This week, the Los Angeles County District Attorneys Office and theLos Angeles Police Department (LAPD) participated in the CaliforniaHomicide Investigators Association (CHIA) conference in Las Vegas,Nevada.
CHIA was formed in 1968 when homicide detectives from Los Angeles andSan Francisco met over dinner to discuss the Zodiac Killerinvestigation. Today, CHIA is the largest organization of homicide anddeath investigation professionals in the United States with over 1,400members that include law enforcement representatives from all over theUnited States and Canada.
Each year different law enforcement organizations take turns hostingthe conference. At this years CHIA conference, hosted by the LAPD, amultimedia exhibit called, Behind the Scenes: The LAPD HomicideExperience, was created and features homicide evidence from crimes anddeaths that have captured the public's attention. The teaching exhibitwas opened on Wednesday to the public and thousands of guests havestood in lines for up to two hours to glimpse Los Angeles's history.
A number of the exhibits show evidence that was collected duringvarious well-known incidents and they were carefully designed sovisitors would gain a better appreciation for the tragedy of murder andthe difficult jobs law enforcement detectives have in solving oftenvery complicated cases. Murder is the absolute worst thing one humanbeing can do to another and the displays were designed to provide aunique insight into the sacrifice of victims and their families as wellas the emotional toll murder takes on homicide detectives and theDistrict Attorneys who prosecute the cases. Homicide is by naturehorrific, but the entertainment media often portrays it as sterile andbenign. When people see the reality of murder, it becomes anunthinkable act.
Based on the feedback we have received, it is now clear that a few ofthe items on display have offended some crime victims families. Wehave both been to hundreds of murder scenes in our law enforcementcareer and we have consoled many family members. It was never ourintent to cause grief to victims of crime or their families. The CHIAexhibit was designed to be educational and to show the public howmurder cases are very carefully investigated. We never intended tocompound the grief of murder victims families, but unfortunately, afew items on display have been interpreted by some people as such, andthat was never our intention. Our organizations strive to bring justiceto homicide victims not to cause sorrow to their families.
Steve Cooley Charlie Beck
District Attorney Chief of Police