“You Can’t Get There from Here”: Use of Crime Scripts in Validity Testing

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Abstract
Purpose: Detectives require analytic tools for the evaluation of deception, truth, and probability as police investigations need to assess the validity of suspect alibis, witness claims, victim allegations, and crime theory feasibility. Design: For a crime to happen, a number of preliminary, intervening, and follow-up steps have to occur (e.g., finding a target, casing the bank, disposing of the body) along the dimensions of time, action, and geography (TAG). A crime script is a framework for dissecting this sequence. We propose their use for assessing the feasibility of a crime narrative. If the required phase shifts are improbable, or the order of actions illogical, then such an analysis warns investigators the TAG line is problematic. Findings: Different case studies – a wrongful conviction, a murder trial, and a social media crime frenzy – are dissected and evaluated using crime scripts. The analyses reveal the improbability of all three crime narratives. Practical Implications: Crime scripts are a useful thinking tool in criminal investigations. By deconstructing a crime into discrete temporal, geographic, and action phases, the viability of the overall narrative can be assessed. If a reasonable story cannot be constructed from the linked stages, there is a problem and further inquiries are required. Originality: We propose a novel application of crime scripts to assist in police investigations. Despite the importance of validity and veracity assessment in this task, the area remains an understudied part of the criminal investigation process.

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