First Report

On February 25, 2011, at approximately 1pm, I, Ashley Todaro, Investigative Intern for the Primary Public Defender, established contact with McDonald’s employee            via telephone. I verbally identified myself and advised                 that I was working with the attorney representing                . I informed              that the reason for my contact was regarding an incident that occurred on October 27, 2008. I informed           that I wanted to ask her a few questions.              informed me that she was transferred to that McDonalds in 2009 after the incident.              agreed to speak with me and made the following statements:

1. Specifically, please ask them about the bathrooms?

Always clean.

2. Who cleaned them, how often they were cleaned?

As often as I can because they get very messy. People are very messy.

3. Did they have issues?

No. Men are messy.

4. Did they ever see them leaking?

No.

5. Did they ever see them dirty?

Yes. That’s why I clean them so often.

6. Also, please ask them what they know of                             ?

No, I don’t know him

7. What type of employee was she? How was she?

N/A

8. Is she a liar? Trouble maker?

N/A

9. Do they know of her lying? Have they ever known her to embellish information?

N/A

10. Any reason why she would dislike client?

N/A

11. Did they know client,                              ?

No.

12. Were they present when the accident happened?

No.

13. Do they recall                 and/or         immediately telling the Sheriff and the paramedics that they felt client had faked it?

N/A

I thanked              for her time and concluded the interview.

Writing a Report

There are several key components to writing up a report. These components are very important because if left out, the report can cause problems for the case when in trial. If the information is misstated or misrepresented it can also cause problems during trial. By using these guidelines, a report can be an accurate account of the transaction of events.

¶1. Cover all Grounds

- State who the interview is with

- State that they agreed to the interview

- State that you identified yourself and how you identified yourself

- State that the individual understood who you were and your reason for contacting them. Did you tell them that you work for the Defense Attorney for Person X?

- Then state, “The following is a summary of the account.”

¶2. Why

- Attempt to relate witness to case or defendant

- Explain why you interviewed this person

¶3. Body

- Give a summary of interview

- Conclude with, “So and So had nothing further to add so I terminated the interview.”

Crime Scene Photos

The other day I took my first crime scene photos. It is important to remember that a crime scene can be many days, even years, old. However, it is still very important to take our own pictures to gather information.

First, I interviewed a witness about what he remembered about the events of the crime that took place. The witness told me about the area and whether or not a similar crime has happened there before. After the interview, I felt the need to take pictures of the crime scene area to be analyzed back at the Public Defender’s Office.

I asked the witness where he was when he realized the crime was occurring. He said he was by his door and then ran outside when he heard the noise. I stood at his door and photographed what would have been his view of the crime scene. Next, I went onto the street and took multiple vantage point photos of the crime scene. I remembered from the interview that the witness mentioned there were other witnesses of the incident in his building. I took pictures from their vantage point as well. Lastly, because the crime occurred at night, I took photos of the lights in the area to determine whether or not the area was well lit.





This is not an accurate report of events and should not be used as a formal report or transaction.