Fish: Crime Scene Investigation, 2nd Edition - Case Studies with Questions and Answers

Case Studies with Questions and Answers

Chapter 09: Arson and Explosives

A bomb has destroyed a family planning clinic in the business district of an Atlanta suburb. The initial blast has broken windows in neighboring businesses as far as 300 yards away. One body has been uncovered in the debris, but it is unclear whether there are other victims, and firefighters are still at the scene attempting to extinguish a small secondary fire within the building. Local law enforcement, as well as agents from the FBI and the ATF, have begun the preliminary investigation of the outside of the building.

A perimeter covering one city block is being established, but onlookers from businesses within the blast zone are still inside the boundary, and members of local and national media begin to pour into the area. Despite the efforts of patrol officers, a crowd begins to form. All available resources within the Atlanta area have been called in to assist in controlling what is quickly becoming a "mob" scene.

Firefighters have controlled the fire in the clinic and have cleared the building for investigators to enter. A blast crater is located in the waiting area along with remnants of what appears to be a timer device. The walls and ceiling have been peppered with shrapnel, and bolts and nuts litter the floor throughout the room. As the investigators exit the building, a second blast rips apart a car in the parking lot of the clinic. Four bystanders are killed instantly, including a local patrol officer, and dozens are seriously injured by shrapnel that sprays through the crowd of bystanders.

Questions

What was the primary mistake made by the first responders that contributed to this tragedy?

Correct Answer

The perimeter was not secured properly. A bomb scene creates many dangers over a large area. The primary concern of the first responder is the safety of everyone at the scene. A bomber generally intends to kill, and is not concerned with the possibility of collateral damage, so the scene should be treated as though there are more devices until it is proven otherwise.

What actions should have been taken immediately that may have prevented any deaths or injuries?

Correct Answer

The entire area should have been evacuated immediately, and the only personnel allowed inside the perimeter should have been from the agency responsible for handling explosives. Once the area was cleared of any other explosives, the primary investigators could have re-entered the scene. ALL other nonessential personnel, onlookers, media, etc., should have been contained outside the boundary.

How does the second explosion change the way both investigations must be approached?

Correct Answer

Because of the nature of an explosion, the crime scenes for the two incidents will overlap, and even more care must be taken in the documentation of evidence in order to discriminate the evidence of one blast from the other. In addition, with the detonation of a second device, the suspect became a serial perpetrator.