New Division Challenges the Status Quo of Current Homicide Investigation Practices, Teaches Outdoor Crime Scene ReconstructionGettysburg, PA – June 28, 2018 –
Tripwire Operations Group announces the launch of its all-new
F.I.R.S.T. Division. F.I.R.S.T. – Forensic. Investigation. Research. Services. Training. – offers a variety of short courses in the areas of forensic anthropology, outdoor crime scene reconstruction, forensic scene mapping, mass disaster scene processing, disaster morgue protocols, cold case reviews, and scene mapping of actual forensic scenes. F.I.R.S.T. courses challenge the current crime scene investigation status quo and instead teach the importance of crime scene reconstruction to fully understand how a death event occurred. The Division is run by forensic anthropology and archaeology consultants for Tripwire Operations Group, Dennis Dirkmaat, Ph.D., D-ABFA, and FBI Special Agent Michael Hochrein (ret).
“We’re proud to have Dennis and Mike as a part of the team at Tripwire. They’re the best at what they do and are giving medical examiners and first responders a more accurate way to conduct an outdoor homicide investigation,” said Ryan J. Morris, owner, Tripwire Operations Group. “There’s no one else out there bringing this type and level of training to first responders. The F.I.R.S.T. Division is a natural expansion for us as we continue to set the standard for high-quality training for first responders across the country and internationally.”
Dirkmaat and Hochrein take a different approach to outdoor crime scene reconstruction and homicide investigation, going beyond standard law enforcement procedures to put crime scenes into context.
“There are simply too many ‘agents,’ such as animals, weather, water, snow, and humans, at an outdoor crime scene that can alter evidence after a death event takes place. And each manipulation of that evidence, be it from animals or weather or other factors, can have a profound effect on the types of conclusions we can draw, and further, may impact our understanding of how that individual died,” explained Dirkmaat. “We’re here to educate and inform law enforcement officers and medical examiners as to the importance of reconstructing, and thereby fully understanding, an outdoor crime scene.”
A recently completed F.I.R.S.T. Division course taught to a group of medical examiners from Kazakhstan is currently featured on the Tripwire blog. Visit the blog to learn more about this group of students and the best practices they’re returning home to implement.
F.I.R.S.T Division courses are scheduling now for Fall 2018. For more information and to register, visit: tripwireops.org/events.
Follow Tripwire Operations Group on Instagram @tripwire_operations_group and on Facebook @TripwireOperationsGroup to learn more about available classes and how to register.
