The scene, documented the way a court needs to see it.

Why the scene matters

In an excessive force case, the question is whether the force was objectively reasonable under the circumstances the officer faced. Those circumstances are physical. How much distance separated the people involved? Was there cover? Was there somewhere to retreat? Could the officer see a person's hands? An account given months later in a deposition can be tested against the scene only if someone documented it.

What is documented

A scene investigation records the location with photographs and video from every relevant position, measures the distances between key points, and notes lighting, weather exposure, obstructions, and surfaces. The result is a set of photographs, measurements, and diagrams that can be used in a report, at a deposition, and in front of a jury.

Finding the cameras

Scenes are surrounded by cameras that the official investigation may never have collected: doorbell cameras, business security systems, traffic and transit cameras, and dash cameras in parked vehicles. Canvassing the scene for them, and identifying who owns each one, is part of every scene investigation, because most recordings are overwritten within days or weeks.

Scenes change

Vehicles are towed, doors are repaired, and blood is washed away. Buildings are renovated and intersections are rebuilt. The earlier a scene is documented, the more it can prove. Even an old scene is worth documenting, however, because distances, sight lines, and the layout of a building rarely change.