Discovering a crime scene on your property can be traumatic. Even more traumatic is witnessing or being the victim of a crime on your property. It can be hard to know what to do. Follow these tips to avoid making a bad situation worse.
When You Discover the Scene
Whether you encounter the scene after the crime took place, witness the crime yourself, or are a victim of a crime, your first step should be to contact 9-1-1 to inform authorities about the crime. Do this even if you’ve discovered a dead body, whether or not you think there’s been a crime. If you’re potentially in danger, move to a safe location, but let the 9-1-1 operator know where you’re moving to.
Other than your person, don’t disturb anything at the crime scene. Don’t try to collect personal property. Don’t try to clean up anything. Don’t do anything to preserve the dignity of the dead. All of these things can wait until after the police have arrived and witnessed the scene.
When Law Enforcement Takes Control of the Scene
When police arrive, they will attempt to document the crime scene. This includes taking pictures and retrieving samples from the scene. They will investigate the scene, and keep the area closed off until they’ve gathered all the evidence they feel they need. This documentation of evidence may continue after law enforcement removes any dead bodies on the site.
If you need to retrieve anything from the closed-off area, let the police know. They may permit you to enter the site under police escort to retrieve your property.
Police want to analyze a crime scene as quickly as possible. Evidence degrades, and the faster they can gather information, the more likely they are to successfully resolve the crime. However, as quickly as possible doesn’t always mean immediate. You may need to find somewhere else to stay during the investigation. If you don’t readily have an option, ask the police to speak with a victim’s advocate.
A victim’s advocate can help you with many of the next steps you need to take. They can help you find a place to stay, get something to eat, and have clothes to wear while you don’t have access to your property. In addition, they may provide counseling or refer you to counseling. Consider taking advantage of this. Your psychological trauma might not be immediately obvious. Talking to someone about trauma can help you head off the complications of the experience.
When Law Enforcement Releases the Scene to You
When law enforcement finishes their investigation of the crime scene, they will release it back to you.
You might be tempted to start cleaning the crime scene, but there are many reasons not to attempt it. Although law enforcement will remove bodies from the scene, there may still be bodily fluids, bone fragments, flesh, and other biohazards. There may also be debris and residues from the crime scene investigation. These biohazards and other potential hazards can be difficult to clean and will put you at risk. Besides, cleaning the scene can cause you to relive the traumatic moments of witnessing the crime or discovering the scene.
Instead, contact specialty cleaning services for crime scene cleanup. This is the best way to restore the location to its condition from before the crime.
Trust JRCC Damage Restoration Experts with Your Crime Scene Cleanup
If you are looking for specialty cleaning services like crime scene cleanup, JRCC Damage Restoration Experts should be your first choice. We’ve been the leading disaster restoration and specialty cleaning company in the greater Seattle & Spokane Metro Area since 1954. We offer 24/7 response – we can be there to clean your property at any time of day or night.
We know how to safely and thoroughly clean up a crime scene. Our expert technicians can remove biohazards from all surfaces. They will thoroughly disinfect and deodorize the area. Our team can also remove anything that is too contaminated to clean, which might include drywall, carpet, and other building materials. If we do have to remove any of these materials, we are restoration experts who can repair drywall, paint, install trim, and do anything else necessary to eliminate any trace of the crime scene.
At JRCC Damage Restoration Experts, we can also coordinate with your insurance company, documenting all the damage and repairs to help you get any compensation you’re due under the terms of your policy, and to get compensation quickly.
Contact us today to schedule crime scene cleanup services at your property. JRCC Damage Restoration Experts serves customers in the greater Seattle & Spokane Metro Area.