Hi All, I'm currently working on a standalone YA fantasy book, set in present day England. Despite it being fantasy, I want any content which takes place in the 'real world' to be as accurate and believable as possible. In the second half of the book, the main character (Leigh) is suspected of having killed three people: a husband and wife, and an elderly woman. The elderly woman (Connie) was a friend of Leigh, who was killed earlier in the book when she and Leigh were attacked. Connie left her house to another character (Alex), and Leigh is currently residing in Connie's home, with Alex's permission. The husband and wife were part of the group responsible for Connie's death, and when they try to attack Leigh, he kills them. Now here is where I have trouble, as I know very little about police procedure regarding murder investigations. The idea I have, albeit very rough at the moment, is that the officer in charge of the investigation is also part of the group responsible for Connie's death, and is using the investigation to try and distract Leigh from the antagonist’s goals. Most of the others are just ordinary police officers trying to do their jobs. There is little to no real evidence to show Leigh had a part in the deaths, so the lead officer is trying to plant evidence, and orders three officers (one of whom is also involved in the plot to frame Leigh) to investigate the house without a warrant. The two other officers reluctantly do so, but are caught by Leigh, who convinces them of the truth. Firstly, I'll ask if anyone knows of any reliable websites/books were I might be able to get the information I need. More specifically, I need to know:- -How many officers would typically be involved in this type of investigation? -What methods would the officers use to investigate the deaths? -How much/what sort of evidence would the officers require before they could get a search/arrest warrant? Thank You in advance for any help. Matt.
First of all, when Connie was killed didn't Leigh testify about what had happened since she was with him? Then, if the couple tried to kill Leigh and he killed them in self defense, did he call the police and report the attack and his actions or did he hide/run? If he has already talked to the police then while Connie's case would be a murder investigation, the couple's case would be a case of self defense and would not warrant further investigation once it has been proven. If he didn't talk to the police in either case though, then on a multiple homicide case there could be any number of officers involved in the investigation but only one(or maybe two, don't know exactly how it works) would have a lead role. Searching Leigh's apartment without a warrant can only be good for Leigh, since any evidence found before a warrant is signed are inadmissible for any and all purposes. The only way to plant evidence in the apartment would be to have someone break in before any police officer comes searching with a warrant, and have them plant the evidence somewhere for the officers to find. To get a search warrant you need to prove to the judge that you have evidence proving that inside the target building/area/business exist evidence proof of a crime. You can't say "i saw them", you need to have actual proof that the evidence exists.
There are a couple of forums where you can ask police type questions. The first one http://policespecials.com/forum even has a special area on their forum called 'scenario city' - I'm sure you will get answers to your questions there. Another one is http://policeuk.com/forum may be worth a look. A little while ago I downloaded a Kindle book from Amazon - it was being offered for free - now it is 3.85 dollars, it's called 'I pay your wages, a beginners guide to the police service' by P C Surname. Obviously it is written by a police officer incognito. Check out the index. It could be a good source of research for you.
