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Crime Scene and DNA Basics for Forensic Analysts

Conveyance

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Conveyance is defined as "something that serves as a means of transportation." Types of crimes committed in conveyances include, but are not limited to:

  • Vehicle Burglary
  • Grand Theft
  • Car Jacking
  • Narcotics Violation
  • Sexual Battery
  • Homicide

It is important that the crime scene investigator recognize that physical evidence recovered from these scenes may extend well beyond the conveyance itself. The flight path of the perpetrator may reveal evidence important to the investigation. For example, impression evidence, such as shoe or footprints in soil, may be found leading away from the scene, and property removed from the conveyance may be deposited or dropped as the perpetrator flees the scene. Cigarette butts are sometimes found in and around the conveyance. The nature of the crime may give the investigator an idea of the type of evidence present.

To protect the scene against inclement weather and other factors that may contribute to evidence loss and/or destruction, a conveyance such as a vehicle may be transported to the laboratory after proper documentation has been completed.

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