City of Country Club Hills Bureau of Arson Investigation

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City of Country Club HillsBureau of Arson
Investigation

• Accelerant Detection K-9

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Introduction

• Scott Tebo, Arson Investigator/K-9 Handler
• 16 years in the Fire Service
• 9 years with the Country Club Hills Fire
  Department
• Alcohol Tobacco and Fire Arms (ATF)
• Certified Fire Investigator 1998 - with Illinois
  State Fire Marshals Office.

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Introduction (cont.)

• Certified Arson Investigator 2002 - with Illinois
  State Fire Marshals Office
• K-9 handler April 2002
• Certified through the North American Police Work
  Dog Association. (NAPWDA)

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Blaze

• 2 ½ Year Old Female Yellow Labrador Retriever
• She Came from Iowa
• Breed for the US.Customs
• 6 week training course with Landheim Training
  Center.
• 16 Different Accelerants Heavy, Medium and Light
• German Commands
• Play Reward
• Labs are less intimidating

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Different Accelerants
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Commands

• English Meaning
• Heel
• Sit
• Down
• Stand
• Recall or come
• Retrieve
• Jump
• Speak

• German Command
• Fuss
• Sits
• Platz
• Steh
• Hier
• Bring
• Hopp
• Gib Blout

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Commands (cont.)

• English Meaning
• Cease Current Behavior
• Dont do that
• Release Object

• German Comand
• Pfui lat das
• Nein
• Aus

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Drives In A Dog

• Drives subconscious impulse to react to
  stimuli.
• Drives in a dog are from genetics and ancestry.
• Drives cannot be created or eliminated.

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Drive Groups

• 16 different types of drives in dogs.
• Some have more some have less.
• Hunt, Tracking, air, retrieve, prey, guard,
  fight, protection, rank, trainability, survival,
  homing, play, activity, pack and defense.
• Most important drive PLAY DRIVE

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Scent Work

• Dr. Vitas Droscher found that humans have 5
  million olfactory cells in there nose.
• Dogs have 250 million olfactory cells
• Different breeds of dogs possess different
  capabilities of scent discrimination.
• Research Between 1943 and 1955 found that dogs
  were able to detect amounts as small as 1 part
  per trillion.

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Scent Work (cont)

• In 1970, dogs were found to smell 100 to 1000
  times better that humans.
• Albino and light color dogs have impaired scent
  capabilities.
• There are more scent cells in the back of the
  throat, they are not as accurate as those in the
  nose.

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Alerts

• Alert A behavior taught to a dog through
  training.
• 2 types
• Passive
• Aggressive

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Passive Alert

• Passive Alert - A dog indicates to the present of
  an odor by sitting.
• Pros Doesn't cause damage to evidence by
  scratching or biting.
• Cons Doesnt always show the source of the
  odor.
• Relies on the handler for reward.

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Aggressive Alert

• Aggressive Alert - A Dog alerts to the location
  of odor by trying to aggressively get the source
  of the odor.
• Pros usually indicates the source of the odor.
• Dogs reward comes from the source of the odor.
• Cons Scratching and biting will damage items.

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Certification

• Every 2 years
• 4 part test
• Dog and handler can only miss one find through
  all phases of testing.
• K-9 team must test on 9 of 16 odors trained on.
• Odors must be made up of 3 odors from each odor
  classification light, medium, heavy.

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Areas of Testing

• 5 areas will be provided for testing
• Structure/Fire Scene, Open Area, Paint Can Line
  Up, Clothing Pile Line Up and Vehicle interior.
• K-9 team will be tested in 4 out the 5 areas.

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Structure/Fire Scene

• Consist of either intact or the site of a
  structure fire.
• Structure Fire scene must have occurred no less
  than 8 hours prior to the test or no more than 3
  months.
• The structure must be between 1600 square feet
  and 2400 square feet.
• Finds can be put anywhere from 4 feet off the
  floor or to 3 inches under debris.

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Open Area Search

• Defined as - Exterior of building, open area,
  wooded area, any outside area not covered above
• No larger than 100 x 100 yard and no smaller than
  50 x 50 yards
• Finds shall consist of between ¼ cup or
  accelerant and an 1/8th cup.
• Is quite helpful in determining if an arsonist
  threw something a container containing
  accelerants as they ran from the burning
  building.

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Open Area Search (cont)

• Use the wind for help.
• Work the dog in zig-zag pattern
• Scent Cone
• Strong wind Long and narrow scent cone
• Light wind Short and wide scent cone.

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Paint Can Line Up

• Between 6 to 10, 1 gallon paint cans, containing
  burnt wood, paper and plastic in a line 3 feet
  apart.
• Burnt accelerant in one can.

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Clothing Line Up

• Same number of piles as paint can line up.
• 1 drop of accelerant put on one article of
  cloths.

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Vehicle Interior

• 6 to 10 cars, any type or model of cars parked in
  a line.
• One drop of accelerant put in passenger
  compartment.

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Links

• North American Police Work dog Association
• www.napwda.com
• Landheim Training Center
• www.landheimk9.com
• Illinois Chapter of the International Association
  or Arson Investigators
• www.il.iaai.com
• Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms
  www.atf.gov/explarson/canine.htm

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Ch 11 Arson and Explosives

• Oxidation.
• Forms of energy.
• Role of heat energy in chemical reactions.
• Heat of combustion and ignition temperature.
• Exothermic Vs endothermic chemical reaction.
• Oxidation of iron to rust.
• Requirements for initiating a combustion.
• Collection of physical evidence.

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• Detection and identification of hydrocarbons and
  explosive residue.
• Classification of explosives.
• Initiating Vs. non-initiating explosive.
• Common commercial, homemade, and military
  explosives.
• Detection of explosives.
• http//www.fbi.gov/hq/lab/handbook/examsars.htm
• http//library.thinkquest.org/17133/explosives.htm
  
• http//www.atf.treas.gov/explarson/

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• Modus Operandi an offenders pattern of
  operation
• Oxidation the combination of oxygen with other
  substances to produce new substances
• Energy the combined ability or potential of a
  system or material to do work. Some forms of
  energy are heat energy, chemical energy, and
  electrical energy

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• Combustion the rapid combination of oxygen with
  another substance
• accompanied by the production of noticeable
  heat and light
• Heat of combustion the heat evolved when a
  substance is burned in oxygen
• Exothermic reaction a chemical transformation
  in which heat energy is liberated

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• Endothermic reaction a chemical transformation
  in which heat energy is
• absorbed from the surroundings
• Ignition temperature the minimum temperature at
  which a fuel will spontaneously ignite
• Flash point the minimum temperature at which a
  liquid fuel will produce enough vapor to burn

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• Pyrolysis the decomposition of organic matter
  by heat
• Flammable range the entire range of possible
  gas or vapor fuel concentrations in air that are
  capable of burning
• Glowing combustion burning at the
  fuel-air-interface. Examples are a red-hot
  charcoal or a burning cigarette

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• Spontaneous combustion a fire caused by a
  natural heat-producing
• process in the presence of sufficient air and
  fuel
• Oxidizing agent a substance that supplies
  oxygen to a chemical reaction
• Accelerant any material used to start or
  sustain a fire. The most common accelerants are
  combustible liquids

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• Hydrocarbon any compound consisting only of
  carbon and hydrogen
• Explosion a chemical or mechanical action
  resulting in the rapid expansion of gasses
• High explosive explosive with a velocity of
  detonation greater that 1000 meters per second.
  For example, dynamite and RDX

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• Low explosive explosive with a velocity of
  detonation less than 1000 meters per
• second. For example, black powder and
  smokeless powder
• Deflagration a very rapid oxidation reaction
  accompanied by the generation of a low-intensity
  pressure wave that can have a disruptive effect
  on the surroundings

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• Detonation an extremely rapid oxidation
  reaction accompanied by a
• violent disruptive effect and an intense,
  high-speed shock wave
• Black powder normally, a mixture of potassium
  nitrate, carbon, and sulfur in the ratio of
  75/15/10
• Safety fuse a cord containing a core of black
  powder. It is used to carry a flame at a uniform
  rate to an explosive charge

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• Smokeless Powder (single-base) an explosive
  consisting of nitrocellulose
• Smokeless powder (double-base) an explosive
  consisting of a mixture of nitrocellulose and
  nitroglycerin
• Primary explosive a high explosive that is
  easily detonated by heat or shock

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• Secondary Explosive a high explosive that
  normally has to be detonated by a primary
  explosive
• Detonating cord a cordlike explosive containing
  a core of high-explosive material, usually PETN
  also called primacord

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Ch. 11 Arson and Explosives

• Chemistry of Fire

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The Fire Triangle
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Fuel

• Organic Fuels (most common)
• wood paper
• petroleum products fossil fuels
• hydrocarbons
• Inorganic Fuels
• elemental
• alkali metals, magnesium, hydrogen, phosphorus
• metal salts like azide

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Fuel

• Most important attribute
• energy stored in bonds of the molecule
• with proper encouragement bonds broken
  releasing this energy
• exothermic combustion reaction
• CH4 2O2 -----gt CO2 2H2O
• releases 51.6 kJ/gram fuel

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Heat

• Input energy (activation energy)
• excites molecule causing bonds to break
• Activation energy is typically applied in the
  form of heat

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Oxygen

• Most combustion reactions are oxidation processes
• oxygen is a good electron acceptor
• oxygen is a good oxidizing agent
• takes electrons from other materials
• Oxygen itself is not flammable
• the fuel burns not the oxygen

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Activation Energy

• All reactions require an initial input of energy
  to start them
• The energy barrier that must be surmounted before
  any bonds can be broken

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Activation Energy

• Some reactions have a low energy barrier
• iron to rust
• energy in the environment sufficient
• Some reactions have a high energy barrier
• gasoline to carbon dioxide water
• the flame from a match sufficient
• match is most common arson igniter

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Activation Energy

• Spontaneous combustion is rare
• For a material to spontaneously burst into
  flames, it must be continually generating heat in
  a poorly-ventilated area
• barn filled with hay
• bacteria produce heat as a metabolism by-product
  which is not dissipated from center of stack
• smolder ---gt flames

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Terminating the Burn

• Cut off oxygen supply
• smother fire with water, blanket, or carbon
  dioxide
• Allow fuel source to be totally consumed
• Reduce temperature
• water
• atmospheric conditions

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Rate of Reaction

• Not all oxidation reactions result in flames!
• rusting
• metabolism
• Rate of reaction determines the nature of the
  reaction
• Medium to high rates of combustion often result
  in flames
• deflagration

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How Are Flames Produced?

• Molecules of fuel must be in gaseous state to
  produce a flame
• Molecules of fuel must be mixed with a sufficient
  quantity of air for reaction to sustain itself
• Liquid fuels must be volatilized before they can
  burn
• the higher the temp the more molecules converted
  to gaseous state

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Liquid Fuels
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Flash Point

• The lowest temperature at which a flammable
  liquid gives off sufficient vapor to support a
  flame
• The presence of vapor is necessary but not
  sufficient for ignition
• vapor must combine in proper proportion with
  oxygen-containing air
• Volatile liquids require a low temp to vaporize
  some molecules

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Ignition Temperature

• The temperature which inputs sufficient energy to
  surmount the activation energy
• Ignition temp is always considerably higher than
  the flash point
• gasoline
• flash point -50oF
• defines the temp which the bulk of the liquid
  must reach to produce vapor
• ignition temp 495oF
• temp required to start gasoline burning

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Liquid Fuels

• Liquids never burn by themselves
• Fire takes place in the vapor phase at the
  surface of the liquid
• Exception
• nitroglycerine
• both fuel oxygen are present in the compound

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Solid Fuels
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Pyrolysis

• To produce a flame from a burning solid,
  molecules at the surface of the solid must be
  transformed directly to a gas
• Heat can decompose complex molecules (wood) into
  smaller, more volatile molecules
• pyrolysis
• Decomposition products react with oxygen

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A Wood Fire

• Three types of reactions occur simultaneously
• gas combustion (flames)
• pyrolysis sustained by the heat of the flames
• glowing surface combustion (smoldering)

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Smoldering

• Uncombined carbon cant burn with a flame because
  the heat liberated in its oxidation is lower than
  the heat required for its vaporization
• smoldering embers
• still oxidizing slowly analogously to rusting
  process
• Fresh source of oxygen will re-ignite the flaming
  reaction if pyrolizable fuel is present

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The Crime Scene

• Collection of Evidence

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The Fire Investigation
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Questions to Be Asked

• What was the heat source?
• What was the fuel?
• What provided the oxygen supply?

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Answers

• Oxygen supply almost always atmospheric
• wind patterns air drafts may be important in
  determining the origin progress of the fire
• usually done by a trained fire investigator
• Fuel is usually fairly obvious
• Laboratory useful in analyzing the evidence
  relating to heat source

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Accidental or Incendiary?

• Evidence of an ignition device
• Evidence of a accelerant or ignitable fluid

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Collecting Evidence

• Ignitable fluids are very volatile requiring care
  in collection
• Collect a large quantity of ash soot for
  suspected point of origin
• may contain remnants of unburned or partially
  burned ignitable fluid
• Partially burned or unburned porous material
  should also be collected

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Collecting Evidence

• Evidence should be collected in airtight,
  solvent-resistant containers
• new metal paint cans
• not plastic containers
• might react with evidence fluids
• polyester bags that are chemically resistant

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Substrate Samples

• Many household materials are hydrocarbon-based
• Important to collect substrate samples of
  materials similar to those from point of origin
  for comparison
• look for presence of different substances at
  point of origin than in other samples
• Suspects clothing may contain fluid residue

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Ignition Devices

• Can be ordinary devices
• cigarette
• match
• May have had electric or mechanical sparking
  devices

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Fire Patterns

• V-pattern
• fire moves upward spreading from its origin
• point of origin does not imply arson, but gives a
  good starting place for evidence collection
• Ribbon pattern
• fire follows the path of ignitable fluid spread
  before ignition

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Arson Investigation

• The Forensic Laboratory

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Whats the Question?

• Legal Question
• Did someone purposefully set the fire, and if so
  who?
• Since most materials dont easily ignite, an
  arsonist will often employ an ignitable fluid to
  start the fire
• Presence of an ignitable fluid does not, in and
  of itself establish the legal crime of arson

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Laboratory Collection Methods
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Headspace

• Simplest collection technique
• Material collected in an airtight can is gently
  warmed inducing a vapor which rises to occupy the
  empty top space.
• A sampling device such as a syringe is used to
  puncture the can and collect a sample of the
  headspace.

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Adsorption/Elution

• Hydrocarbon vapors are collected concentrated
  on an adsorptive strip
• charcoal-coated teflon
• Strip placed in container with the evidence
• Container warmed to release vapors which are
  adsorbed by the charcoal on the strip
• Strip eluted with a small quantity of solvent
• increases possible detection by 100X

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Other Methods

• Steam Distillation
• Direct solvent extraction of the debris

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Laboratory Analysis

• Gas Chromatography

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Interpretation of Results

• Look for the pattern resulting from the
  chromatographic separation of the compounds
  making up the mixture
• Patterns produced by known petroleum distillates
  are kept on file in the laboratory
• If possible comparisons are made with suspect
  objects

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Same Substance Different Sources
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What Information Can Be Obtained?

• Can classify the substance by the complex pattern
  of peaks
• gasoline vs. paint thinner
• Cant usually determine the gas station the
  particular sample came from
• Difficult sufficiently prove common origin of
  evidence reference sample
• sample from can in suspects car

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Classification of Hydrocarbons

• n-Heptane
• 7 carbon straight-chain alkane
• total of 8 isomers having formula of C7 H16
• ClassificationTable

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Left most carbon number is C5
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Some Petroleum Distillate Chromatograms
Unevaporated gasoline
90 evaporated gasoline
Unevaporated kerosene
90 evaporated gasoline
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