8127/frame/fm

D.
Summary
In this chapter, we have begun to connect the principles we articulated in
the Section 2 to the practical day-to-day work of the criminalist or crime
scene technician. The recognition and collection of evidence is the first
human intervention after a crime event takes place. A thoughtful and com-
plete processing of the crime scene(s) is the best foundation that can be laid
for the examinations, analyses, and interpretations that will follow. Asking
the right question forms a solid beginning. Formulating not only a hypoth-
esis, but competing hypotheses is vital to a thorough search for evidence.
Finally, it is incumbent on responsible personnel to make sure that the
evidence and the scene are properly documented, and to collect and preserve
the evidence in a way that minimizes the possibility of adventitious contam-
ination. The main point is that 
thinking is allowed
.
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Good Field Practice — Processing a Crime Scene
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