WRITER'S DETECTIVE
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Resources
  • Glossary
  • Podcast
    • 107
    • 106
    • 105
    • 104
    • 103
    • 102
    • 101
    • Episodes 91 - 100 >
      • 100
      • 99
      • 98
      • 97
      • 96
      • 95
      • 94
      • 93
      • 92
      • 91
    • Episode 81 - 90 >
      • 90
      • 89
      • 88
      • 87
      • 86
      • 85
      • 84
      • 83
      • 82
      • 81
    • Episodes 71 - 80 >
      • 80
      • 79
      • 78
      • 77
      • 76
      • 75
      • 74
      • 73
      • 72
      • 71
    • Episodes 61 - 70 >
      • 70
      • 69
      • 68
      • 67
      • 66
      • 65
      • 64
      • 63
      • 62
      • 61
    • Episodes 51 - 60 >
      • 60
      • 59
      • 58
      • 57
      • 56
      • 55
      • 54
      • 53
      • 52
      • 51
    • Episodes 1 - 50 >
      • Episodes 41 - 50 >
        • 50
        • 49
        • 48
        • 47
        • 46
        • 45
        • 44
        • 43
        • 42
        • 41
      • Episodes 31 - 40 >
        • 40
        • 39
        • 38
        • 37
        • 36
        • 35
        • 34
        • 33
        • 32
        • 31
      • Episodes 21 - 30 >
        • 30
        • 29
        • 28
        • 27
        • 26
        • 25
        • 24
        • 23
        • 22
        • 21
      • Episodes 11 - 20 >
        • 20
        • 19
        • 18
        • 17
        • 16
        • 15
        • 14
        • 13
        • 12
        • 11
      • Episodes 1 - 10 >
        • 10
        • 9
        • 8
        • 7
        • 6
        • 5
        • 4
        • 3
        • 2
        • 1
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Resources
  • Glossary
  • Podcast
    • 107
    • 106
    • 105
    • 104
    • 103
    • 102
    • 101
    • Episodes 91 - 100 >
      • 100
      • 99
      • 98
      • 97
      • 96
      • 95
      • 94
      • 93
      • 92
      • 91
    • Episode 81 - 90 >
      • 90
      • 89
      • 88
      • 87
      • 86
      • 85
      • 84
      • 83
      • 82
      • 81
    • Episodes 71 - 80 >
      • 80
      • 79
      • 78
      • 77
      • 76
      • 75
      • 74
      • 73
      • 72
      • 71
    • Episodes 61 - 70 >
      • 70
      • 69
      • 68
      • 67
      • 66
      • 65
      • 64
      • 63
      • 62
      • 61
    • Episodes 51 - 60 >
      • 60
      • 59
      • 58
      • 57
      • 56
      • 55
      • 54
      • 53
      • 52
      • 51
    • Episodes 1 - 50 >
      • Episodes 41 - 50 >
        • 50
        • 49
        • 48
        • 47
        • 46
        • 45
        • 44
        • 43
        • 42
        • 41
      • Episodes 31 - 40 >
        • 40
        • 39
        • 38
        • 37
        • 36
        • 35
        • 34
        • 33
        • 32
        • 31
      • Episodes 21 - 30 >
        • 30
        • 29
        • 28
        • 27
        • 26
        • 25
        • 24
        • 23
        • 22
        • 21
      • Episodes 11 - 20 >
        • 20
        • 19
        • 18
        • 17
        • 16
        • 15
        • 14
        • 13
        • 12
        • 11
      • Episodes 1 - 10 >
        • 10
        • 9
        • 8
        • 7
        • 6
        • 5
        • 4
        • 3
        • 2
        • 1
Search by typing & pressing enter

YOUR CART

11/20/2020 0 Comments

FINGERPRINTS, VIGILANTES, FICTION WRITING, AND TECHNICAL ADVISING - 101

​Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, welcome to episode 101 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. Just like a 1980s TV show, this is actually the second half of a, to be continued episode, as it comes from what I recorded as a three and a half hour long live Facebook Live in the Writer's Detective Q and A Facebook Group, to create episodes 100, which released last week, and episode 101, which is obviously what you're listening to right now.

If you haven't done so already, come join us in the Facebook Group. Just go to writersdetectivebureau.com/Facebook, answer a few quick questions so I know you're a real person, and you'll be approved. Just like episode 100, this one's a little bit different, because we covered a whole gamut of topics, so again, I will dispense with the summary intro and just get right into the questions.

​​All right. Lily says, "I was reading the explanation of the FBI and what section of law enforcement it covers, and I thought that it said the FBI does not take cases to trial, but turns them over to the police for that jurisdiction, and then the DA prosecutes the criminals. Does the FBI actually take criminals through a court procedure?" Yes, they do, Lily. It's just a more a matter of, for the volume of cases they get, to the number that actually make it to a federal criminal prosecution, are pretty small. For a variety of reasons, one is the US Attorney tends not to want to go to jury trial. They want open and shut cases where the evidence is so overwhelming that the defendant is going to take a plea. If there's any kind of indication that it's going to go to a jury trial, then more often than not, the US attorney's just going to say, "Let it go to State Court."

The way that that happens is to use, it's overused, an overused example, but it's a very illustrative one, is a bank robbery. Bad guy goes into a bank, robs the bank, the police department responds. Police department calls the FBI and says, "Hey, we just had a bank robbery." They both show up. From the FBI's perspective, this guy committed a federal crime of robbing a federally insured bank, an FDIC insured bank, so that is it's own federal bank robbery criminal section. Then from the local police standpoint, they've committed the state crime of robbery. In California, that would be 211 of the penal code, which you may hear on TV. A lot of times the codes that they use, like 211 or 187, tend to be California codes. Then they'll use it in writing for all over the country for whatever reason, but that is a California penal code section.

That's the section for robbery 211, 211, and so, which would be separate from Title 18, whatever it is, like 2000 something for the bank robbery section...                                                                                                                                                                                     Continue reading...
0 Comments

11/20/2020 0 Comments

One hundred - 100

​Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, Episode 100. I can't believe we've already made it to 100 episodes. I recorded this as a three and a half hour long Facebook Live in the Writer's Detective Q & A Facebook Group. And then I distilled many of the questions and answers from that down into what you're listening to now, and what will also be Episode 101. If you haven't already done so, come join us in the Facebook Group. Just go to writersdetectivebureau.com/Facebook, answer a few quick questions, so I know you're a real person and not a spambot, and then you'll be approved. Since we covered a whole gamut of topics, rather than try to summarize everyone at the top of the show like I normally do, what do you say we just get right into the questions?



​First question. How soon will the medical examiner rule a drowning a homicide? And of course it popped off the screen right after that, in trying to tighten the storyline and increase the pace.

Good question. I mean, honestly, that's one of those things that you can kind of play with as far as your timeline. Whether they have it be a homicide as far as manner of death, I mean they'll rule it a ... I mean, not a suicide, they'll rule it a drowning pretty quickly. That will be pretty obvious based on what they find during the autopsy. They will probably have to talk to the police detective that's doing the investigation to actually learn whether it's a homicide or not. So there's going to be some communication between the two. Obviously coming in, it's just going to look like the obvious thing for drowning would be accidental. So in that case if the police were involved and there was that kind of particular possibility, going back to the last episode where I talked about manner of death, cause of death, and mechanism of death, there's actually one more classification I didn't add to the list when we talked about it in the podcast, just because I didn't want to confuse anyone. But there's actually a pending manner of death...                                                                                                                                                   Continue reading...
0 Comments

10/28/2020 0 Comments

PARTIAL LICENSE PLATES, MANNER OF DEATH, AND THE PETER PRINCIPLE - 099

​Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

​transcript:


​​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, partial license plates, manner of death, and the Peter Principle. I'm Adam Richardson, and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau. Welcome to episode 99 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. This week I'm answering your questions about running partial license plates, and then also manner of death, cause of death and mechanism of death, and using the Peter Principle in your character creation.

First, I need to thank Gold Shield patrons, Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, CC Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Terri Swann, and Rob Kerns of knightsfallpress.com, for their support, along with my Silver Cufflink and Coffee Club patrons. You can find links to all of the patrons supporting this episode in the show notes, at writersdetective.com/99. And to learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business, or to support this podcast for as little as $2 a month, check out writersdetective.com/patreon.
​P-A-T-R-E-O-N.



​99 episodes, which means episode 100 is next week. I plan to record it with your help on Monday, October 26th, between 4:00 PM and 7:00 PM, Pacific daylight time, which means 7:00 PM and 10:00 PM on the East Coast in the United States, or in Toronto, Canada. It'll be 11:00 PM to 2:00 AM in London, England. Midnight to 3:00 AM on October 27th in Berlin, Copenhagen and Stockholm. 8:00 AM to 11:00 AM on the 27th in Japan, at least Tokyo anyway. 10:00 AM to 1:00 PM on the 27th in Sydney, Australia, and noon to 3:00 PM on the 27th in Auckland New Zealand. Why the global time zone rundown? Because the Writer's Detective Bureau is global. After the US, top downloads come from UK, Canada, Australia, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, New Zealand and Japan.

And then in the last few weeks, the Bureau has started ranking in the top 50 in true crime for iTunes in Mexico, in India. So, if you're in Wahaca, Mexico, it'll be 5:00 to 8:00 PM, and 4:30 to 7:30 AM on the 27th if you're in Mumbai, India. A half hour time difference.

How'd you do that? It's actually... I'm not even mad. That's amazing.
​
So, for episode 100, I will be doing a Facebook Live inside the Writer's Detective Q and A Facebook group, where I will take your questions, answer them live, and then use that live recording to create the 100th episode. I will also be doing merch giveaways of Writer's Detective coffee mugs, t-shirts and hoodies, and obviously international shipping is included for those winners. So, come join me on Monday, October 26th, unless you are on the other side of the international dateline. Just hit rewind if you need to hear those times again. And if you are not a member of the Writer's Detective Q and A Facebook group, which is different than the Writer's Detective Facebook page, because Zuck can't keep anything simple, can he? So, if you're not a member of the group, join us by going to writersdetectivebureau.com/Facebook. That will take you right to the signup page for the group. It's free, you just need to answer a few quick questions, so I know that you're you and not a spam bot.

​​Anyway, as we approach episode 100, I just want to take a moment to say danke, tak, arigato, gracias, sukria, shukran, merci, toda, spasibo, obrigado, grazzi, xie xie, and thank you for listening. But enough about episode 100, let's knock out episode 99 right now. This week's first question comes right from Nupur Tustin in the aforementioned Facebook group. Nupur writes, "Keyword. Information from a partial license number. How long would it take to get information about car registration, the owner, et cetera.,If you had a partial license number and the make and model of the car? How would an LE go about this process? This is in Massachusetts, by the way. And how long would this take? Thanks in advance for any information anyone here can provide."

Seems like a pretty straightforward question, right, Nupur? The reason I wanted to answer this on the podcast is that even in this prologue to a cyber punk era we are living in, our motor vehicle database is still based on 1980s computer databases that can't run partial license plates. In fact, most states don't even tell you the color of the car. Make and model? How about a make and generic description of the model, like four door or utility. It's literally coded as like four DR or UT. So, if I run a Toyota, it's going to say Toyota UT. It's not going to tell me that it's a Highlander or a 4runner. It's just going to say utility. For me to do a partial license plate search through the DMV, so that would be the California Department of Motor Vehicles, I know you're writing about Massachusetts, but it's going to be very similar. I have to call their headquarters in Sacramento for California, DMV, hope I get a civil servant willing enough to provide real help. This is the DMV after all. And pray that I get a result...                                                                                                                                                                          Continue reading...
0 Comments

10/18/2020 0 Comments

MISSING IN A BLIZZARD, RAPID DNA, AND SEXUAL ASSAULT INVESTIGATIONS - 098

​Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, missing in a blizzard, rapid DNA, and sexual assault investigations. I'm Adam Richardson, and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau. Welcome to episode number 98 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. And this week I'm answering your questions about how police would handle a missing persons investigation during a blizzard with a serial killer on the hunt, NTSB investigations in the use of rapid DNA, and conducting sexual assault investigations.

But first I need to thank gold shield patrons, Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Terri Swann, and Rob Kerns of Knightsfall Press for their support, along with my silver cuff link and coffee club patrons. You can find links to all of the patrons supporting this episode in the show notes at writersdetective.com/98. And to learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business or to support this podcast, check out writersdetective.com/patreon, P-A-T-R-E-O-N.



​​We are two weeks away from episode 100, where, to mark the occasion, I plan to live stream in the Facebook group as I create the 100th episode with your help, giving you a little behind the scenes of my studio and the upgrades I'm making as well as some schwag giveaways, so mugs, t-shirts, and I just got the new Writer's Detective hoodie in the mail. I love it and I hope you will too. And you'll have a chance to win it. Well, you'll win your own. A new one in a size that fits you. I am really looking forward to it and I hope you'll join me, especially because I'll be taking your questions during the live stream to use for the podcast episode.

So if you aren't already a member of the Writer's Detective Q&A Facebook group, be sure to join right now so you don't miss your chance to hang out with me live and maybe even win something. writersdetectivebureau.com/facebook will get you where you need to be. Just answer the membership questions and you'll be approved ASAP. And before we get into this week's questions, I'd be remissed if I didn't wish Rick, my late best friend in what would have been his 50th birthday today. So happy birthday, buddy. I'll swing by the cemetery to hang out with you for our annual cigar later today. All right, let's get into the questions.



​​Author TA Munroe posted this in the aforementioned Facebook group. "I came upon this group on Facebook and I got to thinking that almost all of my novels involve the police somehow, even though I don't write crime fiction. This current women's fiction work in progress is the most crime intensive one so far. I've enjoyed and learned a lot from the podcasts. I've listened to about 70 so far. Thanks Adam, for your help and interest in our work. This probably won't be my last post." Well, I hope not, TA. So she goes on to say, "A character of mine, a young woman, goes missing in a small city in downeast Maine right before blizzard begins. She's supposed to meet my protagonist at a designated time and place, but doesn't show. My protagonist spends as much time as she feels she can before she has to start the drive home as the snow begins. Home is in the next county, over an hour away."

"My protagonist talked to the people the missing person had been with, checked in businesses and goes to the police who take down information, and of course has called the young woman's phone, but gets no answer. It sometimes gets shut off for non-payment. The young woman isn't particularly at risk that my protagonist knows about, other than the serial killer in the area who targets, go figure, women. My protagonist returns to the same police department a week later when the weather and her work schedule allow. The two are coworkers and my protagonist has taken on a mentee role in the young woman's life, who has no family other than her son who's in foster care and was the reason for the trip. When might this become an official missing persons case, and when might the state police's major crimes unit become involved, which research told me it usually does in Maine? What might the police do in the middle of a major snow storm to search for a missing person? Would the serial killer in the area change anything about the initial investigation? Thanks in advance for any answers."

First of all, thank you for your question and thank you for listening, TA...                                                                                       Continue reading...
0 Comments

9/24/2020 0 Comments

Old Crime Scenes Cellphone Location Tracking Investigating a Child Death and Police Reform - 097

Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, returning to old crime scenes, cell phone location tracking, investigating a child death, and police reform. I'm Adam Richardson. And this is the Writer's Detective Bureau. This is episode number 97 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, or just three episodes away from episode 100. The podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. This week, I'm answering your questions about returning to old crime scenes. How police can track the cell phone of a missing person, investigating a child death, and my thoughts on police reform.

But first, as always, I have some people to thank. I need to thank Gold Shield Patrons, Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall of robertjmendenhall.com, Terri Swann, and Rob Kerns of knightsfallpress.com, for their support, along with my Silver Cufflink and Coffee Club patrons. You can find links to all of the patrons supporting this episode by going to the show notes at writersdetective.com/97.

To learn about using Patreon to grow your author business or to support this podcast for as little as $2 per month, check out writersdetective.com/patreon, P-A-T-R-E-O-N.

his week's first question comes from Marcus Wilkes, who asked, "After a crime scene is closed and no longer guarded and the detective wants to revisit it, do they still have to log their entry into the crime scene log or do they just come and go as they please? Also, when is a crime scene such as a house release back to the owner for cleaning up?" Thanks for the question, Marcus. In episode 51, I briefly talked about this, but this is a great opportunity to delve a little deeper.

Reading into your question a bit, Marcus, I'm assuming we're talking about a murder that happens in a private residence. Like I talked about in episode 94 of the podcast, detectives would need to get a search warrant for the murder scene, which is called a Mincey Warrant. Definitely check out episode 94 to learn more about Mincey Warrants, but it's important to understand that search warrants, whether it's a Mincey Warrant for a homicide scene in a house, a regular old search warrant for a suspect's apartment, or even a search warrant you serve on a bank to get a suspect's financial records, a search warrant is a one-time search.

You can take as long as you reasonably need to complete the search. So, if we're talking about a serial killer that used his 10 acre property as his personal cemetery, it would be reasonable for the search to take weeks. But that one time search means the police must remain there the entire time. It could mean posting a uniformed officer at the scene overnight just to maintain the integrity of the crime scene, but the police can not leave and then come back. If they do, they need another search warrant. A search warrant is basically a judge saying you, the police, have the right to search this location for evidence and to seize the evidence you list in the warrant to help you prove whatever crime you're alleging...                                                                                                                                                                                                   Continue reading...
0 Comments

8/29/2020 0 Comments

VEHICLE TAMPERING CLUES, TRADEMARKS, NOTICE OF WARRANT SERVICE - 096

Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, vehicle tampering clues, trademarks, and notice of warrant service. I'm Adam Richardson, and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau.

Welcome to episode number 96 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. This week I'm answering your questions about what kind of clues an investigator might find in a vehicle tampering, a question totally outside my expertise about trademarks, and why sidebarsaturdays.com is the place to go. Then a follow up question to last week's GPS warrant, having to do with notifying the car owner about the tracker.
​
First, big thanks to Gold Shield Patrons, Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson of ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall of robertjmendenhall.com, Terri Swan, and Rob Kerns of knightsfallpress.com, for their support, along with my Silver Cufflink and Coffee Club patrons. You can find links to all of the patrons supporting this episode in the show notes at writersdetective.com/96. To learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business or to support this podcast, check out writersdetective.com/patreon.

​Hello from the fiery blazes of California, where nearly the entire state is on fire again. It was 110 degrees today, which if you're from the much more sane parts of the world, that would be 43.3 degrees Celsius. Thanks for giving me a reason to stay inside with the air conditioning on. Can you believe we are four episodes away from episode 100? I feel like we're going to need to celebrate this. Not sure how. Maybe give away some mugs, do some behind the scene stuff, maybe a live stream. I don't know. I would love to hear your suggestions, so whatever you have in mind for episode 100, send them to me at writersdetective.com/podcast
​

​Enough about next month, you're here for this week's Q and A. Let's do this. Bella Elwood-Clayton of debella.com.au, writes, "Does tampering with someone's car, attempt to harm, happen in real life or mostly in movies? I read that it's often hard for investigators to find proof. Were they to, what kind of tampering leaves the most clues? Thank you." I'm pretty sure every action oriented TV show of the 1980s, including my favorites, had an episode where someone's brake line was cut. Dukes of Hazzard, Chips, Rockford Files, MacGyver, and who can forget Bob and Doug's van in Strange Brew? Take off, you hoser. Just like quicksand, it isn't nearly as common a life threatening hazard as I'd anticipated it would be as a kid. By the way, you can find a great page index of vehicular sabotage examples at tvtropes.org. It's a website I know I've mentioned before, but it's a great writing resource for becoming aware of common writing tropes, of which vehicle sabotage has its own page.

The realities of malicious vehicular sabotage are that it's hard to know, kind of like spotting someone wearing a wig. We only see the bad ones. How many are getting past us? If you think about the typical problems you've had to deal with in your own car, how many are issues that could have been catastrophic? Brakes worn out, tires blowing out or coming off the car altogether while you're driving, the list is probably endless. By all means, don your chapeau de saboteur and have some fun. I haven't written a vehicle accident report in over 20 years, but I do know one major change has happened since then, and that's the installation of EDRs in vehicles. Those are the black boxes. EDRs or event data recorders have come a long way in recent years, as far as the data they collect...                                                                                           Continue reading...

0 Comments

8/4/2020 0 Comments

AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY, NOLLE PROSEQUI, AND GPS TRACKING - 095

Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, areas of responsibility, nolle prosequi and GPS tracking.

I'm Adam Richardson. And this is the Writer's Detective Bureau.

Welcome to episode number 95 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime-related fiction. And this week I'm answering your questions about how areas of responsibility differ from jurisdiction, the concept of nolle prosequi and what the law says about police using GPS to track suspects. As always, I need to thank my Gold Shield patrons, Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keaton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall of robertjmendenhall.com, Terri Swann, and Rob Kerns of knightsfallpress.com for their support, along with my Silver Cufflink and Coffee Club patrons. You can find links to all of the patrons supporting this episode in the show notes at writersdetective.com/95. To learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business, or to support this podcast, check out writersdetective.com/patreon, P-A-T-R-E-O-N.

​This week's first question comes from author L.K. Hill of authorlkhill.com. L.K. Writes, "Hi Adam. Talk jurisdictions to me. I know big cities often have multiple precincts or stations to cover multiple jurisdictions within the city, but is there ever a time when multiple jurisdictions are housed within the same building or station? I'm writing a scenario where one detective realizes his case may be related to another case in a different jurisdiction. Could the cop working in the other jurisdiction be in the same building as the first, or not so much? Number two, what would be the procedure for a scenario like this in terms of, who would work the case? Would the two detectives work together on it, or would one hand it off to the other? And number three, what's the most common way for one detective to realize his case might be part of or related to another open one, a database, an interdepartmental thing, something else. Thanks so much for all your help."

Aha. Hungry for more info on jurisdictions I see. For starters, be sure to check out episodes one, 23 and 77. In episode one, I talked about geographic boundaries being a factor in jurisdiction, like a homicide happening in a federal park. In episode 23, I talked about dual sovereignty, which is when state and federal jurisdictions kind of overlap. And in episode 77, I talked about jurisdiction with respect to more proactive jurisdictions, like a narcotics trafficking case where you follow the suspects wherever the case takes you. And assuming you're still in your home state, your case need only have a nexus to the city or county where you work. Now, getting back to your questions L.K., precincts or stations or divisions aren't the same as true legal jurisdictions, which is a good thing for how you want your story to unfold. Let's use Los Angeles as our example. If I was a detective in the LAPD, I'm not, but let's say that I am. We'd all agree that the jurisdiction of the LAPD is the entire city of Los Angeles, right?..                                                                                                                                                           Continue reading...
0 Comments

7/26/2020 0 Comments

FINDING DIGITAL EVIDENCE, ELICITATION OF DETECTIVES, AND RP STATEMENTS - 094

Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, finding digital evidence, elicitation of detectives and RP statements.

I'm Adam Richardson, and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau.

Welcome to episode number 94 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. This week I'm answering your questions about finding digital evidence when the devices are missing, elicitation of detectives by a mole within the police department and where to believably take a statement from a reporting party. But before we get into that, I need to thank Gold Shield Patrons, Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall of robertjmendenhall.com, Terry Swan and Rob Kerns of knightsfallpress.com.

​By the way, thanks, Rob, for upping your monthly pledge. I appreciate it. But I want to thank all of them for their support, along with my silver cufflink and coffee club patrons. You can find links to all of the patrons supporting this episode in the show notes at writersdetective.com/94. To learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business, or to support this podcast for as little as $2 per month, check out writersdetective.com/patreon. P-A-T-R-E-O-N.

So before we get started, how are you guys holding up? It has been a busy few weeks of craziness around here, and it looks like Tuesdays are going to be the new podcast drop days each week, as I'm now working weekend nights for the foreseeable future. It's been quite a while since I lived like a vampire, but despite the toll it takes on the home life, I have always liked being out and about at night, or at least when it comes to work. Also, I want to give a huge shout out and thank you to the writers of Kern for having me open their yearly writers conference this week, albeit virtually. I wish I'd been there in person, but thank you for that and welcome to the Bureau. So without any further ado, let's get to this week's questions.

Author S.C. Wynne, whom you can find at scwynne.com, and that's S-C-W-Y-N-N-E, asked this in the Writer's Detective Q&A Facebook group. "I have a question. I did a search, but didn't see this anywhere. If the police have a murder victim they suspect met the guy on a dating site, but they don't know which one, would they check every dating site in existence? I find this hard to believe since there are over 1500 sites or something, but I'd like to be accurate. They know the victim's name, but his laptop and phone are missing."

The old proverbial needle in the digital haystack. The investigative steps would start with what the detectives would have access to, and namely the evidence they could find in the murder victim's possession or in his home that could lead them forward. Now in previous episodes and back when I blogged, I talked about a Mincey warrant. M-I-N-C-E-Y. Essentially, this is the search warrant detectives get when they need to search a homicide scene or the location related to the descendant in the homicide case.

So in this case, the detectives would likely get a Mincey warrant for the victim's home. Now, for the sake of argument, let's just say the victim lived alone in an apartment. That Mincey affidavit, meaning the application to the judge asking for the search warrant, is going to ask the judge to approve the search of the apartment for the seizure of specific things, but it will be a laundry list of things that will hopefully be evidence in the crime. Now, the obvious things would be any kind of bodily fluids or fingerprints, hair samples, carpet fibers, that kind of stuff, that could possibly be related to the crime. It's important to note that anything that detectives asked to seize in the warrant need to be justified for in that affidavit...                                                                                                                                                                                          Continue reading...
0 Comments

7/6/2020 0 Comments

Minimum staffing, insider trading and tecs - 093

​Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

transcript:


​This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau, minimum staffing, insider trading and texts. I'm Adam Richardson and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau.

Welcome to episode number 93 of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime related fiction. And this week I'm answering your questions about what happens when a cop gets injured on duty and needs to go home, who handles the civil and criminal aspects of an insider trading investigation, and what kind of data is available to a detective investigating the homicide of a foreign national? But before we get into that, I need to give shout outs to my gold shield Patreons, Deborah Dunbar from deborahdunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicky Tharp at vickytharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall of robertjmendenhall.com and Terri Swann, for their support along with my silver cuff link and coffee club Patreons. You can find links to all of the authors supporting this episode by going to writersdetective.com/93. And to learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business, or to support this podcast, check out writersdetective.com/patreon.

Ryan Elder writes, "Thank you again very much for your podcast. I love it and I find it to be very informative in my writing." Thanks, Ryan, I appreciate that. Ryan says, "I'm writing a screenplay and was wondering if when an officer has to get into a fight on duty and takes a bit of a beating, how much violence has to happen against them before they're chosen to be sent home and someone else would take over? For my story, I want the protagonist detective to have to be forced to get into a fight with a criminal while investigating a case, but I still want them to continue on in the plot after without another detective having to come in and replace him. And similarly, when it comes to the criminal who was in the fight that the detective has arrested, how injured would the criminal have to be to be sent to a clinic or doctor as opposed to being taken to the police station and interrogated? I was wondering if you had any information on situations like that and what would constitute being taken to a doctor or emergency clinic versus not? Thank you very much again for all your advice."

So let's start with your first question, Ryan, the decision on whether the officer wants to go home after the fight is really going to be up to the officer, not the supervisor. No different than if you were working as barista at a coffee shop and someone clocked you, the officer would essentially be on sick leave, just like they came down with an illness in the middle of their shift. Now, whether someone else would take over would depend on a few things, most agencies have a defined minimum staffing level for patrol shifts. Minimum staffing as the name implies is the minimum number of officers that must be working the street for it to be safe... ​                                                                    Continue reading...
0 Comments

6/29/2020 0 Comments

SWAT TEAMS, FBI OFFICES, AND COCAINE PRODUCTION - 092

Right-click and select "Save As" to download this podcast episode to your device.

traNSCRIPT:


This week on the Writer's Detective Bureau: SWAT teams, FBI offices, and cocaine. I'm Adam Richardson and this is the Writer's Detective Bureau.

Welcome to episode number 92. Hey, that's the year I graduated high school. Of the Writer's Detective Bureau, the podcast dedicated to helping authors and screenwriters write professional quality crime-related fiction. This week, I'm answering your questions about what role SWAT plays in an investigation after they've busted the suspect, also what a witness or visitor to an FBI office might see, and what the cocaine production process looks like.

But first, I need to thank gold shield patrons Debra Dunbar from debradunbar.com, C.C. Jameson from ccjameson.com, Larry Keeton, Vicki Tharp of vickitharp.com, Chrysann, Larry Darter, Natalie Barelli, Craig Kingsman of craigkingsman.com, Lynn Vitale, Marco Carocari of marcocarocari.com, Robert Mendenhall of robertjmendenhall.com, and Terri Swann, for their support, along with my silver cuff link and coffee club patrons, and special welcome to my latest patrons. I really appreciate you.

You can find links to all of the Bureau's patrons in the show notes by going to writersdetective.com/92. To learn more about using Patreon to grow your author business or to support this podcast, check out writersdetective.com/Patreon. P-A-T-R-E-O-N.

First of all, I want to thank those of you that took the time to reach out, to check on me over the last few incredibly busy weeks, and to offer support and reassurance that you'd still be here listening whenever life got normal enough to get the Bureau back on track. And we are officially back on track, back to weekly episodes. Now, my work schedule has changed a little bit, so you may potentially notice the episodes popping up on a new day of the week. Which one, I haven't quite worked out yet, but trust that you will still get your weekly episodes from me. So thanks again for your understanding and support. I love you guys, especially those of you that thought, "He's just a baby," when you heard in the intro the year I graduated high school.

Okay. We are way overdue to answer some questions. So let's get right to it.

Dr. Joel Shulkin of authorjoelshulkin.com asked these two questions in the Facebook group. And if you haven't joined the Facebook group, consider this your formal invitation. Just go to writersdetectivebureau.com/Facebook, and that easy to pronounce web address will take you right to the group sign up page in Facebook. There are a few quick questions to answer, but I promise they're easy.

Okay, let's get back to the doc's questions. "When detectives call in a federal agency or SWAT to help capture a suspect, who conducts the interview once they have the suspect in custody? Just the agent or the detective or both together? Would they typically go to the federal building or back to the PD? This would be assuming the suspect is both wanted for crimes at a federal level and directly involved in a local case.

On a related note, I may need someone from the FBI to answer this, but has anyone visited an FBI field office recently within the past two years? If so, did you need to go through any special clearance process? Metal detector? Do they just give you a visitor badge or did you need an escort if you have a scheduled appointment with an agent?"...                                                                                                   Continue reading...
0 Comments
<<Previous

    Welcome!

    If you like what you read here, consider joining the mailing list for updates, seminar notifications and more!

    Archives

    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    December 2018
    October 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    April 2017
    January 2017
    October 2016
    September 2016
    March 2016
    November 2015
    October 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All

(c) writersdetective.com 2020
The fine print:  If you're reading this, you're a detail person (like me) looking for what this really costs.  The answer: It's free. 
I only charge for manuscript review and traditional technical advising services.  Contact me for inquiries of this nature.   Terms & Conditions