CPD Investigation & Evidence 5

Question 1

What is the correct order of steps when collecting physical evidence at a crime scene?

Accepted Answer

Document, photograph, collect, package, and label

Answer

Proper evidence handling requires documentation and photography before any item is collected, then packaging and labeling for chain of custody.

Question 2

A confidential informant provides a tip that a specific apartment contains illegal weapons. To obtain a search warrant, the officer must demonstrate:

Accepted Answer

The informant's reliability and basis of knowledge, establishing probable cause

Answer

Under the Illinois v. Gates totality-of-circumstances test, the informant's track record and how they know what they claim to know must support probable cause.

Question 3

Which interview technique involves allowing a witness to narrate events in their own words without interruption before asking clarifying questions?

Accepted Answer

Cognitive interview technique

Answer

The cognitive interview encourages free recall narrative first, which produces more accurate and complete information from witnesses.

Question 4

A suspect is arrested and invokes their right to counsel. Investigators must:

Accepted Answer

Immediately cease questioning and not resume until counsel is present

Answer

Invoking the right to counsel requires all questioning to stop until an attorney is present, per Edwards v. Arizona.

Question 5

Trace evidence such as hair, fiber, and glass fragments is governed by Locard's Exchange Principle, which states:

Accepted Answer

Every contact between a person and a place leaves a mutual transfer of material

Answer

Locard's principle holds that whenever two objects come into contact, they exchange material, making trace evidence forensically valuable.

CPD - Chicago Police Department Practice Test

CPD - Chicago Police Department Practice Test

CPD Investigation & Evidence 5