CRIME SCENE AWARENESS AND SAFETY

FOR FIRE AND EMS RESPONDERS

Prepared by
Christopher Hall
Former Board Director and BLS Coordinator
For the:
Spring Valley Volunteer Fire Department
Milpitas, California
December, 2009
 Topics

• R. E .S. P. O .N. D .
• Evidence Considerations at Crime
Scenes
• Personal Risk Reduction
• Handling Violent Situations
• Personal Safety Techniques
 Crime Scenes
R-E-S-P-O-N-D
• R RESPOND
• E EVALUATE
• S SECURE
• P PROTECT
• O OBSERVE
• N NOTIFY
• D DOCUMENT
 R espond
• General Observations on way to
scene
• Mental Notes
– Anything out of place ?
• Firefighter Safety is #1
consideration
 E valuate
• Firefighter Safety
Calls In Progress
• FACTORS:
– Suspect(s), witness, victims
– BLS, Bio/Chem hazards, SWAT
– Weapons
– Wires Down
– Fire, Gas, Electric
 E valuate
• Call - Not In Progress, already at scene.
– Ask for assistance
– Limit access, one way in/out
• People AND Vehicles
– Gloves and other PPE
– Take Notes
• Who, what, when, where, time
 S ecure
• Establish Perimeter
– Tape/rope
– For a Large perimeter- use rope
– Outer/inner perimeters
– Be aware of…
• Footprints
• Tire prints
• Pavement gouging
• Physical evidence (ie: blood)
• Suspect escape route
 S ecure
• Establish Attendance Log and a PAR
– Begin with yourself and anyone past/present
– Maintain until Law Enforcement arrives, then turn
over to Law Enforcement.
– Include in log
• Names
• Dates
• Agency
• Time entered
• Time exited
• Reason entered
 P rotect

• Safeguard scene until Law Enforcement

Arrives from:
– Weather
– Animals
– Traffic (people and vehicles)
 P rotect

• Safeguard items within scene

– Room in which the patient was treated
– Vehicles
– Patient’s Cell phone
– ID’s, wallets, personal items
– No movement of body until authorized by
Coroner in case of deceased patient
 O bserve
• Basic factors
– Time of call, arrival
– Weather/Temperature
– Doors open or locked
– Lights on or off
– Position of patients and vehicles
 N otifications

• Supervisor
• Dispatch
– Who will then notify Law
Enforcement
 D ocument
• Attendance Log
• Call times, arrival times
• Initial Patient Contact Time
• Patient Contact Report (ePCR)
• Sketch if requested by Law
Enforcement
• NFIRS Number of Incident
 EMS at Crime Scenes

• The goal of performing EMS at crime scenes is to

provide high-quality patient care while preserving
evidence.

• NEVER jeopardize patient care for the sake of

evidence. However, do not perform patient care with
disregard for the criminal investigation that will
follow.

• Be aware you may have to justify your actions to Law

Enforcement and the District Attorney after the fact.
 What is a Crime Scene ?
• MVA involving injury or death
• FIRES
– Treat all fires as a crime scene and try to preserve the
point of origin
• Homicide
• Altercation (fight)
• Drug Labs
• Drug Grow Operations
• Hazmat
• Terrorism
 Evidence
• Be aware that anything on or around the patient
may be considered evidence.
• Whenever in doubt, save or treat an object as
evidence.
• Develop an awareness of evidence.
• Pick a single path to and from the patient if a
crime scene is suspected, and maintain it.
• Decontaminate equipment AWAY from the
crime scene
– Remember Bleach + DNA do not mix
 Types of Evidence
• Prints
• Blood and body fluids
• Particulate (or microscopic) evidence
• Chemicals, drug apparatus
• On-scene observation of scene details and
people
• Skid Marks, gouging, damage to poles or trees,
fencing- in the case of vehicular homicides
Firefighter Safety at Potential
Crime Scene Calls
 Approaching the Scene
• Your safety strategy begins as soon as
you are dispatched on a call.
• Never follow police units to a known
crime scene.
• Rather than risk becoming injured or
killed, err on the side of safety.
• Stage well away until approved to enter
the scene by Law Enforcement.
Never approach the scene until you are
advised that the scene is secure by
dispatch, or in-person by law
enforcement.
 There is no such
thing as a dead hero!
Approach potentially unstable scenes
single file.
Hold a flashlight to the side of your
body, not in front of it.
Try not to silhouette your approach to a
potential crime scene.

Walk to the Side of a light source.

Potentially Dangerous Situations
• Un-dispatched Sudden Roadway encounters
– Think Marijuana Grow Operations and their gardeners/security
• Calls involving Mentally Unstable Individuals
• Murders, assaults, robberies
• Dangerous crowds
• Known Gang Residence
• Drug-related crimes
• Clandestine drug labs
• Domestic violence
• Calls of “unknown medical”
Dangerous Crowds and Bystanders
– Shouts or increasingly loud voices
– Pushing or shoving
– Hostilities toward anyone
– Rapid increase in the crowd size
– Inability of law enforcement to control
bystanders
– Circling or crowding of First Responders
– Can be as few in number as a single family unit
 Street Gangs
• No Fire unit is totally immune from gang
activity.
• Commonly observed gang characteristics
include appearance, graffiti, tattoos, hand
signals.
 Drug Related Crimes
• The manufacture and sale of drugs goes hand-in-hand with
violence.
• High cash flow, addiction, and weapons are a dangerous
combination.
• Signs of drug involvement include:
– Prior history of drugs in the area
– Clandestine Drug Lab equipment/smells visible on approach
– Clinical evidence that the patient has used drugs
• Track marks, etc.
– Drug-related comments by bystanders
– Drug paraphernalia on the scene
Common abused substances
sold on the street
 Clandestine Drug Labs
• Drug dealers often set up laboratories to
manufacture controlled substances in rural
areas to avoid detection.
• Commonly manufactured drugs include
methamphetamine, LSD, crack, and more.
• Drug raids on clandestine labs frequently
turn into hazmat operations.
• Labs can be found anywhere, even in
utility trailers driving down the interstate.
 If you ever come upon a clandestine
drug lab, take these actions:
• Leave the area immediately.
• Do not touch anything.
• Never stop any chemical reactions already
in progress !
• Notify dispatch/police.
• Initiate ICS and hazmat procedures.
• Consider evacuation of the area.
• No open flame or sparks
 Violent Situations
• If you suspect a violent situation, retreat and request
law-enforcement backup.
• Just like in a wildland fire, as you approach the scene
have a “safety zone” in the “green” pre-identified that
you can retreat to.
 Cover vs. Concealment
and the Difference
• Concealing yourself is placing your body behind an
object that can hide you from view.
• Concealment doesn’t stop projectiles.
 Taking cover is finding a position that
both hides and protects your body from
projectiles.
 Specific techniques to avoid
physical violence include:
• BEST=Don’t be there in the first place
– Wait for an “all clear” from Law Enforcement
• Immediate retreat
• Wedging equipment in a doorway as you retreat
• Using an unconventional path to retreat
• Anticipating the moves of the aggressor
• Overturning objects in the path of the attacker
• Having a pre-planned safety zone
The Contact-Cover Buddy System
Communicating Warning Signs

Every team should develop methods of

alerting other providers to danger
without alerting the aggressor.
 Summary

• Evidence Considerations
• Personal Risk Reduction at Scene
• Violent Encounters
• Personal Protective Strategies
– Contact/Cover
– Concealment vs. Cover
 Q and A

Open Question and Answer

Review and Test
 Licensed Under Creative
Commmons

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reserved.
• Reproduction/Modification of this work
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