READ: The CSI Effect

The CSI Effect

The CSI Effect is when people have unrealistic expectations of forensic science from watching crime shows. Often the way that crime scenes and evidence are handled on television are not accurate. While these shows are entertaining and show some of the ways that crime scene investigation works, they are often inaccurate. Crimes are solved very quickly on televisions shows. Often in one episode a crime occurs, the scene is searched, suspects and victims are questioned, evidence is analyzed and the case is solved. The fact that this happens so quickly on crime dramas can make some people think that investigating a crime is a rather quick and straightforward process, even though the opposite is true. Often in real crime investigation the process is painstaking and the best way to analyze evidence is not always clear.

Another way that TV shows are inaccurate is that they sometimes portray a single investigator handling the entire process. They show one person responding to the scene and collecting evidence. Then that same person is often involved in questioning suspects and analyzing evidence back in the lab. This is often done in TV shows so that the viewer can easily follow the process from the scene to the lab, but in real life many different people handle each step. Usually a police officer responds to a scene and investigators may come to collect evidence at the scene. Police officers will collect statements from victims and possible suspects. Other law enforcement officials may question suspects. Then a scientists at the lab will analyze the different pieces of evidence. In reality, many people are involved with the crime scene at each step. One person does not complete every step in the investigation.

Crime shows also show technology that simply doesn’t exist. Some of the technology and techniques shown on TV are real, but sometimes they are not. On TV the evidence is often quickly analyzed with intricate looking equipment, and matches and information instantly show up on high tech computer screens. The technology used in real labs is often very interesting and requires specific training, but it is usually not as glamorous and easy to use as TV shows make it seem.

With all of these inaccuracies portrayed on popular crime dramas, it can give people unrealistic expectations. This CSI Effect is particularly damaging in the court room. Members of a jury may misinterpret evidence shown in the courtroom, because it doesn’t match what they have seen on TV. They may think that certain types of evidence have no value, or that other types of evidence should have been easy to find in the case. This can make it difficult for juries to evaluate evidence, and can make juries more likely to convict or acquit the wrong person.

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