2 answers
hailey
Student
Kerrville, Texas
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What are your hours like working on a crime scene?
#forensics
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2 answers
Michelle Flahive-LeFebvre
Latent Print Examiner
63
Answers
El Paso, Texas
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Hello Hailey. That question is difficult to answer directly. Crime scene hours are always 24/7. You never know when a crime will occur. I am a Crime Scene Investigator in a large county in Texas. I work for the Sheriff's Office, which means I work in the county. I am a civilian employee, as compared to the city police department who have sworn officers as Crime Scene Investigators. Our duties are quite different in that the sworn officers go to specific crime scenes. They go to robberies, burglaries that are significant (such as specific areas are burglarized repeatedly or several places at once). They also go to major crimes - homicides, suicides, sexual assaults and major accidents where serious injury or death occurs. All of this while on a shift of 12 hours, and they have several officers assigned specifically for the crime scene section - so there are about 5 of them during the shift.
Where I work, we have 5 CSIs. We work an 8 hour shift during the day and take turns (weekly) being on call during the night. So the on call night CSI responds to any crime the Deputies or Detectives request us out to (criminal mischief, burglaries, robberies, assaults, sexual assaults, suicides, some deaths (bodies in the desert) that are strange, homicides and on occasion we go to the bridges (border crossings from Mexico) and process dead bodies being transported back to the U.S. So to answer your question as to hours we work...we are always on call. If a major crime occurs - all 5 of us go to the scene and work it, regardless of what time it is or how long it takes. I have been up 24 hours, having worked an 8 hour day shift, and then gone to a homicide and worked all night. Or been to a call during the night for several hours and then gone home, slept for a few hours, and gone to work the next morning for 8 hours.
Being a Crime Scene Investigator means working on major holidays and missing family functions, missing birthdays, and occasionally missing special moments (births, weddings, and celebrations). You may be called out in the middle of one of these celebrations, or miss them entirely. Even dinner and lunch can be challenging. We do this job/duty/career - because we love it and want justice. We don't do it for the glamor and we certainly don't do it for the money (we get overtime if it applies), but some agencies don't pay as well as others. It is hard work, and takes dedication. It is tiring, exhausting, frustrating and sometimes painful (when we know the person hurt or killed). However, it is rewarding in that we get the evidence and clues to find the suspects; and it is very satisfying when after testifying - guilty verdicts are given and the suspect goes to jail or prison.
We are never fully ready to go to a crime scene - we get interrupted doing our other duties at work, we may be at home, out at dinner or a movie/play/concert, we may even be asleep; but when we get paged - we get ready and go to the scene. Family life takes a back seat, but the moments you do have with your family and friends, are special and appreciated more.
Where I work, we have 5 CSIs. We work an 8 hour shift during the day and take turns (weekly) being on call during the night. So the on call night CSI responds to any crime the Deputies or Detectives request us out to (criminal mischief, burglaries, robberies, assaults, sexual assaults, suicides, some deaths (bodies in the desert) that are strange, homicides and on occasion we go to the bridges (border crossings from Mexico) and process dead bodies being transported back to the U.S. So to answer your question as to hours we work...we are always on call. If a major crime occurs - all 5 of us go to the scene and work it, regardless of what time it is or how long it takes. I have been up 24 hours, having worked an 8 hour day shift, and then gone to a homicide and worked all night. Or been to a call during the night for several hours and then gone home, slept for a few hours, and gone to work the next morning for 8 hours.
Being a Crime Scene Investigator means working on major holidays and missing family functions, missing birthdays, and occasionally missing special moments (births, weddings, and celebrations). You may be called out in the middle of one of these celebrations, or miss them entirely. Even dinner and lunch can be challenging. We do this job/duty/career - because we love it and want justice. We don't do it for the glamor and we certainly don't do it for the money (we get overtime if it applies), but some agencies don't pay as well as others. It is hard work, and takes dedication. It is tiring, exhausting, frustrating and sometimes painful (when we know the person hurt or killed). However, it is rewarding in that we get the evidence and clues to find the suspects; and it is very satisfying when after testifying - guilty verdicts are given and the suspect goes to jail or prison.
We are never fully ready to go to a crime scene - we get interrupted doing our other duties at work, we may be at home, out at dinner or a movie/play/concert, we may even be asleep; but when we get paged - we get ready and go to the scene. Family life takes a back seat, but the moments you do have with your family and friends, are special and appreciated more.
Ramesh Nyberg
FL
18
Answers
Miami, Florida
Updated
Ramesh’s Answer
It depends on different things-- a) what type of crime it is, b) what jurisdiction you are in, etc
So, you could be assigned to the 8am to 4pm shift, and you might get called to work a scene at 2pm. If that's a burglary scene, you might be done in an hour. If it's a homicide, you might be done sometime around 6pm or later, depending on how complex it is. If you are assigned to a team that works "major" crime scenes (like homicides) you might occasionally be "on call" and you could called out at 2am. So there are a lot of variables.
Hope this helps
So, you could be assigned to the 8am to 4pm shift, and you might get called to work a scene at 2pm. If that's a burglary scene, you might be done in an hour. If it's a homicide, you might be done sometime around 6pm or later, depending on how complex it is. If you are assigned to a team that works "major" crime scenes (like homicides) you might occasionally be "on call" and you could called out at 2am. So there are a lot of variables.
Hope this helps