What is the Investigation?
The investigation into the causes of the air crash are continuing.
-
What is the Investigation?
Investigation
Criminal investigation, ensemble of methods by which crimes are studied and criminals apprehended. The criminal investigator seeks to ascertain the methods, motives, and identities of criminals and the identity of victims and may also search for and interrogate witnesses.
investigation a process in which the police or another organization try to find out the truth about a crime or accident Following a major police investigation, two men were arrested. The investigation into the causes of the air crash are continuing. inquiry an official process to find out why something happened, which usually takes several months or years. Local people are calling for an inquiry into the accident. An independent inquiry found serious shortcomings at the children’s home.
Identification of a criminal who has left no fingerprints or other conclusive evidence can often be advanced by analysis of the modus operandi; professional criminals tend to stick to a certain technique (e.g., forcing entrance), to seek certain types of booty, and to leave a certain trademark (e.g., the means by which a victim is tied up). Criminal-investigation departments compile such data, as well as lists of stolen and lost property, and have ready access to such public records as automobile and firearms registrations and such private records as laundry and dry-cleaners’ marks, pawnshop and secondhand-dealers’ transactions, and many more.
Interrogation of suspects is one of the most important functions of criminal investigation. In most countries this proceeding is delicate because a confession gained in violation of the suspect’s rights can be repudiated in court. The use of the polygraph, or lie detector, is also subject to widespread courtroom limitations.