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Abstract

Arson is a serious crime that results in significant damage to property and often results in injuries and fatalities. Investigations into cases of arson face many challenges and difficulties, often involving collaborative working between Fire and Rescue Service fire investigation officers and Police crime scene investigators. During the investigation, fire investigation search dogs will often be utilised to identify the presence of an ignitable liquid to aide in the determination of the cause. When a fire is determined to be deliberate (arson), the Police will launch a criminal investigation. A major challenge to these investigations is the lack of forensic evidence resulting from the destructive nature of fire. These challenges are reflected in the low detection and prosecution rates. This research project aims to examine how fire investigation search dogs are currently being utilised within England and Wales to establish whether their utilisation could be improved to provide greater support within the longer-term criminal investigation to improve detection and prosecution rates.

A mixed methods approach was utilised, involving the collection of quantitative data to establish the numbers of deliberate fires recorded by Fire and Rescue Services, the cases of arson recorded by Police services along with detection and prosecution rates to understand the current national picture. Data pertaining to London was gathered from London Fire Brigade and the Metropolitan Police Service. An anonymous survey was sent to current fire investigation search dog handlers in England and Wales to gather qualitative data to establish how the dogs were being utilised. Additional quantitative data was also gathered from London Fire Brigade, directly relating to the use of their fire investigation search dogs. Alongside the data collection, a detection threshold experiment was conducted to establish how long after an incident (an arson) the dogs would be able to detect the presence of ignitable liquid residue on clothing.

The results highlight that arson is a significant issue, particularly when it comes to the investigation as demonstrated by the very low detection and prosecution rates. The examination of the current utilisation of fire investigation search dogs shows that their usage varies around the country, this is mostly due to the different terms of employment and roles that their handlers perform, but it is also influenced by a lack of understanding within law enforcement. The results of the detection threshold experiment were very promising and demonstrated that the dogs could detect a small amount of ignitable liquid residue on clothing after six weeks.

The findings of this research demonstrates that fire investigations search dogs could be utilised to greater effect within the longer-term Police investigation and that this could contribute towards improved detection and prosecution rates.

Course: Criminal Justice - MSc - C2681F

Date Deposited: 2024-11-18

URI/permalink: https://library.port.ac.uk/dissert/dis14515.html