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military police. This composition of judicial police has obligation to undertake measures and activities for
detecting crimes, capture and reporting perpetrators of crimes, providing evidence of crimes and other
measures that enable the smooth running of the criminal proceedings.
3.
FUNCTIONS OF CRIMINALISTIC SCIENCE
The researchers
and authors of criminalistics, more or less agree that the basic function of criminalistic
science is to create the foundation for the most optimal and efficient procedures in order to combat the crime
effectively. The realization of this general feature of criminalistic science involves developing and
establishing the three subfunctions: (1) cognitive, (2) (re) constructive and (3) communication. It means it is
profiled as a science that deals with the ways (methods) and means for detecting, investigating and proving
the crimes and their perpetrators and to transmit them in practical daily activities on combating crime. Such
established functions indicate that it pays appropriate attention to the repressive system of prevention and
combating of crime.
In that sense, we talk about the theoretical and practical Criminalistic Sciences.
From the previous discussion it can be concluded that criminalistic science as the general science
explores the overall repressive and preventive activity of repressive-preventive competent authorities from
viewpoint of detection, investigation and prevention of crime within its own subject of cognition
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. It allows
practice detection of crimes and their perpetrators. It also explores regularities, patterns of scientific and
professional achievements. In that sense, criminalistics deals with disclosure of operational information and
evidence, the evidence from material and personal nature. For the development of criminalistics special
importance and role have the deeply rooted school knowledge and scientific models of discovery and proof
of the crimes for which special contribution have criminalistic methodics. This discipline examines and
promotes specialized model of detecting and proving (research) some categories of offenses. The focus of
scientific and applied activities is directed at phenomenological-morphological characteristics of these
works, especially place, time, manner and means of execution, the forms of fault, as well as other
circumstances and identification measures and actions. Actually criminalistic methodics examines assets and
interactions by which modern criminalistics is served in detecting, resolution and crime prevention.
4.
AREAS OF STUDYING THE CRIMINALISTICS
If we synthesize areas of studying the criminalistics sciences, then we could conveyed as areas: "(1)
manifested forms and practices of general crime and individual crime in particular, that is offender tactics
and technique, (2 ) pop-forms of life and work of the offender, (3) the practice of suppressing crime, (4) the
application of the benefits of natural, technical and other sciences in the discovery and proof of the crimes,
(5) the application of tactical and psychological methods and research funds, (6) the psychology of research
and trials, and (7) the logical aspects of proof and trial”
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.
The development and progress of criminalistics is followed by the application of a number of means.
When we talk about means of knowledge within this science then we don‟t think only of technical devices
and different materials, but also the concepts and terms, categories and theories, i.e "tools of science “
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.The
development, scope and content of these are developed in concepts, doctrines and theories. Here, more or
less it comes to the theories of criminalistic science. "For example, there are created crime theories about:
identification; causality; forecasting; criminalistics and judicial expertise; planning of pre-trial and criminal
proceedings; cybernetics; detecting and fixing operational information and evidence; concealment and
masking of crimes; criminalistic registration; clues method etc. They represent crime theories and objective
system by scientific settings that do not elaborate any other science “
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. Angeleski concluded that
"criminalistics is science that deals with the study of the method of detection and investigation of crimes and
their perpetrators as well as the development of strategies to combat the crime. It examines methods of
committing the crime; methods of practical suppressing crime (repressive and preventive), improving the
information flow within all phases of pre-trial and criminal proceedings; finding the most efficient ways of
taking action and operational activities of proof within the current legal framework, optimizing the use of
technical methods and tools and helps create new ones and regularities studying the origin, location,
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Metodija Angeleski:
Criminalistics.... quote. work. pg. 12;
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Elmedin Muratbegović:
Contemporary.... quote. work. pg.14;
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Mojanoski, Т. Cane:
Methodology.... quote. work. pg.165;
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Metodija Angeleski:
Criminalistics.... quote. work.pg. 10;
29
processing and evaluation of evidentiary information. With other words, Criminalistics is the science that
deals with research of strategies, tactics, methodology and technique of detection, deterrence and prevention
of crime at the level of individual crime and overall appearance “
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.
Criminalistics, according Simonovic
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, “is usually defined as a science that examines, finds and
improves scientific and practical experiences that are based on methods and means, which are more common
to detect and clear the crime, to discover the perpetrator and bring him to criminal sanction, to provide and
fixed all evidence in order to determine (objective) truth, and to prevent the commission of future planned
and unplanned crimes. With other words, it is the science of technique, tactics and methodology of
operational, investigative
and other court actions, as well as the prevention of crime”.
By the previous discussion it can be concluded that in the past period there are invested efforts and
some results are achieved in profiling of criminalistics as a science, in determination of areas of its research,
determination of goals and objectives and the use of methods and means for acquiring new knowledge.
5.
CRIMINALISTIC KNOWLEDGE AND ITS EPISTEMOLOGICAL CRITIQUE
The development of scientific knowledge of every science is the subject of epistemological analysis.
The term
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epistemology (from Greek.
eπιστήμη - episteme - knowledge, and λόγος - logos - science,
teaching, learning; speech) or theory of knowledge indicates philosophical branch that deals with the nature
and limits of knowledge. Although it often indicates the same as gnoseology (theory of cognition, theory of
knowledge in general), epistemology is the study of general principles and criteria of scientific cognition.
The beginning of epistemology is from various dates. For whether it starts from Lock or Decart, it is not
conditioned only by belonging to the author of one of the two major Western traditions of philosophy: the
Anglo-Saxon or Continental philosophical tradition
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. Epistemology primarily deals with the following
issues: (1) What is knowledge? (2) How is knowledge acquired? (3) what do people know? (4) how do we
know that we know
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? So the central questions of epistemology are: What is knowledge - which is the actual
analysis or definition of the concept of knowledge? Epistemology, then, is the science of science.
It examines
the principles, procedures, laws of scientific knowledge, and rightfully we can say that epistemology is a
theory of scientific knowledge. It is a branch of philosophy that deals with the studying of the knowledge and
justification of beliefs. It develops as epistemology that deals with the general criteria of scientific
knowledge and epistemology in certain scientific areas, even different scientific disciplines. In accordance
with this division, every science, as well as asfalialogy and criminalistics and has its own epistemology. It
examines the criteria, principles and laws of the understanding of a specific subject called suppression of
crime. By the nature of relationships of the various events and facts of that system, by more scientific areas
from which the subject is structured, it follows some important epistemological foundations of criminalistics
and
its methodology
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.
In that sense, we can actualize the question, about how to provide epistemological rule of verification, if the subject
of research is the phenomenon and activities that are normatively regulated as secret. Namely the science by its nature is
general and communitarian; it is a public process, where the ultimate criterion is the practical test. It based its development
on the principle of methodological skepticism and changeability. For the science and criminalistics like a science, it is
inherent an openness and open public discourse on research results
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. In this sense, the question is, how can we check the
facts, if state authorities have sanctions for such information and knowledge of them? The answer to this question is
multifaceted and is challenging another debate. But a problem is identified and the scientists and researchers need to offer
appropriate logical and scientific answer.
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Ibidem... pg. 11-12;
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Simonovic, Branislav:
Criminalistics, Faculty of law in Kragujevac, Kragujevac, 204, pg. 3;
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John Greco:
What is epistemology? See also:
Epistemology – Guide in theory of knowledge, (John Greco i Ernest Sosa ed.)
Naklada Jesenski i Turk, pg. 1-2;
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Three basic questions for epistemology; http://deenes.ffzg.hr/~bmikulic/Homepage/3pitanjaEpist.htm#_ftn2 [accessed
30.08.2014];
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The truth in epistemology; http://www.milosnikolic.op.rs/content/057a4950-2f8f-11e3-b536-000000000000-1.pdf [accessed
30.08.2014];
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See also: Mojanoski, Т. Cane:
Methodology of security science - fundamentals, Book I; Faculty of security, Skopje 2012, pg. 14 -
15; (
asfalia- security; logia-science )
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Investigative experience suggests that it‟s hardly available (or there is a complex procedure) to perform analysis
at complex objects
(eg Affair "Tat"), or at trial that is not finished, (attempt to assassinate the President) and other cases in which the basic task of
criminalistics to deal with determination of the empirical facts about the way of unveiling of criminal delicts is impossible.