Welcome to your Policing and Criminal Investigation course

Are you studying Policing and Criminal Investigation with a Foundation year?

Your Foundation Year provides a wonderful opportunity to develop the skills needed for the successful completion of your degree. The topic areas covered include an introduction to academic study skills, as well as an introduction to critical thinking and argument. You will also study Theories of Criminality and the Sociology of Crime, enabling you to contextualise crime through the application of the law to a range of case studies and developing practical skills in Criminal Justice. 

This is not compulsory, but here is a list of resources to get you started

Netflix/Other Streaming Services

The Innocence files - The innocence files has a number of episodes which examine examples of wrongful convictions – use of DNA and disagreements between experts

How to Fix a Drug Scandal - Two drug lab chemist’s shocking crimes cripple a state’s judicial system and blur the lines of justice for lawyers, officials and thousands of inmates. (good for looking at the drawbacks of relying on forensics)

The Staircase - Accident or murder? After the death of his wife, author Michael Peterson watches his life go under the microscope. (follows the trial)

Making a Murderer - Filmed over 13 years, this real life thriller follows the story of two men accused of a grisly crime they may not have committed.

The People V OJ Simpson (Disney+) - This dramatization traces the twists and turns of OJ Simpson’s murder trial. (good for looking at the problems of physical evidence and influences on jury decisions)

TV Documentaries

Catching a killer:- The search for Natalie Hemming

Murder in the outback

OJ: Made in America

YouTube

Inside the Court of Appeal

Crime Scenes Scotland Forensics Squad

OJ Simpson: the Untold Story

Films

12 Angry Men (1957) - At the end of a murder trial in New York City, the jurors retire to consider their verdict. The man in the dock is a young Puerto Rican accused of killing his father, and eleven of the jurors do not hesitate in finding him guilty. However, one of the jurors (Henry Fonda), reluctant to send the youngster to his death without any debate, returns a vote of not guilty. From this single event, the jurors begin to re-evaluate the case, as they look at the murder - and themselves - in a fresh light!

A couple of suggestions for books you may want to read

The Secret Barrister: Stories of the Law and How it's Broken, by an anonymous author

Traces, by Professor Patricia Wiltshire

Under the Wig: A Lawyer's Stories of Murder, Guilt and Innocence, by William Clegg QC

Useful Websites

Crime Museum - information about forensic techniques and case studies

The Forensics Library - information on different types of forensic evidence and how it is collected and analysed, as well as information on how the crime scene is processed.

There are a multitude of resources available online for students at Staffordshire University, such as Microsoft Office 365. 

Software link: https://staffsuniversity.sharepoint.com/sites/software/SitePages/Home.aspx

Software for students