Salem Press

Officers respond to a homicide call and discover the body of a young woman in the bedroom. After securing the scene, they set up the crime scene log, which controls all people having the right of access to the crime scene. The preliminary survey requires written notes, sketches, and identification of fragile evidence. Officers identify footprints outside the bedroom window. They alert investigators and CSI specialists to the location of fragile evidence.

Officers establish a pathway for medical personnel; this pathway prevents destruction of physical evidence. If emergency medical responders request assistance from the pathologist, the pathway allows such follow-up investigators opportunities to locate obvious physical evidence, for example, a weapon, blood, and footprints. The initial point-to-point search turns up additional evidence to be photographed.

Special attention to points of entry windows and exits will assist in identifying the offender's travel pattern. Officers locate broken glass near a damaged window and notice a bloody fingerprint below the putty line. This is a strong indicator that the offender pulled the broken glass from the window frame.

The corpse represents a secondary crime scene. The autopsy examination provides essential information on cause of death. There are three possible explanations for death crime scenes: accidental, suicide, or homicide. The case of death in this scenario is homicide. The autopsy report links trace evidence from the victim to the scene and offender.

Forensic Science
CSI: Crime Scene Investigation

Definition: Killing of other human beings under circumstances that may be either criminal, justifiable, or excusable

Criminal Justice Issues: Capital punishment; homicide; violent crime

Forensics Depicted: Suspect identification; victim identification; weapon identification; cause of death determination

Date: First aired on October 6, 2000

Identification: Popular television series involving a team of crime scene investigators who solve unusual crimes through the collection of physical evidence and analysis of this evidence using technologically advanced forensic procedures.

Significance
The original CSI: Crime Scene Investigation television series and its two spin-offs (CSI: Miami and CSI: New York) are very popular both within and outside the United States. Some criminal justice authorities and legal scholars have voiced concern that exposure to these shows has generated unrealistic expectations in the general public about the collection and forensic analysis of crime-related evidence. This phenomenon is commonly referred to as the "CSI effect." Although the existence of such an effect has not been confirmed by systematic research, anecdotal evidence of the CSI effect has been widely shared among legal authorities, and concerns regarding the television programs' negative impact continue to be a topic for discussion and debate.

CSI: Crime Scene Investigation is a television crime drama that depicts how a team of criminal investigators solve crimes by gathering and examining forensic evidence using technically advanced methods and tools. Created by Anthony E. Zuiker, the original CSI debuted in 2000 and soon became one of the most-watched crime dramas on television. The show's popularity can be attributed to its fresh and modern portrayal of criminal investigation. What made CSI different from traditional police shows of the past was its story lines, which focus more on the "how" of crime than on the "who." The popularity of CSI eventually led to two spin-off series, CSI: Miami began airing in 2002 and CSI: New York in 2004. Both of these programs follow the same premise: a team of crime scene investigators solve crimes through the collection and examination of forensic evidence. By 2007, the original CSI was being aired in two hundred countries and was watched by an estimated two billion viewers. In addition to the two spin-off television series, CSI spawned comic books, novels, and computer games.

Examples of Forensic Evidence
CSI episodes depict many different types of physical evidence that can be collected at crime scenes as well as the various tools and procedures that can be used to analyze such evidence. The types of physical evidence that can be collected from crime scenes vary greatly and depend heavily on location and type of crime. For example, the physical evidence available for collection at the scene of a robbery is quite different from that available at a murder scene. Physical evidence might include marks on a victim's body, such as abrasions or bite marks. Fingerprints on a door or a window frame also constitute physical evidence, as does blood left behind by a likely perpetrator. Trace evidence is a type of physical evidence that can be collected and forensically examined; this kind of evidence is commonly depicted in CSI episodes. Trace evidence is found when a small amount of material has transferred from either one location or person to another location or person. Examples of trace evidence include gunshot residue and fibers from clothing or carpeting.

Just as many types of physical evidence can be found at crime scenes, forensic scientists use many different tools and procedures to examine and test physical evidence. The tools of crime scene investigators may range from the brushes used to apply powder to fingerprint areas to the zNose, an "electronic nose" that has the ability to detect and identify different types of gases and vapors. Crime scene investigators use a number of different tools to collect blood samples, fiber samples, tire impressions, shoe impressions, and bite marks. These and many other types of tools allow for the identification and collection of potentially important samples of physical evidence. By collecting and testing samples from crime scenes, forensic scientists help to piece together the events that took place there, which can lead to the identification of the perpetrators.

The Impact of CSI
In the television world, crime scene investigators have a variety of responsibilities in addition to the collection and analysis of the physical evidence found at crime scenes. On CSI they also interview witnesses, victims, and suspects. If the forensic evidence reveals an individual's guilt, the crime scene investigators are involved in tracking down, confronting, and arresting the perpetrator. These dramatic embellishments of the role of crime scene investigators and their use of forensic evidence have generated a great deal of concern and debate among legal authorities. This concern is directed at the possibility that CSI and similar shows have created unrealistic expectations among viewers and the general public regarding how forensic evidence is used in the criminal justice system, and these expectations may have repercussions in the courts. For example, when CSI viewers serve on juries, they may expect all types of forensic evidence, specifically DNA evidence, to be presented during trial, and they may expect this evidence to be conclusive in revealing the guilt or innocence of defendants. This potential problem is popularly referred to as the CSI effect.

Although this topic has received a great deal of attention, the existence of the CSI effect has yet to be confirmed. Despite many anecdotal reports from prosecuting attorneys and other legal authorities, no systematic empirical research has proven that the CSI effect has had any real impact on legal proceedings. In another way, however, CSI and similar television programs have had a clear impact: After they began to air, forensic science programs across the United States experienced noticeable increases in applications.

Erin J. Farley

Further Reading
Cather, Karin H. "The CSI Effect: Fake TV and Its Impact on Jurors in Criminal Cases." The Prosecutor (National District Attorneys Association), March/April, 2004, 9-15. Presents interviews with attorneys to show support for the seriousness of the concept of the CSI effect.

Genge, N. E. The Forensic Casebook: The Science of Crime Scene Investigation. New York: Ballantine, 2002. Good source for an overall description of different kinds of crime scene investigators and their job responsibilities.

Marrinan, Corinne, and Steve Parker. Ultimate "CSI: Crime Scene Investigation." New York: DK Publishing, 2006. Discussion of CSI focuses on how forensic evidence and techniques have been used on the program.

Podlas, Kimberlianne. "`The CSI Effect': Exposing the Media Myth." Fordham Intellectual Property, Media, and Entertainment Law Journal 16 (Winter, 2006): 429-465. Presents findings of a research study that call into question the existence of the CSI effect.

Ramsland, Katherine. The "C.S.I." Effect. New York: Berkley Books, 2006. Not a critical discussion of the so-called CSI effect but rather a discussion of how various types of forensic evidence are used in real criminal investigations, with a focus on demystifying forensic processes and technologies. Features examples from the CSI program throughout.

_______. The Forensic Science of "C.S.I." New York: Berkley Books, 2001. Uses the television show to discuss how various types of forensic evidence are employed in real-world cases. Attempts to demystify the process of forensic investigation.

Tyler, Tom R. "Viewing CSI and the Threshold of Guilt: Managing Truth and Justice in Reality and Fiction." Yale Law Journal 115, no. 5 (2006): 1050-1085. Offers a relatively complex discussion of the CSI effect, with a review of prior research findings that support or refute the existence of the effect.

See Also
Cold Case; Crime laboratories; Famous Hollywood forensic cases; Films; Forensic Files; Journalism; Literature; Misconceptions fostered by media.