Deck 19: Arson and Explosives Investigations

Question 1

The four subgroups for revenge motivated arson include

A) jilted lovers and feuding neighbors. Personal revenge.
B) disgruntled employees and quarreling spouses. Societal retaliation.
C) people motivated by racial or religious hostilities. Group retaliation
D) lovers' disputes and domestic squabbles. All of the above

Answer 1

D

Question 2

When developing an arson suspect,what factors must be proven to eliminate all others?

A) Motive and opportunity.
B) Motive and means to commit the crime.
C) Motive, opportunity and means.
D) Motive, "payoff," and means.

Answer 2

C

Question 3

When certain items such as photo albums,valuables,furniture,clothing,or pets are apparently missing from the scene of a fire,the most likely possibility is that the

A) fire fighters stole the items.
B) owner removed these items before starting the fire.
C) items were stolen by burglars who then set the house on fire.
D) items were completely destroyed by the fire.

Answer 3

B

Question 4

Which of the following statements concerning evidence recovered from an explosion is/are correct?

A) As a general rule, individual items of evidence from the same grid must be placed in separate containers.
B) The name of the officer recovering the evidence, his address, and the case number must be included on the evidence tag.
C) More than one container may be used if there is a large quantity of evidence received or if the evidence is to be used for residue analysis.
D) Both A and C are correct.

Question 5

When one refers to the "layer checking technique" in arson investigation,what is being described is the

A) process of checking through the layers of material stacked on top of each other after a fire.
B) analysis of materials for the presence of accelerant.
C) investigation of all suspects beginning with the prime suspect and working down to the least likely suspect.
D) method used to identify the most likely motive.

Question 6

Spalling describes the

A) breaking off of pieces of the surface of concrete, cement, or brick due to intense heat.
B) boundary between charred and uncharred material.
C) depth of the burning of wood.
D) formation of irregular cracks in glass due to rapid, intense heat.

Question 7

Arson investigations

A) are clearly the responsibility of the police service.
B) are clearly the responsibility of the fire service.
C) fall between police and fire department responsibility.
D) are clearly the sole responsibility of the insurance companies.

Question 8

The technical name for the "sniffer" is the

A) chemical color test detector.
B) catalytic combustion detector.
C) gas liquid chromatograph.
D) infrared spectrophotometer.

Question 9

Which of the following is generally not involved in spontaneous heating and ignition?

A) Chemical action.
B) Matches.
C) Fermentation.
D) Oxidation.

Question 10

In general,home or business owners who decide to arrange for arson fraud do so most often for which reason?

A) The desire for financial relief and greed.
B) Financial relief and revenge.
C) Revenge and greed.
D) Revenge and the abnormal psychological need to set fires.

Question 11

Which statement most accurately describes a chemical explosion?

A) These are explosions in which high-pressure gas is produced by purely physical results.
B) The most common types of explosion in this category is the bursting of a steam pipe.
C) The most common type of explosions in this category are caused by the burning of combustible hydrocarbon fuels.
D) All of the preceding are correct.

Question 12

What is the name of the portable equipment available to the arson investigator for detecting residues of flammable liquids at fire scenes that consists of illuminating the darkened fire scene with an ultraviolet lamp?

A) Ultraviolet fluorescence.
B) Infrared spectrophotometers.
C) Gas liquid chromatograph.
D) Flame ionization detector.

Question 13

A physical reaction characterized by the presence of four major elements: high-pressure gas; confinement or restriction of the pressure; rapid production or release of the pressure,and change or damage to the confining (restricting)structure,container,or vessel that is caused by the pressure release is a/an

A) arson.
B) explosion.
C) implosion.
D) violent arson eruption.

Question 14

Due to the potentially dangerous nature of suspicious letters and packages,police have started to use which of the following methods for handling and disposal?

A) Rookie officer
B) Robots
C) Refer to the fire department
D) None of the above

Question 15

Which statement about the scene of an explosion is most accurate?

A) Explosion scenes are often larger and more disturbed than fire scenes.
B) Explosion scenes are almost never as large as fire scenes.
C) The investigative objectives of the explosion scene are quite different than that from a regular fire.
D) As a general rule the outer perimeter of the incident scene should be established at five times the distance of the farthest piece of debris.

Question 16

The insurance industry maintains a modern computerized data bank,the Property Insurance Loss Register (PILR).Which of the below is not maintained in this database?

A) Fire claims.
B) Burglary claims.
C) Theft claims.
D) Suspects arrested in reference to the above listed claims.

Question 17

Once the origin,or epicenter,of the explosion has been identified,the investigator should determine what type fuel was employed.How is that done?

A) By conducting an analysis of the chemicals in the air near the explosion site.
B) By comparing the nature and type of damage to the known available fuels at the scene.
C) By analyzing the dirt found at the explosion site.
D) All of the preceding are methods of determining the type of fuel employed.

Question 18

Which of the following is one of the factors that the investigator must be aware of when evidence is collected at a suspected arson scene?

A) Size of the evidence.
B) Be uncontaminated.
C) Be easy to store.
D) Density of the evidence.

Question 19

The material placed around the ignition device to feed the flame in arson is referred to as

A) a trailer.
B) an accelerant.
C) a plant.
D) a pyro-enhancement device.

Question 20

Evidence collection containers used at the scene include

A) Unused metal paint cans
B) Paper bags
C) Ziploc bags
D) All of the above are used

Question 21

Depth of char are the effects of heat or partial burning that indicate a fire's rate of development,points of origin,temperature,duration,and time of occurrence,as well as the presence of flammable liquids.

Question 22

The fire service has taught firefighters that fire loss is less and public relations are better if they clean the premises: but if arson is suspected,moving debris,even window glass may destroy valuable physical evidence.

Question 23

Most chemical ignition units leave some residue; have a distinctive odor,or both.

Question 24

Spontaneous ignition is fairly common in residences and small businesses.

Question 25

According to the textbook,only professional arsonists and pyromaniacs seem to favor striking matches.

Question 26

The ________ is as sensitive as any of the other currently available detecting equipment but there are flammable liquids to which it is not sensitive.

Question 27

It is necessary that a temperature of _____ be reached before furniture springs will collapse from their own weight.

Question 28

What is the term that refers to an identifiable pattern or characteristic of using essentially the same or similar bomb construction components and construction,fabrication,and design techniques for multiple bombs?

A) Modus operandi.
B) Bombers signature.
C) Serial bomber operandi.
D) Serial bomber pattern.

Question 29

During a fire investigation,it should be borne in mind that a fire always has three causes: a source of heat,material,and ignition.

Question 30

Spontaneous heating is produced in three major ways: chemical action,fermentation,and oxidation (the most common way).

Question 31

In another broad category of arson for profit,the beneficiary of the fire is not the owner-insured but a ________ who arranges for the fire out of some economic incentive.

Question 32

Which of the following precautions should be followed when encountering a suspicious package or letter?

A) Inspect for lumps, bulges, or protrusions, without applying pressure.
B) Do a balance check to determine if the package is lopsided or heavy-sided?
C) Check the company name on the address label to see if it exists.
D) All of the preceding.

Question 33

An incendiary mechanism may be mechanical or chemical,and consists of an ignition device,one or more "plants" to feed or accelerate the initial flame,and frequently,trailers to spread the fire.

Question 34

Spalling is the breakdown of the surface tensile strength of concrete,masonry,or brick that occurs when exposure to high temperatures and rates of heating produces mechanical forces within the material.

Question 35

Trailers are the material placed around the ignition device to feed the flames in arson.

Question 36

Which of the following are burn indicators?

A) Alligatoring
B) Depth of char
C) Breaking of glass
D) All of the above are burn indicators

Question 37

________ fires are set in retaliation for some injustice,real or imagined,perceived by the offender.

Question 38

When looking for evidence after an explosion occurs,the investigator should

A) focus on the immediate area, since that is where the evidence will be found
B) look at adjacent vehicles and buildings for evidence
C) understand that most of the evidence was vaporized by the force of the blast
D) None of the above are correct Ans B

Question 39

A ________ is used to spread the fire.It is ignited by the blaze from the plant.

Question 40

According to the textbook,who was the earliest identified serial bomb builder in the United States?

A) Ted Kaczynski.
B) Terry McVeigh.
C) George Metesky.
D) Eric Rudolph.

Question 41

Why should uncoated metal paint cans (or similar containers)and not plastic bags or containers be used for the storage of material suspected of containing flammable liquids?

Question 42

What are some of the most commonly used ignition and timing devices employed in the commission of arsons?

Question 43

What are some of the advantages and disadvantages of olfactory detection in determining the presence of fire accelerants at the scene of a fire?

Question 44

There are basically two types of explosions.What are they? Briefly describe each type.

Question 45

The term ________ refers to an identifiable pattern or characteristic of using essentially the same or similar bomb construction components and construction,fabrication,and design techniques for multiple bombs.

Question 46

If arson is suspected,why should firefighters not disarrange the premises by mopping up or overhauling the scene of the fire,especially at the point of origin?

Question 47

In ________ explosions,the high-pressure gas is produced by purely physical reactions.

Question 48

What is the first duty of the investigator at the scene of an explosion?

Question 49

Regular polyethylene or ________ bags are not suitable for volatile compounds that are present and may be recovered in arson investigations.

Question 50

Discuss the primary effects of the type of IEDS (Improvised Explosive Devices)called explosive -incendiary and its five subgroups.

Question 51

List some of the more common causes for accidental and natural fires?

Question 52

In December 2009,a bomber tried to use an IED (Improvised Explosive Device)hidden in his __________________.

Question 53

What types of burn indication can be examined by the arson investigator to assist in determining whether a fire is accidental or incendiary in nature?

Question 54

What is the "layer checking" technique and how can it assist in determining the cause and origin of a fire?

Question 55

The ________ is a data bank maintained by the insurance industry and keeps track of fire,burglary,and theft claims.