Problematic Aspects of Appointing and Conducting a Forensic Fire Investigation

Abstract

The authors aimed to outline problematic aspects of individual stages in investigation of circumstances of the fire; to formulate recommendations regarding requirements for the inspection of the scene and the circle of expert witnesses who should participate in this inspection, regarding the specifics of the appointment of forensic fire investigations and further evaluation of results of the conducted research; pay attention to errors that a forensic expert may make during a forensic fire investigation and reasons for such errors. For achieving this goal, general scientific and special scientific methods are applied, in particular, analysis, synthesis, analogy; formal and logical; logical and legal; systemic and structural ones. It has been proven that methods and expert techniques determined by the investigative-expert situation at each stage of the investigation should be used to investigate the fire. In order to prevent erroneous expert conclusion, the need to update to modern level of development of science and technology and unify methodical recommendations and forensic methods for conducting forensic researches on all possible objects at each of the stages of fire investigation has been identified. It is emphasized that the following criteria should be used to evaluate the results of a forensic fire research and form forensic expert conclusion: availability of dangerous process signs; the existence of fire-hazardous process factors;  coincidence of detection place of fire-hazardous factor with the fire center; possibility of combustion from such a fire-hazardous factor; justified exclusion of other possible factors of fire occurrence. Errors that are most often assumed while conducting of forensic a fire investigations and preparation of forensic expert conclusion are highlighted.