Open AccessAppraising the Forensic Services in Crime Investigation: A Study on Police Officers from Gamo Zone in SNNPR, Ethiopia
Author(s) -
Shunmuga Sundaram G,
S. Suresh,
Taye Cherga,
Dersolegn Yeneabat
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
international research journal of science and technology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 2707-3955
DOI - 10.46378/irjst.2020.010212
Subject(s) - nonprobability sampling , forensic science , criminal justice , criminology , economic justice , forensic accounting , psychology , sociology , political science , business , law , audit , geography , accounting , population , demography , archaeology
Criminal investigation is an art of uncovering the truth for the purpose ofsuccessful detection and prosecution. A successful and reliable investigation tostand for the justice requires a competent investigator and the use oftechnological aids from forensic and other scientific disciplines. This paperinvestigates the common perception among the police officers at differentdesignation levels working in the Gamo region, SNNPR on the application offorensic services in crime investigation.The major objectives of this study are to a) Identify the level of awareness onforensic service among the crime investigation officers and b) To identify thelacunae in implementation of forensic services in crime investigation process.The sample size of 70 police officers in all categories of Constable, SubInspector, Inspector, Deputy Commissioner in the Gama zonal region wereincluded as respondents of the study. A purposive sampling method was adoptedand structured questionnaire was used for the data collection. Statisticalinterpolation of the results was done using SPSS software. This study identifiedthe lack of awareness among the police officers working in lower hierarchy level(<50%) on various forensic services, specialized forensic divisions, andapplication of forensic approaches during crime investigation. A positivecorrelation was observed with respect to the designation of officers and the lackof awareness among the police officers. Majority (<65%) of the police officerswere not aware of the existence of fingerprinting division in the country. Thereexists a poor communication between key actors in the criminal justice systemand financial resources not directed at the front end of the forensic process. Theoutcomes of this study would facilitate the identification of the lacunae inimplementation of forensic services in the crime investigation process. This studyemphasizes the need for immediate attention on managing the forensic illiteracyamong police officers, mainly on the field such as fingerprint analysis, criminalinvestigation methods and cybercrime. It is the need of hour to promote theestablishment of forensic wing at Gamo zonal level law enforcement.