Cold Case Investigations: practice and outcome
Justice
Via JustNet: “Researched and written by the RAND® Corporation with funding from the Office of Justice Programs’ National Institute of Justice (NIJ), Cold-Case Investigations, An Analysis of Current Practices and Factors Associated with Successful Outcomes, examines case and investigative attributes contributing to effective cold-case investigations.”
Some results:
“According to the report, cases were less likely to be cleared if the cold-case investigation was initiated by family pressure or the passage of time.
A case was more likely to be solved if it was more recent and did not involve a drug user.”
Also:
“The researchers identified three distinct types of cold case investigations, each with different processes, benefits and costs.
In the classic cold-case investigation, the detective reopens a case due to family or media inquires or a procedure review of cases unsolved for a specified length of time. These cases are likely to be the most expensive and least successful.
The second case type, which is based on availability of forensic tests due to advances in DNA technology, is relatively inexpensive, and federal funds are available for DNA testing. According to the report, the rate of success from indiscriminate DNA testing of large numbers of cases is likely below 50 percent.
The third type of case, which are those opened due to a confession or a plea deal, are the most inexpensive and successful.”
Read more here.
Hat tip to Christa Miller!
Categories: Cold Case News