For Immediate Release
Contact: Daniel Wackershauser, Marketing and PR Specialist
Phone: 608.822.2303
Mail: 1800 Bronson Blvd., Fennimore, WI 53809
Date of Release: November 18, 2024
Students participate in mock crime scene (with video)
Scenario goes from initial call through trial
Fennimore -It wasn’t “CSI” and it wasn’t “Law and Order.” However, Criminal Justice-Law Enforcement students at Southwest Wisconsin Technical College, were busy with their own “crime scene” recently. The 15 students in the Criminal Evidence class each had a role in working as a member of the “SWTC Police Department,” at a mock crime scene near campus.
According to Gary Roberts, criminal justice instructor at Southwest Tech, this is an annual event that he organizes to teach the students about working a crime scene; from that initial call, all the way through to a mock trial. The first half of the semester is spent teaching the students about evidence handling techniques, photography, measuring, and collection and preservation of evidence. “It’s all about the chain of custody,” he said.
The students then move into the actual “crime scene.” This year’s scene is reminiscent of a Wisconsin crime scene from the 1970s. It involves a homicide as the result of a domestic abuse situation, with self defense being claimed.
The scene started with a student, playing the role of a woman who was walking her dog. She stumbled upon a burn pit and thought it might include human remains. She made the “911 call” and set the wheels in motion. “It’s pretty large in scale,” said Roberts, noting there are actually three crimes scenes – the burn pit, a truck, and a trailer.
After the female called in what she had seen, Roberts used the radio to offer details and an address to the team. There were two officers who responded, initially. After 8-10 minutes, the next personnel arrived. “We want some reality in response times,” said Roberts. “We had the initial two (officers). They did a really nice job getting some initial information; interviewing and identifying the people who were there and understanding the scope of the crime scene.”
Roberts intends to have two suspects in this case. It will be up to the students to sort through the evidence and identify those suspects. The students are responsible for the path of the case. Roberts does not tell them who and what to charge. “I expect them to be proactive in all the decision-making,” he said.
There is much to do, yet, according to Roberts. The students will collect the evidence, simulate sending it to the crime lab in Madison, and then formulate what happens next. “Some pieces of evidence will have no value,” he said. “Some will have limited value. Some might be those items of evidence that are just kind of like that ‘aha’ moment. Like, yeah, that connects something.”
The students will be tested in physical evidence handling and interviewing skills. Their work will continue for the next four weeks, building up to the mock trial, which will include a judge, defense and prosecution teams, as well as the law enforcement team, which will take the stand and testify. Other faculty and staff, who played support roles, will also testify.
The students will not be graded on whether they win or lose the trial. The simulation is more about learning and understanding what they are doing and how they work and communicate with each other. “They will get really involved in this,” said Roberts. “We want to put them in a pressure situation.”
| Southwest Wisconsin Technical College, is one of 16 institutions that comprise the Wisconsin Technical College System. The college was recently named a top 10 finalist for the Aspen Prize for Community College Excellence. Southwest Tech offers more than 60 programs in a wide variety of disciplines. Courses are offered on campus, online, HyFlex and in a blended format. The college provides apprenticeship, certificate, technical diploma, and associate degree programs that respond to district workforce needs and prepare student for family-sustaining jobs and career advancement. |