Peculiarities in investigating the crime scene in case of explosions

• Author: Buzatu Nicoleta Elena
• Position: Faculty of Juridical and Administrative Sciences'Dimitrie Cantemir' Christian University, Bucharest - Romania
• Pages: 38-41

AGORA International Journal of Juridical Sciences, www.juridicalj ournal.univagora.ro

ISSN 1843-570X, E-ISSN 2067-7677

No. 2 (2013), pp. 38-41

38

PECULIARITIES IN INVESTIGATING THE CRIME SCENE

IN CASE OF EXPLOSIONS

N. E. Buzatu

Nicoleta-Elena Buzatu

Faculty of Juridical and Administrative Sciences

“Dimitrie Cantemir” Christian University, Bucharest, Romania

*Correspondence: Nicoleta-Elena Buzatu, “Dimitrie Cantemir” Christian University, 176

Splaiul Unirii, 4 District, Bucharest, Romania

E-mail: nicoleta_buzatu@yahoo.com

Abstract

Explosions are a real threat for the life, the bodily integrity and the health of the

people, as well as for the public and private property. The investigation of the crime scene is a

high risk activity because of the complexity of the large scale damages, the large area

involved due to the blast of the explosion and to the partial character of the imprints.

According to the Romanian penal legislation, explosions are not considered to be independent

infringements of the law; yet they are defined as means of producing other infringements as,

for instance, the infringement of destruction in an aggravating stage, as stipulated by the Penal

Code.

Key words: explosions, investigation of the crime scene, imprints, evidence/proofs,

investigation

Introduction

The explosion is a very quick and violent physical or chemical reaction accompanied

by mechanic, sonorous, thermic, bright effects, etc. as the result of the decomposition of

certain explosive elements a destruction device may contain

1

. A large quantity of gas with

destructive effects over the persons and objects in the proximity of the detonation will be

relieved.

At the same time, an explosion is a very complex technical phenomenon that can be

done in a very large number of ways and has very unexpected consequences. Its

characteristics raise problems in the investigations meant to demonstrate the causes and the

culprits responsible for generating the explosion

2

.

From the chemical point of view, an explosion is a series of oxidizing reaction

phenomenon.

The most obvious difference between fire and explosion lies in the fact that, although

the explosion is thought to be another type of burning, it acts with such a high speed that it

can practically be considered instantaneous

3

.

Explosions are followed by fire because, the moment an explosion is released, a very

high temperature is given out which, consequently, sets fire to all the inflammable materials

1

DEX – Explanatory Dictionary of the Romanian Language, Univers Enciclopedic Printing House, Buchare st,

1998, pp. 539.

2

Matei, A.; Feraru D.L. – Peculiarities in the Forensic Investigation of Terrorism A ttacks Using Explosives, in

The Contribution of Forensic Sciences in Investigating Terrorist Acts and of Seriously Other Dramatic Events,

Bucharest, 2007, pp. 146.

3

Stoica, V. – Investigating Special Events (fires, explosions), in Guidebook of the Forensic Prosecutor, vol. II,

Helicon Printing House, 1994, pp. 9.