ACCIDENT INVESTIGATION

[Music] i know which way i was going i was making the turn this way and then all of a sudden there's no way judy are you okay control testing 2h 32 2h 32 possible injury collision your code is three raymond and villa test sir [Applause] [Music] first job on an accident assignment is to see that it doesn't get worse park your car so it can serve as a shield a good 50 feet in back of the accident location the next priority is first aid for the injured person with injuries that might be made worse through movement should be left where he is if in a safe place till the ambulance gets there never put them in the police car shielding the accident call in for medical help if it's not already on the way 2h 32. would you roll on ambulance and traffic assistance [Applause] in laying out flares watch out for spilled gasoline and make sure people are careful with cigarettes too besides making the accident scene safe you've got to get to the witnesses before they fade away some departments preferred to get the stories of bystanders before those of the people directly involved in the accident move them to where they were standing when the accident occurred and a way to hang on to witnesses is to get their driver's licenses or other id mr harris and mr olsen i'll be with you in just a moment okay witnesses who are not involved in the accident are usually considered the most reliable when you approach them it's wise not to mention the word witness did any of you people see anything since that may put them on guard against the idea of having to go to court the great crime will come so therefore they in the cell which way was the great cargo the uh the grey car was gone straight but he was trying to avoid hitting the black car okay and what color was the light the light was yellow the black car were turning left on yellow okay just ask them what they saw and let them talk without interruption saving your questions till the end can you tell me what you saw mr olsen yes the light was green for east and west traffic and the black car was going east and turned left almost directly in front of the grey car i don't think either driver had a chance to uh even get the brakes on and skid marks on the street did you see the color of the traffic light light was green for both cars when stories conflict just put it down the way you hear it okay mr harris uh did you see the color of the traffic light there was a great it was green okay thank you gentlemen i'll be with you just a moment primary interrogation of course is with the drivers and passengers involved if they're able to talk to your driver did you see him for ambulance already i mean you know i mean keith has got i mean look at the windshield he calls an ambulance here's my please it's usually important to keep them apart in the initial interview so you get one story at a time instead of an argument if a driver can't come up with his license or other id the officer should put in an immediate call for a wanted check and maintain control i i don't know what happened man i was coming through the light out into the left turn and all of a sudden this guy comes out of clean he must have been driving too fast at the same time if he doesn't seem reasonably clear you can be looking for signs of drinking drug influence or maybe the effects of head injury or shock green it was green it was green but with the shock of the accident a driver can be just plain upset sure i saw the other guy who was way back guys why i tell you this must have been coming too fast because he had to be coming off halfway into i don't know how far back man i don't know how far okay well just relax we'll be here in just a moment okay all right it's usually best to let the driver tell his story without interruption no discrepancies for future reference i was just coming this direction west on the villa street here and i saw the car coming but he wasn't giving a signal or anything and all of a sudden when i was just about the court the uh ed chair well he just made a left turn right in front of me and we ran into each other where would you say you were when he started his turn started in relation to the intersection just entering the uh intersection and what color was the traffic light the screen unless the car driver has arranged to have his vehicle pulled out of the way and protected it's up to the investigating officer to have it towed away i have to get it towed out of the intersection do you belong to the auto club or anything no do you have any preference for tow service no just whoever my insurance company i guess i'll take care if the driver is hospitalized or arrested or when the disabled car is a traffic hazard stolen or was used in a crime you can impound it this is your wife yeah yeah what's your name judy judy can you hear me can you tell me what happened [Music] ah [Music] if there are serious injuries or fatalities photographs of the accident scene will be taken [Applause] [Music] everything significant should be photographed to provide evidence on both cause and effect of the accident but photography cannot give you the mess relationships the sketch four skid marks of course are valuable indicators of accident causes including the direction of travel and the minimum speeds of the vehicles involved one special note that's often important is the timing of a traffic signal as to whether or not it's functioning properly remember that you're responsible for protecting personal property on the scene and that includes easily stolen car accessories like hubcaps tools etc so get an inventory signed by whoever does the towing when it's all wrapped up you should have all the material for a really comprehensive report on what happened full information on the vehicles involved and the road weather and lighting conditions the stories as told by the accident drivers coming down and you're coming too fast did anybody here see what happened oh i did yes ma'am can you tell me what yeah the black cars were making the left turn and eyewitnesses it should all add up to every scrap of useful information on who what where when and the data to figure out why when it goes into your accident report that information can serve a lot of important purposes it's worth getting it all down and getting it down right [Music] you