Criminology

Presentence Investigation report guide.
Offense.

Do you recall what happened on the twenty third of March 2010 at around three (3.00 p.m) in the evening Yes I was seated outside the balcony of my house when I heard my neighbors wife screaming.
Did you have anything to do with the occurrences No I just rushed there to assist and I was the first one to arrive.

What did you see I found the wife bleeding profusely form the stomach.
What did you do I tried to assist her walk so that I could take her to the hospital.
What happened next The neighbors came in large numbers and we took her to hospital.
How comes you are here today After she was admitted in hospital we went to report the case to the police. All the neighbors said that they found me in the house and therefore I was taken as the prime suspect.

If I say that you tried to rape your neighbors wife and when she resisted and screamed you attacked her with a knife what would you say That is wrong because I only went to assist her after hearing the screams.

The judge could use the questions to assess whether the offender is guilty. Since he is sticking to one point and he is not stammering the judge feels that he is not guilty.

Previous criminal record.
Juvenile adjudications
Have you ever been charged for the juvenile offenses No.

Adult arrests
Have you been arrested before Yes.
For which offense were you arrested I was accused of being in possession of a firearm.
When were you arrested I was arrested on the 22nd April 2007.
Were you found guilty No.

Do you have any other case pending in the courts No.
The questions were necessary since they would help one to determine the criminal record of the offender. From the answers it can be seen that the accused is not a habitual law breaker. In the first case he was found not guilty.

Personal and Family Data
Defendant
What is your name and how old are you I am Tommy James.
Where were you born I was born in California.
Where have you been living I have been living in California too.
Do you have any identification document with you Yes I have my visa.
After Tommy produced his visa the Judge ascertained that they were dealing with the correct person.
Parents and siblings
Where do your parents alive Yes.
What are your fathers names and his contact number He is Robert James and he is too old to own a phone.
How many siblings do you have I have three brothers.
The court wanted to get the contacts of the offenders relatives who can clarify whether the information given by the offender is true. They can also provide additional information.
Marital status.
Are you married Yes.
How many wives or husbands do you have I am married to one wife.
What is your wifes or husbands name and contact number My wifes number is 258417.
How many children do you have Three.
How many times have you divorced I have never divorced.
The judge established that the accused was a responsible family man since he had not divorced his wife. The accused could not have tried to rape the neighbors wife.
Education.
Which grade did you attain in your post elementary education I attained a pass.
Which schools and educational institutions did you attend I attended St. Patricks school and Cansas University.
This information is important because if the offender is found guilty and jailed he will be provided with the education in the jail that will benefit him and which he can also understand.

Employment
Where have you been working recently I am self employed.
Were you employed before Yes.
Were you sacked or what made you leave the previous job I resigned since I did not want to be employed.
This information tries to establish whether the offender is a reliable worker and whether he committed offences at the workplaces. The correctional institutions nowadays have workshops in which the offenders can work. This information helps in showing which department the offender can work in.
Health
Physical.
Do you suffer from any physical disabilities No.
Do you suffer from any terminal illness Yes. I have colon cancer.
Mental and emotional health.
Do you suffer from any mental problem No.
DrugAlcohol Use
Do you use alcohol or any other drugs I do take alcohol and marijuana.
What drives you to use the drugs I take the drugs so that I can enjoy myself.
Are you aware of the harm that the drugs cause to your body Yes. I have tried to quit the behavior but I cannot.
The judge knew that Tommy suffered and that he consumed alcohol and marijuana. This enables the court to try and establish whether the drugs could have made him commit the said crime.

Military services
Have you ever served in the military No.
This information is important because most people who have served in the military suffer from the post traumatic stress disorder. This can cause them to engage in unlawful acts when their stress levels are high.

Financial status of the offender.
Assets
What assets do you own Yes. We live in our own house and we have a small saloon car.
Do you own a piece of land and how big is it Yes. I own a three acres piece of land.

Liabilities
Do you owe other people No.
Do you have any unpaid bank loan Yes. I owe the Standard bank two hundred thousand dollars.
If you are found guilty and jailed what would you want the family members to do in order to repay the loans My wife could sell half of the piece of land and repay the bank loan.

The judge knew that the accused owed the Standard bank a sum of two hundred thousand dollars. The accused agreed that a piece of his land be sold to repay the loan.

To verify the information collected using the questionnaire there will be a need to look at the following documents

Records from the police and jail departments, the prosecutors office and the probation office to show whether Tommy James has been charged before. After looking at the documents the Judge saw that the offender had not lied. The bank statements also showed the loan arrears as indicated. It was also confirmed that the offender suffered from colon cancer.

The judge decided that the offender was not guilty but he was just a Good Samaritan who had gone to assist. After recovering the neighbors wife identified her attackers and the offender was acquitted of his charges.