Task 1 – Describe the role of the FSS and the CJS. [P6]
The FSS, short for Forensic Science Service, is the primary source of forensic science to the UK criminal science court and is government-owned, however they are not the only ones providing forensic services. There exist many private organizations specialising in specific fields of forensic science or offering general services without any emphasis on a particular type of evidence analysis.
Forensic scientists are mainly responsible for recovering evidence from crime scenes and presenting forensic evidence in a court of law. They have as a result access to information from an ongoing crime investigation and the scene of the crime for the recovery of important evidence and analysis of the scene itself for any evidence they might not be able to take away with them.
There are many types of different services that they provide, such as blood pattern analysis, fingerprint finding, DNA profiling, and in general finding information from a crime scene that require a forensic specialist to be analysed correctly, succeeding in doing so could help them solve a case, however any evidence gathered has to be viable for use in a court of law.
Once they have gathered evidence they can present it to a court, for that reason it is important that their information is accurate and done without any prejudice and in an ethical way; they must remain impartial and honest. Failing to do so could result in the imprisonment of an innocent person or the liberation of a guilty one.
The CJS, short for Criminal Justice System, is a constituent part of the judicial system and is responsible for upholding social control, deterring and mitigating crime, and ensuring that guilty people are punished all the while protecting innocent people. This large public organization employs over 400 000 staff across multiple agencies which work together towards the same goal of delivering criminal justice. These agencies involve the police, the crown prosecution service, the courts and correctional facilities (jails, prison, probation, etc…).
The organisations which are part of the CJS all have a specialised role. The police are the first organization of this chain; they investigate all reported crimes, identify suspects and gather evidence to convict likely suspects (with the aid of the FSS or other forensic organisation). Their findings are relayed on to the CPS who will perhaps prosecute and charge the suspects brought forward by the police, should the evidence be compelling enough. From then on, any convicted suspect is passed on to the correctional services that will carry out the sentence of the court.
They aim to be effective in bringing and convicting guilty people with a simple but efficient process, engage the public and inspire confidence, while putting the needs of victims first.
Task 2 – Using your case study. Write a brief summary of the case. [M5]
The Tracy teen case involves a teenager of 16, Kyle Ramirez, who was held captive for over a year in Tracy, California, after being allegedly kidnapped. The 16 year boy was said to have been persuaded to move from his current children’s home to a house where his aunt, Caren Ramirez, was staying at in December 2008. Once there he was beaten, burned, starved, shackled, cut, had bleach poured over his wounds and had his clothes lit on fire by the house owners, Michael Luther Schumacher and wife Kelly Lane Lau as well as neighbour Anthony Waiters. According to his testimony he was forced to do chores and was chained to a coffee table.
Kyle Ramirez escaped from the house by persuading a two-year old, one of the child belonging to the house owners, to fetch him a pair of keys that was left around the house which he used to unchain himself. He escaped through the back garden and used a trampoline to go over a wall, from there he ran to a nearby health club. Video footage was captured of the teenage boy as he entered the health club, his ankle chained, skin emaciated, burned and covered in soot from the fireplace where he was forced to sleep next to. Upon arrival at the health club he asked to hide from his captors behind a counter.
Carren Ramirez, Michael Luther Schumacher and wife Kelly Lane Lau confessed after being arrested in December 2008 to multiple charges including use of deadly weapon and causing great bodily harm. They later pleaded guilty to a host of charges in exchange for dropping the charges of torture as to avoid a potential life sentence. They were all sentenced to 30 years or more on December 6th 2010.
Anthony Waiters however pleaded not guilty and is awaiting sentence which he will receive on January 18th 2011. He has been convicted of nine counts of charge which include torture and kidnapping, he now faces life imprisonment.
Task 2 – Design a table to identify the key stages in the case study. For each key stage identify where the FSS and the CJS are working together. [M5]
Key stages of the trial
Investigation
- The police investigated the reported crime, after Kyle Ramirez escaped. During this stage they gathered evidence in the form of video footage and testimony from suspect, victim and witness. At this stage the CJS (as the police) works with the FSS to gather evidence from the crime scene and the victim (e.g. wound analysis).
Arrest
- Once they had concrete evidence they arrested the suspects and presented their findings to the CPS who decided whether or not to prosecute and charge the suspects with the crimes they were believed to have committed according to the evidence gathered. Three of the suspects accepted a plea bargain in exchange for dropping torture charges. The CPS chose to prosecute, the FSS was asked to present their evidence, for this reason they had to prepare their findings in order to present them in court.
Trial
- The suspects were prosecuted in a court of law and the evidence against them was presented to the court. If required an expert witness from the FSS would have been called to present particular evidence. The three suspects who accepted the plea bargain had to plead guilty to multiple charges and thus the sentence was carried out much faster than the fourth suspect who refused the plea bargain and pleaded not guilty. The Jury found the evidence compelling enough to convict the suspects with multiple offences and their decision was announced to the court.
Sentence
- The prison service was in charge of carrying out the sentence chosen by the jury. Three of the suspects were convicted to over 30 years in jail. The fourth is awaiting his sentence but has already been found guilty of multiple offences and awaits, most likely, a life sentence.
Task 3 – For each key stage identified above, describe and explain how the FSS and CJS are working together. [D5]
There is a slight discrepancy in that this is an American case and they do not use the FSS or the CJS in their proceedings, but use the American counterpart which operates in a similar fashion. For the purpose of the assignment I have used the FSS in order to remain close to the original theme.
Investigation
During the investigation the CJS (in the form of police) and FSS work closely together to gather evidence, they both have their own areas of speciality, the police will interview suspects, witnesses and victims using different techniques that are more appropriate for the type of answers they want and the impression they want to create. The FSS will gather evidence from the crime scene, this requires specialists to analyse every detail under minute conditions. They may also analyse other areas should it be required, such as document examination.
Arrest
The police will relay the evidence they have gathered with the help of the FSS to the CPS, if the evidence is strong enough to charge a person with a criminal offence then the CPS will choose to prosecute this person. The decision of the CPS to prosecute a suspect will depend on the quality of the evidence and its relevance to the case, should the evidence be of unsatisfactory quality or inadmissible in court then it is very likely that the CPS will not prosecute as they would not win. It is up to the FSS, as well as the police, to provide the CPS with this service, thus the FSS works directly here with the CJS by providing invaluable information to its sub divisions.
Trial
If the CPS has chosen to prosecute they will present their case in a court of law. Here the prosecuted will have the right to an attorney who will defend them against the charges brought forward. In this scenario the FSS works with the CPS by providing them with a report of their findings which will be submitted to the court, they may also be asked to appear in court as expert witnesses in order to give additional information (i.e. answering specific questions) and explaining in layman terms the findings so that the jury (if there is one) or the judge can understand them. Their report is crucial and their expertise, if called upon, may be invaluable to the success of the prosecution, in this respect they work directly with the CJS through the CPS.
Sentence
The conclusion of the trial ends with a decision from the jury or judge and a sentence carried out by the judge, finding the suspects guilty or not guilty of a criminal offence. All charges brought forward by the prosecution may not be charged on the suspects, the decision of which criminal offences the suspect is guilty of resides with the judge or jury. Criminal offenses have specific punishments (i.e. x amount of years in jail), and these punishments are added together to give a final sentence.
In respect to how the FSS and CJS work together in this stage, one could argue that they both work towards the goal of achieving justice, and that all the work by both bodies culminates to this moment. The sentence is the direct result of their work and how strong their case was, even if they are unable to affect the sentence once their case has been presented.
Bibliography:
BTEC level 2 Applied Science Edexcel 2010
http://www.examiner.com/headlines-in-stockton/sentences-handed-down-tracy-teen-torture-case-video
Nygma Science 
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