Underwater crime scene investigation

[mike2885]

hello everyone
i was wondering if anyone does this. i was lookin to attend ucsi program at flordia state university. has anyone gone throught the program and what is it like. are the any jobs on the federal level that are in this feild. how much money can be made doing this. and wat do you do

 

[Randy43068]

Ask 'em in the PSD forum. Those guys will have the skinny for you.

As a part time cop, I'd love to get involved in it, too. Seems fascinating.

 

[Cheekymonkey]

I've heard good things abut the program from some forensics people I go to school with that had taken that previously.

 

[Doc]

These services and teams are dependent upon cash available to support them.

Liability issues alone preclude most governmental agencies from maintaining even a "part time" forensic (evidence collecting) qualified dive team, much less a tactical (law enforcement) dive team. (see Tactical Watreborne Operations -Waterborne Operations - Chief Bronson has gone un-noticed at more than a few DEMA shows.)

Larger cities support harbor patrols, adjunct to which you may find either dedicated divers or officers who also hold that duty when the time and need arises. Some organizations utilize cross trained fire department divers who can support the evidentiary process by attaining a required level of certification protocols.

When the SHTF, the FBI HRT (Hostage Rescue Team) and other FBI regional offices can deliver qualified evidence collectors on scene in very short order.

To make a life at this you'll have to go to one of the very few places where the money is. I started doing this kind of thing back when the city simply accepted volunteers from the public. That was 40 years ago and we did it for free air and lunch.

 

[scubadobadoo]

I went to FSU and have taken a close look at this program with interest as well and have come to the conclusion that in order to make money after graduating from this very interesting program you would first have to move to LA and win the lottery while accepting your Oscar award. Of course anything is possible really so who knows for sure.

Most things that seem too good to be true are in fact too good to be true and I'm afraid, no matter how serious this program takes itself (and I am sure it does as a proud Seminole myself to hell with Wake Forest) it's just not something I believe will ever pay the bills SPECIFICALLY unless you started killing people and then diving for them yourself. Or maybe when the world dies and people live in the ocean in a bubble...blah blah blah...

Somebody write that down and send it to Law and Order...

That said, I'm sure that if you called or emailed the program, they would be sure to tell you about all of the lucrative positions available.

JMHO's

 

[mike2885]

has anyone ever gone throught the program

 

[Gary D.]

has anyone ever gone throught the program

I think you will be much better served in the PSD section of SB. To get trained in UWCSI without already being on some type emergency services dive team may be like trying to push a limp rope up hill. You will get good info but where would you use it?

Jump over to the Public Safety section.

Gary D.

 

[Guba]

I dove with some local police divers recently in order to shoot video for a TV news segment. While they did not go through the program being discussed, they were trained through law enforcement agencies with specialized programs. In short, I was told that most departments draft from their ranks for police dive teams instead of bringing in outsiders, and that goes for their CSI work as well as search and recovery.

By the way, I was able to video them as they trained on evidence gathering. I was able to get good footage while they photographed the site and set down the grid, but about five seconds after they started sifting for "evidence"...well, there went the vis! Challenging work, to say the least.

 

[james croft]

I have been certified as an underwater criminal investigator for over 10 yrs and have taken courses from agencies as Dive Rescue International and also Underwater Criminal Investigators
While these courses are thorough don't expect to take these classes and expect to land a job doing this work. Normally you get a job as a police officer and if they have a dive team you need to get on that and later train to do UCI work. Also many jurisdictions have fire department or EMS teams that also fill in as an underwater investigation unit if they seek out additional training for that. I supervise a regional state underwater criminal investigation unit. All divers are sworn officers or special agents. Most of my time is spent doing regular law enforcement work but dive as needed to conduct investigations or recover evidence or bodies. It is a side specialty and not my "day job". When I feel like diving I will search an area in a high crime area to recover evidence that may have been tossed into the water.

I have dove with federal dive teams such as the FBI dive teams. They also have regular day jobs and do diving on the side as required.

There are a lot of dubious people out there who claim to teach Public Safety/ UCI courses who have never served as a public safety diver. Avoid them like the plague. Stick with reputable PSD agencies. FWIW, most reputable certifying agencies require you to already be affiliated with a public safety agency before allowing you to take the training. Those that don't are suspect in my book.

Do your research before spending any of your hard earned money on courses that will not help you land a job. Do not put the cart before the horse but if you decide to do this work realize it will only be a portion of your job. Also consider this diving is not fun but can be physically and emotionally dangerous and may not be something you will want to do.

 

[mike2885]

This is a masters program at Florida state university. It’s supposed to be the only program in the country. I don’t know what evidence collection is like but it sounds like mostly snatch and grab. This is supposed to use new techniques. I don’t if any good or different than any other. By the way I’m a senior graduating in May ill have a Bachelors degree in criminal justice. .