lOMoARcPSD|27916040
COMPLETE WJEC Unit 3 – AC 1, 2, 3
ALL MODEL WITH ACCURATE
ANSWERS LATEST 2025 UPDATED
& GRADED A+
AC 1.1 - Evaluate the effectiveness of the
roles of personnel involved in criminal
investigations.
Prepare for your exams
Study with the several resources on Docsity
Earn points to download
Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan
Guidelines and tips
Prepare for your exams
Study with the several resources on Docsity
Earn points to download
Earn points by helping other students or get them with a premium plan
Community
Ask the community
Ask the community for help and clear up your study doubts
University Rankings
Discover the best universities in your country according to Docsity users
Free resources
Our save-the-student-ebooks!
Download our free guides on studying techniques, anxiety management strategies, and thesis advice from Docsity tutors
COMPLETE WJEC Unit 3 – AC 1, 2, 3 ALL MODEL WITH ACCURATE ANSWERS LATEST 2025 UPDATED & GR, Exams of Criminology
COMPLETE WJEC Unit 3 – AC 1, 2, 3 ALL MODEL WITH ACCURATE ANSWERS LATEST 2025 UPDATED & GRADED A+
Typology: Exams
2024/2025
1 / 31
This page cannot be seen from the preview
Don't miss anything!
Related documents
Partial preview of the text
Download COMPLETE WJEC Unit 3 – AC 1, 2, 3 ALL MODEL WITH ACCURATE ANSWERS LATEST 2025 UPDATED & GR and more Exams Criminology in PDF only on Docsity!
COMPLETE WJEC Unit 3 – AC 1 , 2, 3
ALL MODEL WITH ACCURATE
ANSWERS LATEST 2025 UPDATED
& GRADED A+
AC 1.1 - Evaluate the effectiveness of the
roles of personnel involved in criminal
investigations.
Crime Scene Investigators (CSI) or Scene of
Crime Officers (SOCO’s)
One type of personnel involved in criminal investigations is crime scene investigators(CSI) or scene of crime officers (SOCO’s). They are employed by police service to preserve and protect a crime scene while recovering evidence that is required to be kept uncontaminated to ensure it is reliable. Becoming a SOCO often requires a degree in forensic science or in a specific scientific subject and it is also expected of them to have had experience in police work intelligence gathering and analysis. On average, they work around 42 hours perweek with a salary of £16,000 to £35,000 per year.
One strength is that due to the high expertise and experience of crime officers, they can be trustworthy individuals and this also makes them effective because the risk ofevidence contamination is low and their accuracy of evidence can secure a prosecution. Another strength is that there is very high availability due to how every police force in England and Wales employ them and they also work on an on-call system. This makes them effective as they are always available to assist in criminal investigations. One case example where SOCO’s have shown effectiveness is the Sally Bowman case where Bowman was murdered and there were no suspects however SOCO’s managed to collect DNA from the crime scene and then the offender was found. Also the cost of them makes them effective where they are only paid £16,000 to £35,000 which is affordable to police departments and the government more so than other personnel. This means we can employ more SOCO's which shows they are effective.
One weakness is that the job of a SOCO may not be socially desirable due to the hours and having to be on call all the time. So even though there is high availabilityof them, this may be reduced in the future where people could potentially stop applying for the job. Also SOCO’s can be exposed to hazardous material and this could affect availability as people may not want to commit to a dangerous job. Another weakness is that there are many cases where protocols for collecting evidence have not been followed and therefore cases collapsed due to the lack of evidence. For example in the case of Amanda Knox they had failed to wear protective clothing and when wearing show coverings, they failed to take them out when they went outside and therefore evidence was unreliable. This shows how SOCO’s can be ineffective.
SOCO’s have high expertise and have the ability to collect forensic samples in theright manner and they are also educated as they will have degrees and which suggests they have the right knowledge which means they will be effective in theirrole.
Police
Another type of personnel is police who are the first to arrive at a crime scene and sim to preserve life, secure the crime scene and conserve evidence. Police will alsohave a role of investigating and reducing crime.
One strength of police is that it is necessary to have education and qualifications in order to become a police officer which shows they will be effective due to their highlevel of expertise. Another strength is that police officers are extremely important asthey safeguard the public and attend to those needed. For example, they would call an emergency ambulance if someone was seriously injured. They also protect the public by detecting and preventing crime.
One weakness of police is that the availability is not great. As there is only 211 policeper 100,000 population which shows there is not enough police. Similarly, another weakness which is due to cost is that there are also budget cuts which impact the amount of police and this means there are more crimes left uninvestigated. Also there are cases where police have proven themselves to be influenced by bias and prejudice which suggests there is institutional racism. For example in the case of Steven Lawrence where they chose not to see that it was ahate crime.
CPS
The crown prosecution service is given the power to decide whether or not to prosecute an offender. This was previously done by police but changed since 1986.CPS are trained lawyers who look at the cases police send them and they decide whether it passes their tests. Such as whether there’s another evidence or if there ispublic interest to process with the case.
One strength of CPS is that they are trained lawyers and have a fixed process to ensure the right and fair decision which means they have expertise. Another strength is that they are also independent and are not related to policetherefore they are able to make their own decisions Also they are open 24/7 so are available to police all the time through CPS Direct which means police can contact them anytime for any support or advice.
A weakness is that there is proven to be mistakes in every 1/15 cases which suggests that CPS are not always correct which suggests they are not so effective. Also a lot of the time they lack evidence which causes such a high number of casesto collapse. Another weakened is that the relationship they have with police is quite difficult whichagain affects the effectiveness and the whole process.
Forensic Pathologist
Forensic pathologists conduct the autopsies as well as determine the cause of death.
One strength is that pathologists train as doctors before specialising in pathology which means they are experts. This means they are also highly educated which means their findings will be reliable.Another strength is that pathologists reveal key evidence for the cause of death which is very important information within the case meaning they are highlight effective. Also they are always available as they work 24/7 on call which is very useful as theyare there when needed.
However one weakness is that even though they work 24/7, they are very limited in numbers as there are only around 37 organisations in the UK and this suggests thatavailability is actually a weakness. They would also be working on several cases at once which could make them less effective. Another weakness is the cost as forensic pathologists are paid around £100,000 ayear which is expensive. Also mistakes can happen and this has been proven by the anthony hardy case where a pathologist decided the first victim of a serial killer died of natural causes. DrPatel, the pathologist, did not take the location, position of body or blood into account. The pathologist was then found guilty of incompetence.
HM Revenue and Customs
HMRC has a duty of investigating attacks against UK tax system. They have the power to apply for orders that require information to be produced, apply for as well as execute search warrants, make arrests, search suspects andpremises following arrests and recover criminal assets through the Proceeds of crime act 2002.
One strength of HMRC is that they are impartial and specialised in their area of work which shows they are effective. Another strength is that they are a large workforce and can access the right advanced recourses which aid investigations. They also have similar abilities to police.
One weakness of HMRC is that the mandatory training that is needed could deterpossible applicants and this may limit he amount of officers which suggests low availability. Another weakness is that it could be difficult managing a large workforce and stayingimpartial.
people may be put off their actions and change their mind after knowing they arebeing recorded. Also CCTV surveillance can also be released to public media with appeals in orderfor people to identify or report anyone recognised. This can be quite useful to investigations.
One weakness of surveillance is that it only actually solves 1 in 1000 cases which was found in a study conducted by metropolitan police. This means only 3% of crimes are solved with CCTV which is only a small minority of cases. This suggest they are not so useful. Another weakness is that surveillance can include undercover work which could be dangerous and risky for people involved. Also it doesn’t actually solve the crime itself and it causes a displacement of crime rather than actually getting rid of the crime. This again shows it isn’t very useful.
Surveillance like CCTV would be most useful on streets and where crimes may take place to catch crime happening and it would be most beneficial for violent crime or crimes happening on the street as it would be evidence of the act.
Interview techniques
Another investigative technique is interview techniques which can be split into eyewitness testimony and experts. Both of them provide interviews and a verbalstatement regarding the case. Experts are called into investigations to make sense of evidence and examine theaccuracy of the evidence. For example, medical experts can provide information about the cause of death. With eyewitness testimony, cognitive interviewing is used to help police during investigations and ensure accurate evidence. Fisher and Greiselman identified the four basic principles to increase memory. The include report everything, recall in different orders, reinstatement of context and recall from different perspectives. This can show an increase in usefulness of eye witness testimonies as it develops accuracy in investigations. One strength is that they are popular and used commonly and accepted. There arealso many convictions that have been based on eyewitness testimony suggesting they are useful as they are also said to be reliable and seen as good evidence. Also eyewitness testimony and experts support investigations as they give clues of where to look or what to find and this can save time. Another strength is that expertshave knowledge as well as qualifications which can provide responses which are accurate These advantages suggest interview techniques are useful investigative techniques.
One weakness of interview techniques is that they may be affected by anxiety andstress and this could cause statements to be less reliable. Also it has been proven that miscarriages of justice have occurred due to them. Forexample the case of Ronald Cotton who was wrongfully imprisoned for 10 years for
crimes he did not commit and his convictions were based on flawed eyewitnesstestimony.
The use of interview techniques would be the most useful in a police station or court where evidence is heard and collected and interview techniques would be useful for a range of different crimes. For example violent crime.
Offender profiling
One technique used in criminal investigations is offender profiling where it is believedthat it is possible to work out the characteristics of an offender from assessing the offence. This means investigators of a case would use their knowledge of the case details to come up with a description of what they would believe the offender would look like.
Strengths of this would be that it is a quick way for investigators to solve a crime as well as affordable. Another strength is that there are cases where offender profiling has helped to solvethe crime. For example in the case of railway rapist, Canter created an offender profile and John Duffy matched 13 out of the 17 characteristics. He was then found guilty. Also, offender profiling is useful as it helps predict future offences and allow offenders to be caught earlier which will also avoid future victims. This also helps police prioritise suspects and target resources.
A weakness of offender profiling is that it can create a miscarriage of justice. For example Colin Stagg was thought to be an offender due to the profile but he was actually innocent. Another weakness is that they can create delays in investigationsand waste time if an incorrect profile is created. Also it was found that they are onlybeneficial 46% off the time so they are not very useful.
This type of technique would be used in a police station where it is carried out and it it would be most useful in the situation of street crime or violence.
Intelligence databases
Are where police use databases in order to store and access information. For example the UK national DNA database and police national computer. Criminit, which is run by metropolitan police service, stores information about criminals andsuspected criminals. There are also databases that contain information from past witnesses, informants and agents.
One strength of this is that it can solve crimes if there is data needed as well as prevent and deter crime. It can also be a valuable tool to make links and solvingcrimes. For example tracing offendors via DNA. Also the benefit of having databases readily available is that it saved time andresources.
AC 1.3 - Explain how evidence is processed
Physical evidence
One type of evidence is physical evidence which is real evidence and tangible material that is found at a crime scene and can be used to find a suspect. This can include blood, DNA, hair or footprints. One example of physical evidence is footprints. Firstly photographs are taken and kept as evidence which proves where exactly the footprints were found at the crime scene. They can be collected in two ways. One way is by using electrostatic lifting apparatus which recovers dry footprints using a foil earthing sheet and electrodes are passed through to form a clear imagine. They can often use a white light to make the footprints more visible and if if the footprint is left outside in mud then a clay cast can also be used and compared to shoes of suspects. Footprints are collected by SOCO’s or CSI. Footprints must be stored properly and safe in order to make sure they are transferred smoothly to the laboratory. They will be stored in sterile containers and will be labelled with the crime data which ensures they’re returned to the correct department. They are then transferred to the laboratory where specialists test the footprints. They can be analysed by using cinderella analysis which allows experts tofind distinctive impressions of insoles of shoes. There is also a database which compares patterns of prints to shoes. The whole process involves different personnelat each stage. For example the SOCOS that collect the evidence and the specialist that will analyse it. One case example where the use of collecting footprints was used is the case of Amanda Knox where the detectives had actually failed to wear protective clothing and when they wore shoe coverings they didn’t take them off when they went outside which meant the footprints recorded weren’t reliable.
Another example of physical evidence is hair and fibre samples which are collected by SOCO’s who will wear a bodysuit so that their own clothes and hair doesn’t contaminate the evidence. Hairs are placed into DNA tubes and sealed whilst fibrescan be collected using sticky tape and placed on a paper before being put into an evidence bag. Once they’re collected, labelled evidence bags need to be sent to thelab separated from each to prevent contamination. At the lab hair and fibres are analysed by experts under a microscope and can undergo toxicology exams which can find drug use. One example of where hair and fibre was used is in the case of Sarah Pain where Sarah's hair was found material fibre from a sweater found in the suspects van. There were also fibres on her shoe that matched the passenger seat cover in the van and her hair was also found on the sweater. The suspect Roy Whiting was guilty of the abduction and murder of the young girl.
Testimonial evidence
Testimonial evidence is spoken or written statements provided by a witness, expert of victim. They will be recorded by a police officer who will write down information asthey are spoken to and this is made into a police report of the case. Some statements may be conducted through an audio tape recorded interview and tape must be sealed in a bag, labelled and signed by the officer and person that’s provided the statement. All testimonial evidence has to be disclosed before going tocourt and the prosecution and defence will need to supply either side with names of witnesses which will be called to give evidence.
However testimonial evidence is not always admissible. For example, the testimonyof Lizzie James and the evidence linked to this was deemed inadmissible by the court. This was due to it being created through entrapment – where the police attempted to trick Colin Stagg into confessing to a crime he did not commit, As he never did confess, this makes the evidence both poorly collected as well as poorly analysed. Sir Roy Meadow is an infamous case of expert testimonial as he gave incorrect andmisleading evidence, stating that there was a “one in 73 million chance” that there could be two cot deaths within the same family
- resulting in the false conviction of Sally Clark. The issue was that the CPS poorly analysed the testimony as no one decide to fact check his claims.
AC 2.1 - Explain the requirements of
the Crown Prosecution Service for
prosecuting suspects
The crown prosecution service, CPS, was established in 1986 by the prosecution of offences act 1985. Prior to this, the police were in charge of prosecuting. However itwas felt that a more independent body was needed to make these decisions. The CPS have various roles such as advising the police with their cases. They were also given a charging role in the criminal justice act 2003 which means they decide which cases are prosecuted. They also prepare cases for court as well as present cases at court. In order to make the decision toprosecute, CPS use a two stage test that the case must pass which is called The Full Code Test. The first step is the evidential test which asks if there’s enough evidenceto gain a realistic prospect of conviction. The CPS must take into account what the defence may say and how it may impact the prosecution's case. A realistic prospect of conviction is an objective test which means a jury or bench of magistrates or judge hearing a case alone, with correct advice of law, is more likely to find the evidence provided by police fair, admissible, accurate and reliable. An example of reliable evidence could be DNA or hair and fibre taken from the crime scene for example the case of sarah pain where the evidence of hair andfibre was used to find her murderer. Whereas unreliable evidence could be for example the Honey Trap evidence from the case of Colin Stagg where the defendant was lured into making a false confession. If the evidence is admissible and reliable, then the CPS can move onto the next part of the Full Code Test which is the public interest test. This is where the CPS need to consider whether or not it’s in the public interest to prosecute. It could be that the public is better served with and out of court order. To help decide the test, there is a list of questions they may consider including. For example how serious the offence is and what thelevel of culpability is of the suspect. In the case of Caronline Flack whereshe was prosecuted, it was argued that if she was an ordinary person that would not have been the case and her management had even released a statement to say how CPS pursued this even though she wasvulnerable and the alleged victim did not support the prosecution. This case showed that the full code test should not have actually passed. Both of these stages must be passed in order for the prosecution of a suspect to go ahead. If these stages cannot be applied, CPS may apply
the threshold test where they would temporarily charge the suspect untilthe full code test can be applied. This allows immediate charging decisions despite not all the evidence being available. There have beencases where this test has been questioned. For example the Damiola Taylor case where it should’ve been clear that the evidence from the main suspect was inadmissible due to inconsistencies.
In a crown court cases will be led by barristers and counsel to help build and present their case. The jury, which is made of 12 lay people, will listen to the case and then deliberate with each other to decide the outcome of the case. The judge will overseethe whole trail and ensures the legal process is taking place and they also have power to dismiss evidence and can remind jury of their duty and how they can respond to information. At the end of a trial, if the jury decides on a guilty verdict, thejudge can decide appropriate sentencing.
Appeals
Anyone convicted of a crime has an automatic right to appeal their conviction. Appeals from magistrates court go to the crown court. Appeals from the crown court go to the Court of appeal Criminal Division. The top court in the system is the Supreme court also known as House of Lords which is only used when cases concern points of law to general public importance.
AC 2.3 - Understand the rules in relation to the use of
evidence incriminal cases
Relevance and admissibility
All evidence needs to be relevant, reliable and admissible in court according to s28 of the Police and Criminal Evidence Act 1984. Relevance is where evidence must apply to the case in question and need to relate to the incident directly. It also needsto be logical as well as approve or disprove the case facts. Admissibility is where it isallowed to be entered into the trial by law and it has to be relatable and correctly obtained. Reliability means when evidence would be found again if the incident occurred again and the same results were found. For example eyewitness testimony would need to be reliable by matching other peoples versions of events and DNA should always be 100% reliable and accurate. Section 76 PACE (1984) directs courts to exclude evidence of a confession which is gained as a result of oppression or other circumstances that could make unreliable or false confessions. So evidencethat has been collected through coercion or entrapment has to be excluded. For example in the case of Collin Stagg where the undercover police officer, Lizzie, had tried to lead colin into creating evidence that he was responsible for a murder. Also under the Criminal Justice Act (2003), previous convictions aren’t always automatically allowed as evidence but there are times when they may be allowed to be given in court. This is under section 103 where previous convictions can be givenif they can show whether the defence has a possibility to commit offences of the kind with which they are charged.
Disclosure of Evidence.
This is the key idea that both the prosecution and defence must disclose all evidencethat they find to each other. This is done to ensure that the trial is fair and the outcome is correct as based on the evidence. The importance of this is shown in the decision by the government to create The Joint National Disclosure Improvement Plan in 2018. This shows the joint commitment from all involved in the criminal justice system and they ensure this rule is upheld in all cases. In the case of Sally Clark, when prosecution failed to disclose medical information which would have served as her defence, the same information acquitted Clark of her conviction three years later. Failure to disclose can lead to miscarriages of justice.
Hearsay rule and exemptions
Finally, hearsay evidence is when a statement made out of court, and it can’t be used as evidence, but parties can use hearsay evidence if satisfied it is in the interest of ¡justice, or the person who said the statement is no longer alive, lives abroad or is vulnerable. This is put in place under S.114 of the criminal justice act.Amanda Knox is an example of hearsay evidence, as when both her and her boyfriend were charged with murder, they were reported to be saying the wrong things about each other.
this had gone to a trial, Mr Jefferies could not have had a fair hearing as thetreatment of him risks influencing and biassing the jury. In the case of the McCann’s, they were only named suspects yet The Express Grouptreated them badly as such
- despite being victims too. Though they did sue the papers for libel, it is possible that if the McCann's were ever brought to trial, the coverage of them could be “contempt of court”. This would be as the jury would already be influenced with the false allegations spread about them and bias their opinions – they could not have a fair trial. It is clear that the media has much influence over the outcomes of a trial, possibly considered to be too much influence if they have the possibility to ruin a trial before ithas even become. Despite the law stating that everyone is “innocent until proven guilt”, it is rare for the media to assume this in more well known cases.
Witnesses
Witness testimonies are useful pieces of evidence that can be used by either the persecution or defence. If the side calling the witnesses wishes to question their statement then this is called ‘examination in chief’ while if the opposing side wishes to do so, then this is called ‘cross examination’. Witnesses can come across as very positive or their look alone can make the jury question their statement and reliability. An advantage of using witness testimonies is how strong they can be when presented before jury. A good testimony can sometimes be enough to sway a jury infavour of a certain side, as they are likely to be sympathetic to the person testifying – especially if it is emotional. In comparison to a piece of physical evidence, an emotional testimony from a victim will be more memorable to the jury, possibly subconsciously affecting their decision. Though witness testimonies can hold much weight, weaknesses come as time canchange a person’s recollection of events. Getting cases to court can be a long process and in that time, the clarity of the memory can be lost. Furthermore, if a victim of a crime needs to testify, their witness statement may lack important detaildue to the stress of the situation. This is backed up by research by Loftus which found that if under high levels of stress, the efficiency of a memory can be greatly effected. Another weakness is that something as simple as seeing a similar pictureto that of the suspect, can alter a victim’s recollection of their attacker’s identity.
especially if it is emotional. In comparison to a piece of physical evidence, an emotional testimony from a victim will be more memorable to the jury, possiblysubconsciously affecting their decision. Though witness testimonies can hold much weight, weaknesses come as time canchange a person’s recollection of events. Getting cases to court can be a long process and in that time, the clarity of the memory can be lost. Furthermore, if a victim of a crime needs to testify, their witness statement may lack important detaildue to the stress of the situation. This is backed up by research by Loftus which found that if under high levels of stress, the efficiency of a memory can be greatly effected. Another weakness is that something as simple as seeing a similar picture
to that of the suspect, can alter a victim’s recollection of their attacker’s identity. andthey neglected to fact check his statement and the figures he gave relating to cot deaths.
Politics
Parliament can have a great influence on the outcome of crimes as they are the ones which produce the laws. This means that they can pressure judges and magistrates to be harsher with their sentencing and in turn influence a jury’s response. For example, in the 2011 London riots where the sentences for crimes committed during the riots were increased by 25%. The court were advised to usemuch harder sentencing as a deterrent to the public – proving that was not to be accepted or tolerated.
Judiciary
Judges have a great influence on the outcome of crimes as they have a similar role to a referee. They decide who speaks in court and how long for. This is a strength inthe outcome of criminal cases as it keeps everything running smoothly and will savetime and ensure everything is precise. However this can be a weakness as it can bias a jury and affect their decision.
In the case of Twomey, the judge decided to deny the defendant the right to a trial byjury as there was a very significant issue of possible jury tampering. This meant that they were the only person deciding the outcome of the trial – therefore having a verygreat influence. However in the case of R. V Ponting, the judge has far less impact. Despite having breached the Official Secrets Act and with the judge’s direction to convict him, the jury decided to acquit Ponting as they believed it was the right thing to do. When a jury disagrees with a judge and therefore goes against them, this is called ‘jury nullification’. The judge therefore had very little ability to influence the outcome of the case as the jury chose to go against the advice of the judge.
Similarly, in the case or R v Wang, the defendant was a buddhist who had a swordand a knife in his bag, As a buddhist, the defendant practised Shaolin, a traditionalmartial art that required the use of a knife. The judge directed the jury to find him guilty of having a bladed article in a public place. However, there are no circumstances in which a judge is entitled to direct a jury to return a guilty verdict, which in this case religion played a part.
If the directs the jury to find the defendant guilty, they may do so because the judge is experienced and a legal professional with an understanding of the law. The jury may be persuaded by this rather than the facts of the case which can be a weaknessas in some cases, the judge may not intend to lead the case towards a guilty verdict,but jury could misunderstand and therefore develop a verdict based of the judge.