Deck 11: The Resurrection of Sherlock Holmes

Question 1

Investigative effort that might be characterized as "super sleuthing" is

A) found only in large city agencies.
B) found only in proactive investigations.
C) common in violent crime investigations.
D) rare.

Answer 1

D

Question 2

In John Eck's monograph Solving Crimes: The Investigation of Burglary and Robbery,it is observed that quantification of the probability of solvability (a numeric probability of clearance)

A) has been established, but lacks implementation.
B) is within grasp, but requires more data.
C) is possible for burglary but not robbery.
D) is nearly impossible.

Answer 2

D

Question 3

Domestic assault cases are an illustration of what style of investigation?

A) standard reactive
B) passive notation
C) reinforcing patrol
D) discovery enforcement

Answer 3

C

Question 4

The highest standard to justify a clearance by exception is

A) the reported offense is discovered to be unfounded.
B) tangible independent evidence.
C) admission by an offender.
D) acknowledgement by an offender.

Question 5

The trend nationally is toward the investigative role as a(n)

A) promoted position.
B) corporal rank.
C) sergeant rank.
D) assignment.

Question 6

The trend nationally is toward investigators (detectives)reporting in the police agency hierarchy to a

A) patrol commander.
B) investigative lieutenant.
C) investigative captain.
D) civilian director.

Question 7

In the year 2000,public perception of the competence of detectives was strongly affected by

A) television programming.
B) mystery novels.
C) the O. J. Simpson and Jon Benét Ramsey cases.
D) false convictions discovered through DNA analysis.

Question 8

The vast majority of cases in an investigator's caseload in a given month

A) are solved.
B) see no progress.
C) are cleared by exception.
D) are cleared by arrest.

Question 9

The characterization of detectives as "glorified clerks for the district attorney" is

A) speculative.
B) accurate.
C) blatantly false.
D) unfair.

Question 10

A sophisticated role of detectives that should be respected in its own right is moving a case from "probable cause" to

A) cleared by arrest.
B) cleared by exception.
C) beyond reasonable doubt.
D) probable perpetrator identification.

Question 11

The RAND Criminal Investigation Study conducted in the 1970s found no linkage between investigative effort and clearance rates; more recent evaluations in various settings

A) found dramatically different results.
B) by and large confirm the finding.
C) indicate a lack of linkage only for property crime.
D) indicate a lack of linkage only for violent crime.

Question 12

The proportion of all offenses classified as "with a reasonable amount of investigative effort might be solved,but certainly will not be solved without such effort" is no larger than

A) 5 percent.
B) 25 percent.
C) 37 percent.
D) 50 percent.

Question 13

Sexual assault cases wherein the assailant is unknown to the victim (not an acquaintance)are an illustration of what style of investigation?

A) standard reactive
B) major cases
C) reinforcing patrol
D) discovery enforcement

Question 14

The clearance-by-exception statistic might be characterized as the epitome of

A) Compstat-style accountability.
B) a reality-grounded productivity measure.
C) fuzzy math.
D) the idea that statistics do not lie, but statisticians do.

Question 15

A little-recognized "technology" with rapidly expanding investigative utility is

A) the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS).
B) the Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System (IAFIS).
C) the National Integrated Ballistics Information Network (NIBIN).
D) surveillance cameras.

Question 16

Investigative activities that might be characterized as mundane,routine,and unglamorous occur

A) typically only for property crime cases.
B) typically only for incidents involving acquaintances.
C) daily, regardless of assignment.
D) rarely.

Question 17

Among the public,the mystique of detective work has been restored primarily due to

A) television programming.
B) the resurgence of mystery novels via e-readers.
C) high-profile cases that have been solved.
D) cold case squads.

Question 18

Repeat-offender units have all but disappeared because of

A) the emergence of DNA evidence.
B) the declining status of detectives.
C) lack of arrest productivity.
D) supplanting by cold case units.

Question 19

The assertion of the RAND Criminal Investigation Study conducted in the 1970s that received the most attention was that detectives were

A) just as fallible as patrol officers.
B) "prima donnas" in most agencies.
C) glorified clerks for the district attorney.
D) for the most part, incompetent.

Question 20

Within the police profession itself,the status of detectives has

A) always been very high.
B) sagged, but is again on the rise.
C) never been higher.
D) been waning for three decades.