Ethical Considerations for the Investigator and Prosecutor in Homicide and Rape

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Ethical Considerations for the Investigator and Prosecutor in Homicide and Rape The investigator and prosecutor play very critical roles, roles that are only fairly fulfilled if all parties are as ethical as possible. Failing to act ethically can lose a case, set a criminal free or could even mean someone innocent going to prison. While ethics in every single type of case are important we are going to examine homicide and rape. Both homicide and rape leave the public hungry for answers. We must be sure that finding those answers are done ethically from the crime scene to trial. The Investigator Ethical Considerations From the moment the investigator gets a case professionalism, knowledge of laws and procedure is what has to be followed. If at any time the investigator became biased and used emotion instead of just facts of the case could be compromised. Remaining unbiased in either homicide or rape can be extremely difficult for even the most ethical investigators. Handling evidence properly is one of the most crucial points of any investigation. Without even intentionally doing so, mishandling of evidence could mean a case thrown out of court. Some types of mishandling of evidence would be planting of evidence, removing evidence, not following the chain of custody and unlawfully obtaining evidence. Rape cases should involve specially trained individuals, if an untrained investigator was to handle a rape case the way a homicide case was handled even more issues can arise. Reducing Ethical Considerations From arrival at a crime scene the investigator must follow only the facts and remove any emotion from considerations. The investigator must remember to handle witnesses and evidence in a professional way. “The investigator must be sensitive to the constitutional and civil rights of all: rich or poor, witness or suspect.” (Osterburg &
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