from CT) are not accredited. Similarly, the reading by Bernitz et al (2015) (chapter 23) highlighted how there is a lack of accredited forensic institutions in SA. Currently, the FSL is not accredited with the SANAS. The only two accredited labs in SA are both in the fields of chemistry (toxicology specifically), this makes me wonder why it took 5/6 years to get a toxicology report back as highlighted in the NEWS24 article? Is it due to sheer volume overload? Lack of tertiary qualifications and training platforms? Lack of capacity for analysing enzymes, hair and nails? (Reasons highlighted in the reading) This doesn’t seem to be good enough reasons for a 5-year wait…

Lastly, I want to reflect on the photogallery images. The images took you through the process: from the office, to the ambulance call, to the scene of incident, to the autopsy rooms. I noticed in the images that there was crime scene tape to prevent bystanders and others from contaminating the scene. There was no officer stationed outside the parameters to enforce a barrier either.

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Lochner and Zinn Lays a good foundation for what ethical behaviour entails for all officials that are present and working on a case and crime scene. The piece makes mention of how prevalent unethical behaviour  has become on crime scenes. Unethical behaviour is not only wrong, but places a negative view on the law enforcement in South Africa. The piece outlines how important structures and procedures are when dealing with a scene and how these structures help officials act ethically.  By following correct procedure, scenes can be handled in the correct way as well as in an ethical way.

The Visser piece was fascinating, as it gave the reader a glimpse into what is truly happening. The amount of possible scientific evidence available on scenes that are not being correctly collected, identified or analysed makes one wonder what it would be like if the collection of evidence was done correctly. It seems like the inadequacies of the criminal justice system manifests itself in the conviction rate.

When reading about the S v Van der Vyver case, it was shocking to read how evidence was dealt with in the case. It linked back to the previous article where ethical behaviour was discussed and in this case, it seems like many officials acted in a very unethical way, in order to conclude the case. The falsification of reports and misdirecting the courts is shocking and disheartening, as these are the people who are supposed to fight to uncover the truth.

I understood that one of the main issues of the criminal justice system, especially when dealing with a crime scene, is that many officials are undertrained and under immense pressure to find a perpetrator.  The protocols that are meant to be followed are not developed enough and there are not enough manpower to work through evidence.

It seems like there are several issues facing relating to the diagnostic services and the processing of evidence/crime scenes.

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First of all the Lochner and Zinn reading is indeed  an informative and interesting piece of work for someone who has no prior exposure to forensics literature like myself. In a fairly simple language the authors introduce quite a number of forensic concepts and terminology that I believe are foundational to the course and the discipline at large. I am impressed with how clearly they outline the Do's and Don'ts in regard to managing the scene of incident and actually working on the scene of incident. The mentioning of ethics is also important even though I am yet to be convinced whether ethics is even a topic in real life work spaces. I have a feeling that ethics is one one of those topics that are mostly discussed in academic and scholarly spaces while practitioners on the ground never really consider.
I think referring to lack of resources and skills is the most obvious way to try to make sense of why crime scene technicians seem to get so many things wrong in their line of work. I am tempted to think there might be more to this than the obvious that meets the eye. What would that possibly be? I suspect the existing vacuum and embedded cultures between all the parties involved in the common course of enforcing the law and administering justice could be one of the many possible reasons why this machine is not functioning well. I am looking forward to other pieces of literature as I believe they hold some clues of what is exactly happening.

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Personally, forensics in South Africa is an underdeveloped discipline. From the readings, it is obvious that the country is unequipped and under-resourced in terms of facilities and man-power. There are less facilities and specialists in the field catering for the entire country. The situation gets even worse for areas in the outskirts of the major cities. For instance, at the time Visser and Oosthuizen published their work, there was about 34 to 35 active, registered specialist forensic pathologists in the country. There are only 2 DNA labs dealing with evidence for criminal cases that are working with the SAPS.

This lack of skills and resources is having major implications on the success of forensic science in solving crime, the credibility of experts is often questioned and therefore evidence is often questionable. The reading on South African forensics has shown that evidence is often thrown out and cases acquitted because of the lack of trust of experts, which is understandable in some cases. The suspect acquitted in Visser and Oosthuizen’s writing might have been guilty but because of the short-comings of the forensic science used to produce evidence, the evidence to point to him was missed. As Locard has mentioned that there is always evidence deposited to or taken from the scene, the fabricated evidence might have barricaded the real evidence.
I personally have witnessed situations in which the police do not even bother in observing the crime scene, they would just take statements and leave. Perhaps this is due to lack of training and skills, or mere ignorance on their part. One of the writers mentioned that there should be adequate theoretical and practical training for investigators in South Africa, a point I concur with.

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In Chapters 1 and 2 of Crime Scene Investigation, it was very interesting to learn about what should and should not be done when investigating crime scenes and how important it is to uphold the integrity of a crime scene. It made sense to me that the officials working in any case and on any crime scene need to be ethical and maintain that ethical behaviour throughout the case. It also made sense to me how pertinent effective organisation and management were when handling all forms of evidence.

When reading the next two articles, it was clear to me how flawed the South African criminal justice system is regarding crime scene investigation and just how easy it is to ineffectively or falsely document crime scenes. We all know South Africa has many corrupt officials in all spheres of its government departments but looking at real-life examples of how negligence and unethical behaviour has occurred in solving crimes is shocking and disheartening.

Managing crime scenes and evidence is a meticulous and time-consuming process and I understand that it can be exceptionally frustrating and disillusioning when feeling stumped by a seemingly unsolvable offence. Furthermore, looking at South Africa’s situation, the lack of resources and motivation, as well as the very high crime rates are detrimental to those who are trying to fight it. The issues here run very deep and have to do with various factors, from unethical policing to negligence to corruption from external individuals.