Descriptionary

pit maneuver a technique of stopping a fleeing criminal by steering a cruiser into the tail end of the getaway car and spinning it around.

plainclothes officer a police officer or detective who works in street clothes to help hide his or her identity.

polygraph an apparatus having sensors that are attached to a criminal suspect to measure blood pres­sure and respiration during interrogation. Also known as a lie detector.

precinct a station house or the area of a city that a station house serves. Also known as a division.

private detective a detective unaffiliated with a police department who is hired by an individual to investigate a crime, carry out surveillance, find a miss­ing person, etc.

private eye a private detective.

probable cause the belief, based on evidence, that someone has committed a crime, necessary for issu­ance of search or arrest warrants by the court.

profiling the controversial practice of pulling a motor­ist over in his or her car on the basis of age or race, as opposed to any wrongdoing or suspicious activity.

psychological profile a report developed by a psy­chologist detailing a criminal's likely psychological makeup, based on profiles from criminal behavior in past crimes.

psychopathic personality an impulsive personality largely or entirely lacking in conscience or sense of remorse.

rape kit a kit used by investigators to collect semen or other biological material from a rape victim.

rap sheet a criminal's record of arrests and con­victions.

reverse paternity DNA

a test used to identify a per­son's blood by analyzing the DNA of the individual's parents.

rifling the spiraling grooves inside a gun barrel that leave distinctive markings on bullets when fired. Every gun barrel has its own distinctive pattern that, when imprinted on bullets, can be used as identification and evidence.

R.K.C. resident known criminal.

scanning electron microscope in a police lab, a high-tech microscope used to search for particles pres­ent in gunshot residue.

Scotland Yard the headquarters of the Criminal Investigation Department of the London Metropoli­tan Police.

search warrant a court order allowing a police offi­cer to search a suspect's residence for evidence of illegal activity.

selective recall a suspect's suspiciously sharp mem­ory of where he was and what he was doing when questioned by an interrogator about a crime. Suspects often supply too many precise details when providing alibis concerning the day and location a crime took place. Such memory is doubly suspicious when the suspect cannot produce similar details about the day before or after a crime took place.

shadow to tail or follow a suspect.

signature a particular way a serial offender per­forms an illegal act, or a telling detail left behind at a crime scene that identifies a criminal.

sniffer dog a dog trained to sniff out illicit drugs, bombs, or accelerants used in an arson fire.

speed trap an area along a road where a police offi­cer hides in order to catch speeders.

spike strip a mat composed of long, sharp spikes, laid down in the middle of a road to pierce the tires of a motorist fleeing from the police.

stakeout waiting and observing surreptitiously at a location for a crime to occur.

stun gun

a small electric gun that fires a wired, dart­like projectile and incapacitates a fleeing or struggling suspect by jolting the person with up to 50,000 volts of electricity, causing complete loss of muscle control. Also known as a Taser.

super glue fuming a technique used to reveal latent fingerprints. Super glue is heated to boiling, creating a gas that coats everything around it. A component of the glue adheres to the amino acids, fatty acids, and proteins in the oil secretions from fingertip ridges and turns them white. Also known as cyanoacrylate fum­ing. Developed by the Japanese in 1978.

surveillance observation or spying on a criminal suspect by the police or a detective.

SWAT Special Weapons and Tactics; an elite police force with paramilitary training.

sweep a large-scale crackdown on a particular crime in a specified area, resulting in numerous arrests.

swoop a massive and simultaneous convergence of police or police cruisers at a particular site to make an arrest of a group of suspects, such as drug dealers.

tactical officer an officer who works in plain clothes to make drug and vice arrests.

Taser see stun gun.

tear gas a gas that causes severe eye irritation and temporary blindness, used by law enforcement to control unruly or rioting crowds.