Web Quest – Physical Evidence
Famous Cases
Purpose: Many criminal proceedings make their way into the headlines of the evening news where we
are informed of the highlights as to what’s going on. At times the media will even present you with
evidence associated with the case. You will be investigating the physical evidence associated with a
famous case to judge for yourself whether the person is guilty or not.
Directions:
1. You will be working individually on this assignment.
2. Begin a general search to find names of famous criminal cases. The criminal cases could include
murder, robbery (bank heist, major fraud cases, “white collar” crimes), kidnapping, bombings,
and major drug busts (if you think of something else and aren’t sure, ask). Find the name
associated with a case that catches your attention. Sometimes they refer to the case based on
the victim other times, the suspect.
3. Once you have a case in mind, search for information on the case, especially information
concerning the physical evidence used in the court proceedings and what was learned from the
evidence.
4. Specifically, here is what I am looking for you to find and then report:
a. Name of the case (2)
b. When and where the crime took place (3)
c. Brief explanation of the crime(s) committed (10)
d. List the physical evidence recovered from the crime scene, victim, and/or suspect’s
property. Explain what was learned from processing the evidence and how it helped
solve the crime. Example – did fingerprints lead to a particular suspect; receipt place
the suspect within the time and place the crime was committed. (30)
e. State what the jury’s verdict was and the sentencing – jail time? Death penalty? (5)
f. Based on the evidence collected, explain your judgment of the suspect. Would you have
found him/her guilty? Why or why not? Elaborate based on the physical evidence
collected. (5)
g. Is there any predisposed human bias that can affect our judgment of the evidence and
persuade us to judge suspect as guilty even though the evidence is weak or
circumstantial? (5)
5. You may present the information in a couple of ways (10):
a. Type it as a regular report in paragraph form
b. Create a power point to organize and present the information\
c. Neatness and grammar/spelling are important!
6. YOU MUST CITE WHERE YOUR INFOMRATION CAME FROM IN A WORKS CITED PAGE AT THE
END. I won’t require you to include citations within the information itself. (10)
2014 Fall
Kyle – OJ Simpson
Otto – Casey Anthony
Toni – Jeffrey Dahmer
Vinny – Rodney King
Robanna – Ted Bundy
Ally – Beverly Allitt
Mason – Lyle & Erik Menendez
Grady – Machine Gun Kelly
Eileen – Martin Durkin