The National Fish

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The Purpose of CSI

• Determine if a crime has been committed
• ID the victim(s)
• ID the suspect(s)
• Collect evidence related to the crime
• Re-enact the events of the crime
• Link suspect, victim crime scene

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Basic CSI Tasks

• Evaluating the scene evidence
• Documenting the scene evidence
• Preserving Collecting evidence

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The Thinking Part of CSI
Basic CSI Tasks

• Evaluating the scene evidence
• Documenting the scene evidence
• Preserving Collecting evidence

The Thinking part of CSI
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The Mechanical Part of CSI
Basic CSI Tasks

• Evaluating the scene evidence
• Documenting the scene evidence
• Preserving Collecting evidence

The Mechanical part of CSI
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Example of a ThinkingCrime Scene Investigation
Basic CSI Tasks
The primary task was to determine if wildlife
crimes had occurred not to link suspects to the
scenes
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Example of a MechanicalCrime Scene
Investigation
Basic CSI Tasks
The primary task was to search an outlaw biker
gang leaders trailer and collect hundreds of
evidence items
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Why should CSI Techniquesbe applied to Damaged
Coral Reefs?
Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs

• There are many possible sources of coral reef
  damage
• Need to identify the specific damage sources
• Need to determine the specific damage impacts
• Need to reduce or stop damage/impacts
• Reluctance of sources to admit responsibility
• Difficulty of assessing degree of responsibility

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Why should CSI Techniquesbe applied to Damaged
Coral Reefs?
Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs

• CSI traditionally links suspect, victim crime
  scene in an unbiased manner
• CSI can link coral reef damage sources and
  impacts in an unbiased manner

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The CSI Processfor a Homicide or an Assault
Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs

• Respond to a report of an injured or dead
  individual
• Determine the extent of the victims injuries
• Set and secure a scene perimeter
• Search for evidence related to the crime
• Document and collect evidence at the scene and at
  a hospital or autopsy
• Analyze the collected evidence
• Use results to link suspect, victim and the crime
  scene

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The CSI Processfor Damaged Coral Reefs
Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs

• Respond to a report of a damaged coral reef
• Observe and document the specific areas and types
  of damage
• Determine the possible sources of damage
• Collect evidence necessary to link the possible
  sources of damage to the reef
• Analyze the collected evidence
• Use evidence analysis to link specific sources to
  specific areas or types of damage

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The CSI Process for Damaged Coral Reefs
Responding to a Report of a Damaged Coral Reef
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Determine the Possible Sources of Damage
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source A Nearby Military Base
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source A Nearby Industrial Site
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source A Nearby Agricultural Area
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source A Nearby Boat Dock
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source A Parking Lot Run-Off
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Possible Damage Source A Run-Aground Ship
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source Waste from a Passing Ship
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source Waste Drifting in the
Current
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
Possible Damage Source Poison Clouds used to
Stun Fish
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Applying CSI Techniques to Coral Reefs
CSI Approach Needed to Determine Specific Damage
Sources
A Depleted Uranium B Jet Fuel or Military
Wastes C Industrial Chemicals D Wastes
Discharged in River E Fertilizer Run-offs F
Boat Discharges at Dock G Oil Lubricant
Run-Offs H Fuel Spill I Fuel and/or Waste
Discharge J Waste Drifting in Current K
Fish-Stunning Poisons
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Ideally, Coral Reef CSIwould mostly be a
thinking process but thinking takes time
in the water that a Marine Investigator may
notbe able to spare if evidence needsto be
collected
Basic CSI Tasks
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Typical Personnel at Police Crime Scenes
CSI Personnel
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Typical Personnel at aCoral Reef Scene
CSI Personnel
One Marine InvestigatororOne Marine Biologist
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Evidence Collectionat a Coral Reef
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Evidence to Look For
Evidence Collection at a Coral Reef

• Spilled Oil (hydrocarbons)
• Chemical Waste (industrial)
• Sewage (enteric bacteria)
• Fertilizers (organophosphates)
• Heavy Metals (depleted uranium, etc)
• Impact Fragments (paint chips, anchor pieces,
  etc)
• Stunning Poisons (cyanide, bleach, etc)

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Specific Items to be Collected
Evidence Collection at a Coral Reef

• Water (dissolved Oxygen, bacteria, chemicals,
  etc)
• Silt (chemicals, fertilizers, heavy metals, etc)
• Dead Marine Organisms (toxicology)
• Oil Clumps (hydrocarbon signatures)
• Impact Fragments (paint chips, anchor pieces,
  etc)
• Lost Tools (dive tools, masks, etc)

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A Coral Reef CSI Problem
It is unlikely that a marine investigator will
have documented evidence of what a coral reef was
like before a specific damaging incident took
place.
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Analysis of theCollected Evidence
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Class Individual Characteristics
CSI Terms
All physical objects possess bothclass and
individual characteristics
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Another Way to Look at it
CSI Terms
Identity
Individuality
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Examples of ClassCharacteristics
CSI Terms

• the chemical structure of a cyanide molecule
• the tread patterns on a brand of new athletic
  shoes
• the species source of a blood sample
• the ABO typing of a blood sample (ie AB
  negative)
• the weight and dimensions of a new, unfired
  cartridge
• the make and model of a firearm

Class Characteristicsphysical qualities
sharedby a group of like items
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Examples of Individual Characteristics
CSI Terms

• a fingerprint pattern
• a pattern of cuts and wear marks on the tread
  patterns on a used pair of athletic shoes
• the resulting STR (CODIS) DNA code for a blood
  sample
• the striation marks on a fired bullet
• the pattern of ejector, extractor, breech
  andfiring-pin marks on a fired cartridge

Individual Characteristicsphysical qualities
unique toan individual evidence item
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You can NEVER match an individual to a crime
scene with CLASS characteristics!!You MUST use
INDIVIDUAL characteristics!
CSI Terms
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Comparison ofPolice versus Coral ReefCSI
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Assault on the Victim
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef Scenes
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
A human is assaulted and/or killed by another
human. The event is usually intentional and
usually focused on a specific individual. Most
common weapons firearms, knives, vehicles,
clubs, rocks, workshop tools and kitchen
implements.
A coral reef is assaulted by ships, spilled
oil, spilled fuel, chemical dumping, fertilizer
run-offs, oil run-offs (streets sewers), sewage
spills/run-offs and heavy-metal run-offs. The
assault is usually unintentional and not focused
on a specific reef.
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First Responding Officer
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Typically a uniformed patrol officer.
Typically a marine investigator or a marine
biologist.
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First Responding Investigator
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Typically a detective. Depending upon the
seriousness of the crime (homicide or assault),
additional investigators and/or a CSI team will
respond to the scene.
Typically a marine investigator who will
investigate the entire scene without assistance.
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CSI Equipment at the Scene
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Investigators carry basic CSI gear in their
vehicles. CSI officers typically respond to a
scene in a van loaded with specialized equipment.
Marine investigators must bring all of their CSI
equipment onto a boat . and with them
underwater. Scuba gear represents the majority of
the marine investigators equipment.
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Crime Scene Perimeter
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
The first responding officer establishes initial
scene perimeter with barrier tape. Scene
perimeter will be expanded or reduced as
investigation continues. Purpose of scene
perimeter prevent damage to (or alteration of)
the scene and evidence by on-lookers.
Given the constant flow of salt water,
three-dimensional access, and the delay between
the assault and the investigation, it is
probably not possible --- or worth the effort ---
to set an effective barrier around a coral reef
scene.
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Crime Scene Documentation
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
The Investigator or CSI team will take numerous
over-all, medium range and close-up photos set
evidence location tags prepare an evidence list
and make a rough crime scene sketch at the
scene. All evidence items (collected or not) will
be photographed and noted on the evidence sketch.
The marine investigator will document the damaged
reef with a few underwater photographs. Sketches
are typically made on the boat or at the
investigators office.
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Notes Sketches
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Scene notes and sketches are comprehensive (lots
of details!) and always made in ink. All crime
scene notes and sketches are made at the scene.
It is not possible to make more than a few notes
during an underwater investigation of a coral
reef and the notes cannot be made in ink.
Notes and sketches are frequently made back on
the boat or later at the office.
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Audio Recordings
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
A CSI officer typically makes an audio recording
of all events and actions taken at the scene
during the investigation process.
Audio recording during an underwater
investigation requires expensive equipment rarely
available to marine investigators.
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Crime Scene Photographs
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene
Coral Reef Scene
The scene is first photographed from outside the
scene perimeter looking inward (over-all
shots). All discovered evidence items are IDd
with an evidence location tag or marker, and then
photographed at medium (including the surrounding
area) and close-up ranges.
The coral reef and any discovered evidence items
are typically photographed with a few over-all
and medium range shots.
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The Victims Body
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
The body of the victim is not moved or searched
until the coroner (or coroners investigator)
arrives. The coroner searches the victim (body
and clothing) for evidence places the victim
into a body bag and then transports the victim
to a Morgue where an autopsy will be conducted to
determine cause of death.
The victim (the coral reef) cannot be moved from
the scene.
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Time at the Scene
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Crime scene investigators will typically spend 3
to 12 hours at a crime scene searching,
documenting and collecting evidence.
Depending on the depth of the reef, a marine
investigator can only spend 2 to 3 hours (three
or four 45-minute dives) at the scene before
forced to stop diving for the day due to nitrogen
build-up.
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Autopsy of the Victim
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
A medical examiner will autopsy the body to
determine the cause of death. All suspicious
markings and evidence items will be
photographed. The autopsy usually takes place
after the crime scene investigation has been
completed.
A marine investigator or biologist will typically
conduct the evaluation of the coral reef to
determine if it is dead or dying or
seriously impacted. All obvious outer signs
of damage should be photographed. Autopsy of
the reef will probably take place before the
scene investigation.
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Toxicology Analysis
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral Reef Scene
Blood, urine and liver samples are routinely
collected from the victim for toxicology analysis.
Difficult to collect tissue samples from a
coral reef that might accumulate toxins.
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Impact Evidence
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
The medical examiner will collect bullets and
other impact evidence found in or on the body.
The marine investigator will search for impact
evidence such as metal fragments (anchor), paint
chips and silt samples scattered around the reef.
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Cause of Death
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
The medical examiner will utilize his/her
observations in addition to toxicological reports
to determine the precise cause of death of the
victim.
The definition of death of a coral reef is
vague at best and includes the health of
organisms normally living within the coral reef
structure.
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Body Wounds
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
The means of killing a human being are well
understood, and usually detected and confirmed
easily. It is usually easy to separate recent
wounds on a human body from those occurring much
earlier.
A coral reef may accumulate wounds from
impacting events over several months, years or
even decades. It may not be possible to
distinguish impacts occurring recently from those
occurring over a period of months or years.
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Evidence Preservation
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Wet evidence is dried, then placed in paper
evidence bags. CSI officers have well-established
means of preserving, packaging and sealing items
of evidence.
All coral reef evidence is exposed to corrosive
salt water that negatively impacts efforts to
preserve, package and seal the evidence. The
efforts necessary to properly collect a single
item of evidence at a coral reef will limit the
number of items collected by a single
investigator.
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Evidence Storage
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
CSI officers have well-established means of
storing and otherwise preserving the
chain-of-custody of their evidence.
Few marine investigators have secure evidence
storage systems.
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Forensic Examination of Evidence
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
CSI officers have local, county, state and
federal crime labs staffed with
professionally-trained forensic scientists to
properly examine and compare their collected
evidence items.
Marine investigators do not have crime labs or
professionally-trained forensic scientists
dedicated to the examination and comparison of
coral reef evidence.
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Conflict of Interest
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral
Reef Scene
Forensic examiners should not examine evidence
they collect at a scene (conflict of interest).
Evidence collected at the coral reef may be
examined by the collecting Marine Investigator or
other coral reef biologists.
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Cost of Analysis
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral Reef Scene
Investigating Agencies are rarely charged for the
forensic analysis of their evidence.
Most Marine Agencies will have to pay outside
labs for the forensic analysis of their evidence.
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Purpose of Investigation
Comparison of Police versus Coral Reef CSI
Police Scene Coral Reef Scene
Enforcement of Laws Prosecution of Suspects
Basis for Cooperation Negotiation
Arbitration Mitigation to cause to
become less harsh or hostile
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All of these problems can be resolved
Which is why Ive been spending a lot of time
recently in a 7mm wet suit in 50F (10C) water
at Lost Creek Lake in Oregon learning how to
SCUBA dive
all the while listening to my instructor
explain why everything Ive learned about CSI and
evidence collection over the past 38 years
doesnt work very well in the water.
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All we have to do is work together