“Exploring the Challenges and Solutions for Small Police Departments in Utilizing Forensic Science and Ensuring Diversity in Jury Selection”

Dalrymple- that was enjoyable
Matthew Dalrymle posted May 22, 2024 1:11 PM
There are a lot of small-time agencies out there with little budget.  There are a few in South Carolina with ten officers sometimes less on the department.  They don’t have the need or the budget for the department to use a lot of the forensic testing that sometimes is needed.  It makes it harder for them when the people in their cities think they need to solve the crime just because of that, not a lot of crime and enough people to figure it out.  Not knowing what it really entails.  To help bridge the gap they can partner with some of the other local agencies, federal, state, and local forensic services.  Some of the agencies may not like that however, it has to be done and crimes need to be taken care of.  In South Carolina, where I work, a lot of the things that need checked such as firearms, disposal of narcotics, and some forensic services is sent to South Carolina Law Enforcement Division, SLED.  Smaller departments will send some things there as well; however, they are not always prompt with the reply.  It is also acceptable to reach out for assistance from other departments when something is not common in crime.  Small cities don’t get the crime some of the bigger cities have, reaching out to get assistance for some of the procedures if not known, or the officer don’t feel comfortable.  This is a major networking that all law officers do from the day the start the academy process.  There is also grants for departments to send their officers to the training that is sometimes advance in the forensic science that federal agencies put on. 
Diversity is something that has always come to play within the community for juror.  Peers is where the controversy comes into play, which means an equal.  The judge cannot dismiss anyone based on race, or gender.  However, there are rules to who can and cannot be a juror, such as felons are not allowed to be jurors.  Which is a lot to do with the reading.  One approach to try to get a jury could be no checks on them just let them be interviewed see how the outcome is.  The study could indicate that the absence of felons within a jury could lead to some of the diversity within the jury selection and go against a jury of peers.  However, on the other side of that it could also show a bias to be more relax on the criminal population, a lot of them know each other.  As well as they could be known to pressure the other members if they did know the individual.  What is to keep them from lying and saying they don’t know the individual, if they did.  There can be a lot of ways the selection can go for and against a known felon to be in a the jury.  Looking more into it and probably more than needed.  How can a felon juror be on a case with a firearm case, when they cannot even own one? 
References:
APA PsycNet. (n.d.). https://psycnet.apa.org/home
Binnall, J. M. (2018). Jury diversity in the age of mass incarceration: an exploratory mock jury experiment examining felon-jurors’ potential impacts on deliberations. Psychology, Crime & Law/Psychology, Crime and Law, 25(4), 345–363. https://doi.org/10.1080/1068316x.2018.1528359