Looking for an "ology"?

As we travel through the world trying to resolve the unresolved, seems to me we have our own issues. I have often pondered if the people who do this type of work are to remain under the eternal "Amateur Sleuth" (and similar dubs) I remember being called that long ago and was very proud at the time, but time has passed. Those of us who seek the technology of the Internet, but not only the Internet, to find resolve in cold cases have truly found a niche that deserves a name.

I very much see this work as a true science. We work on murder, missing and unidentified cases often without direct physical access to physical evidence, via research, comparative analysis, media and public relation. We use improvising methods to adapt technologies likely developed for other reasons to suite our needs....the Yahoo groups for example. Site meters initially developed as marketing research tools take on new roles in the piecing together of the many puzzles.

The communication technology presented by the Internet has opened to door to usher in a new age. An age where the common man can step up and effect the world in a positive way. Our work takes away so many boundaries. It doesn't matter your sex, age, race or physical handicap, only you yourself set your boundaries by the level of involvement you choose to take in the multitude of volunteer positions available and the many organizations that take on the task of crime.

I sit and marvel at the growth of the past few years. Huge online communities that have taken a very noticeable effect on the resolution of crime and the missing. Once new friends have become old friends as we become more seasoned in this new frontier.

For me, this work altered my life. I am working on things that in the past would never have been an option for me. I remember when I did the Tent Girl shoot with 48 Hours, I was called a "farm boy". I wasn't offended in being thought of as a farm boy, because if I were one, there was no shame in being a farmer. It was the supposition of me being from the south automatically being a farmer is what bothered me. Was it the solution of the case that amazed them...or the fact that I knew how to use a pc?

Now as I work on my first book, something that never would have happened in my life otherwise, I review the processes: hair-brained ideas, failed attempts and success. It has been an amazing journey.

Even before the Internet I guess I was doing this type of thing while trying to break down the info on the Tent Girl. I had all the old articles etc. I used hard copy maps, calendars that I made to see the days of the week. I studied highways from the past in old encyclopedias. I went to libraries looked at microfilm. etc.

When the Internet came along it became the tool to make the searches easier, more affordable and realistic. It continues to evolve and is much more that it was even in 1998.

The most benefit was that I was learning something as I went along...necessity was the mother of invention. As I found things that were obstacles I quickly tried to find options to solve the problems. Many of us continue to do that today in an ever-progressing way.

But I was still at a loss when trying to define things for the book. The title tells a tale in itself.

"Cries From the Grave: How Amateur Internet Sleuths are Changing the Face of Crime-solving."

I found myself looking at my own identity crisis...and many people share this feeling of being out of pocket. They are people filling important roles with no real title for their services.

So in my book, I set out to describe things a bit beyond the title, it is only the beginning. The beginning of what we've been doing for a while now.

Obviously we needed an "ology" to describe the true science behind our work. Enter the age of Technological Criminology or "TECHNI-CRIMINOLOGY"...a term you will hear more about in the near future. As with many things, I am still working on the definition for the term!

Are you a Techni-Criminologist?