‘CSI: Capital High’
Students sift through evidence in 3 ‘deaths’
S tudents at Capital High School found three dead bodies — each a victim of a gunshot wound — when they arrived at school Wednesday morning.
Fortunately, the deceased were only mannequins — the subjects of mock crime scenes staged by New Mexico State Police for the benefit of students completing one of their final assignments with the school’s Medical Science Academy.
“They’ve been anticipating this all year,” teacher Natalie Garcia said of the 24 students in her Applied Medical Experience class. “They start by investigating the crime scene, then switch roles and become forensic scientists in the lab.
“They have to prove they have all the details. If they don’t pay attention to details, they won’t get the correct solution.”
As often happens with real crime scene investigators, students were roused out of bed by an early morning phone call and told to report to the scene. In this case, that meant staged crime scenes in two classrooms and another outside in the courtyard.
Once they arrived, students were divided into three teams of eight, each team responsible for handling a separate crime scene.
Each scene shared basic elements. The mannequin suffered a gunshot wound to the head. It was found slumped in a chair at a table with beer bottles, money and playing cards on top. A bullet and a shell casing were also part of the evidence.
But some details at each crime scene were slightly modified, which could lead to a different conclusion.
“The scenario is a combination of three real crime scenes condensed into one,” said State Police Sgt. Shayne Arthur. “They’ve got to go where the evidence takes them.”
Arthur said he spent about eight hours in the classroom with students, instructing them on basic procedures and methodology, crime photography and evidence collection.
It’s the same type of schooling State
Police investigators are given, “but our investigators will get a lot more law and a lot more on interview and interrogation techniques,” Arthur said.
Already in custody was a fictitious suspect who reportedly claimed innocence, maintaining that the victim committed suicide. It was up to the students to decide if he was telling the truth or if a murder had been committed.
Based on what her group had seen so far, Victoria Vargas suspected murder.
“It looks like they were playing poker and the guy who was sitting here lost,” she said of the suspect. “He said it was suicide, but the victim was shot in the back of the head and the blood splatter is behind him over there, so it doesn’t make sense.
“Also, the gun was found on top of blood. If it was suicide, he would have dropped the gun and the blood would have been on top. So we’re pretty sure he was murdered.”
Vargas and her teammates began by assessing the scene and putting up tape to keep others from contaminating evidence. They drew up a search warrant, which they submitted to history teacher Dave Bryant, who was playing the role of magistrate.
Once the warrants were approved, the students began processing the crime scene. They measured the room and distances between objects, marking them on a sketch of the scene. They placed placards where pieces of evidence were found, took pictures and tagged and bagged evidence. They used string to determine the bullet’s trajectory, lifted fingerprints and collected DNA.
“Blood splatter analysis and bullet trajectory will play key roles. They’ll have to put their trigonometry skills to work to determine that,” said their teacher. “They’ve had some practice; I’ve done some mini-mocks with them. Now they have to put it all together.”
Garcia said the next step will be lab work, which requires the students to use math skills. They will have until next week to submit their final report.
Garcia said the Applied Medicine Experience class is only for seniors. It is the fifth in a series of five courses students must take to graduate from the Medical Science Academy.
“Everything they do is hands-on,” she said. “They’ve already completed mentorships, where they spend 40 hours shadowing surgeons, doctors and nurses. The students really have to make a commitment. Those that end up finishing will have proven themselves in many different ways.”
It’s a select group of students who get the opportunity to enter the medical career pathway. They must have a minimum 3.0 GPA, get two recommendations from teachers, and go through an application process.
Capital High’s program received national certification this spring from Project Lead the Way, a biomedical curriculum consisting of four courses students begin taking their freshman or sophomore year.
Aimed at preparing students for careers in health care, the course sequence begins with Principles of Biomedical Sciences and Biology. Students also must take Human Body Systems and Medical Interventions, then Medical Interventions, and then Biomedical Innovation.
Students also need prerequisite courses in biology, chemistry and physics.
Capital High is the only high school in the state that has earned Project Lead the Way accreditation. The program exists through a partnership between Santa Fe Public Schools, Santa Fe Community College and Christus St. Vincent Regional Medical Center.
While demanding, the students appreciate the program’s value and especially enjoyed the crime scene investigation.
“We’ve been training the whole year, so this is when we get to use our skills,” said Vargas, who plans to attend New Mexico State University in the fall to begin training to become a dental hygienist.
James Gavin said he hasn’t decided yet which college or area of study he’ll pursue, but he’s definitely considering the medical field.
Asked what he learned during Wednesday’s exercise, Gavin said, “That doing a crime scene is complicated and hard. It’s not like what you see on TV.”