Amerson Week 5 Assignment 1
Chapter 18 Questions 1, 4, 14 & 16 pg. 508
1. In what ways are cities and agriculture crime linked?
Some of the ways are through the change of farm labor, many workers now live in urban
areas and some return at night to steal from their employers or they tip off criminals as to where
they can score valuable items. They also run out interstate highways to raid targets to return to
their cities to dispose of their money with local fences. Farm machinery passes through big city
ports to be sold abroad.
4. Compare how horse and cattle rustlers operate. What are the differences and similarities?
Horse and cattle rustlers operate in the same fashion but with different outcomes. The
cattle rustler kills the animal and either butchers it on the spot or loads it up and butchers it at a
different location usually at home. The horse rustler loads up horses and uses them for personal
use. They both normally operate at night to be able to see if someone is approaching by their
headlights from a distance. The main difference is that the horse rustler does not kill the horse.
14. Can you identify and describe the four characteristics of hazardous waste?
There are four characteristics of hazardous waste. They are ignitability, or wastes that
can create fires, those that can readily catch fire, and friction-sensitive substances; corrosiveness,
or wastes that are acidic and those capable of corroding metal objects; reactivity, or substances
that are unstable under normal conditions and that can create explosions and /or toxic fumes,
gases, and vapors when mixed with water; and toxicity, or substances that are harmful or fatal
when ingested or absorbed and that, when improperly disposed of on land may eventually pollute
groundwater.
Amerson Week 5 Assignment 1
16. What are three examples of T/S/D crimes?
Three examples of crimes of T/S/D are companies that treat hazardous waste without a
permit or treat it inadequately, mixing it with regular waste for cheaper disposal, or discharging
it into sewers or abandoning it.
Chapter 19 Questions 1, 2, 8, 19 & 21 pg. 545
1. If arson is suspected, why should firefighters not alter the premises, such as by mopping up or
overhauling the scene of the fire, especially at the point of origin?
The premises should not be altered, so that investigators can examine the scene and
determine points of origin and find any clues, etc.
2. What two factors are needed to cause a fire?
The two factors needed to cause a fire is a source of heat and a material to be ignited.
8. What are some of the most common motives for arson?
One of the most common motives for arson is revenge. There is personal revenge, group
retaliation, societal retaliation, and institutional retaliation.
19. What is the definition of an improvised explosive device (IED)?
An IED is a combination of items or components that are neither designed nor produced
to be used in conjunction with each other but, when placed together or assembled, constitute a
mechanism that has the capability of exploding and causing personal injuries and property
damage (Swanson, 2012).
Amerson Week 5 Assignment 1
21. What does the term “bomber’s signature” mean?
Basically a bomber’s signature means that the bombers used the same type of material,
construction, components, and fabrication and design techniques when making bombs. Usually
there is a pattern that can be determined when investigators examine the evidence that can
connect certain bombs to certain people based on their routines.
Chapter 20 Questions 1, 7, 10, 11 & 12 pg. 589
1. What major drugs of abuse are derived from opium?
The major drugs of abuse that are derived from opium are morphine, heroin, and codeine.
7. Why is the drug OxyContin so attractive to drug addicts?
OxyContin has the active ingredient of oxycodone with a time-release formulation can
give a drug addict a intensely pure high for up to 12 hours when crushed and snorted or injected.
10. What are the signs of a Marijuana Grow House Operation?
Some signs of this type of operation is that the residents rarely appear to be at home,
visitors behave strangely or visit at odd hours, entry into the home is often made through a side
door or back entrance, windows are boarded or covered up, equipment used in the growing
operation are carried into the home, sounds of construction or electrical humming can be heard
from the equipment, the exterior appearance of the property is untidy and warning signs are
posted in windows and around the house.
11. What are the major exceptions to searching without a search warrant?
Amerson Week 5 Assignment 1
One of the major exceptions to searching without a search warrant is a consent search, or
consent by the owner or a person who has authority to give consent. Vehicle search are exempt
from warrants as well as open-field searches. Also, exigent situations known as the evanescent
evidence exception, or the situation that the evidence might disappear in the amount of time that
it takes to get a warrant. Plain-view searches as well as stop-and-frisk searches are valid without
a warrant and finally searches incident to arrest.
12. How are clandestine drug laboratory operations typically identified?
These operations are typically identified by fours ways. First would be when the fire
department is responding to a fire or explosion and find evidence of the laboratories. Other ways
are by informants and by the community at large as well as positive determinations.
Chapter 21 Questions 1, 7, 8 & 11 pg. 629
1. How does the FBI define terrorism?
The FBI defines terrorism as the unlawful use of force or violence against persons or
property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in
furtherance of political or social objectives (Swanson, 2012).
7. What is ecoterrorism? Name two important special-interest groups associated with
ecoterrorism that are active in the United States.
Ecoterrorism, as defined by the FBI, is the use, or threatened use, of violence of a
criminal nature against innocent victims or property by an environmentally oriented, national
group for environmental-political reasons, or aimed at an audience byond the target, which is
Amerson Week 5 Assignment 1
often chosen for its symbolic nature (Swanson, 2012). Two groups that are still active in the
U.S. are the Animal Liberation Front (ALF) and the Earth Liberation Front (ELF).
8. Discuss how the violence in Mexico relates to terrorism.
The way that the violence in Mexico is escalating presents new opportunities for terrorist
organizations to utilize cartel routes into the U.S.
11. List several steps that every police agency and/or officer can do to help prevent terrorism.
There are several steps that agencies and/or officers can do to help prevent terrorism.
The steps are participating in joint terrorism task forces, being aware of suspicious activities and
keeping a log of it, use critical thinking, being alert for reconnaissance operations, coordinating
and disseminating intelligence information through the use of advanced technology, and by
applying and updating your knowledge base.
Reference
Swanson, C. (2012). Criminal investigation. New York: McGraw-Hill Higher Education.