Field notes are very important for law enforcement. This is because they serve as a basis for further investigation. With the information recorded in field notes, a police officer can use it as a lead in the investigation. Good field notes help law enforcement agencies write a comprehensive report that contains crucial information. Whenever a police officer is called to testify in a court of law, he can refer to field notes to refresh his memory of incidents. Notes written by the police officer can also be used as evidence during a trial. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay When taking field notes it is important to include the personal details of the person being interviewed. This includes their name, address and contact details. A description of the person's appearance should also be included in the notes. In order to differentiate the different crimes, a brief description of the crime should also be included. All this information is vital as it helps the officer remember what the interrogated person said while writing a report. The officer writing the notes should use abbreviations that he can easily identify. The place and time in which and when the crime occurs must also be noted. To effectively capture statements made at the scene, the officer should directly quote the person who made the statement. Sketches should also be included in field notes. The sketches later help in identifying a suspect or even the weapon used to commit a crime. Good field notes should not include personal opinions regarding the suspect. The notes also should not include a conclusion about the incident. When writing the note, only relevant information about the incident should be noted. The rest of the information collected at the scene that is not important to the case should not be written down. A Simulated Crime Scene When called to a crime scene, the investigator should be able to look for signs that indicate whether or not the scene was simulated. This is because some suspects commit a crime and then stage it to make it appear as if the victim committed the crime themselves. A police officer staged a scene to make it appear as if his wife had accidentally shot herself while cleaning his gun. The officer said he was cleaning his gun before leaving for a while and when he returned he found his wife dead and the gun next to her body. The officer also stated that the gun was not loaded, however, rounds were found in the magazine, as well as a live round in the chamber. In an attempt to deceive investigators, the gun was found next to the victim's body. as well as the materials used to clean the gun. Break-Free CLP cleaning solvent was also found on the magazine and a canister containing the solvent was also present on site. The gun found at the scene also contained residues of the cleaning solvent. A blood transfer stain, similar to the victim's DNA, was also found on the spray can of the cleaning solvent. All this in an attempt to prove that the victim was cleaning his gun when he accidentally shot himself. The suspect, however, was unable to lead investigators to believe that the woman had shot herself. This came after test results showed that Break-Free CLP cleaning solvent had been used on the gun after it had been discharged. If the woman actually was.