Over at my Windows Space, my friend Hedge asked some questions about the CSI television shows. I thought those would be a good topic for a blog there and then a page here, so here it is ... CSI vs real life.
      How much on the CSI shows is real? I read about the shows and the information said the producers have advisors on their staffs to keep the show as close to reality as possible. My understanding is they have people from the various disciplines so each procedure and the lingo can be addressed by someone with practical experience in those areas. Real CSIs make sure the proper tools are used to collect and process evidence, a real medical examiner makes sure the autopsies don't include anything that wouldn't happen in real life, etc.
      Hedge didn't ask this question, but I did ask an M.E. (medical examiner) about it one time. I wanted to know if he talked to the victims like the M.E. on the show. He doesn't talk to anyone who isn't alive and breathing, although he did say he knows of at least one of the local morticians who talks more to the deceased than the living. I think that's my favorite part of the show, listening to the M.E. ask the victim what happened, etc.
      Do real CSIs wear designer clothes, drive Hummers, talk in lingo, etc? Yes and no. I'm sure there are real life CSIs who do wear designer clothes and some departments do use Hummers. Some larger cities do have specific positions for CSIs, but most of the CSIs I've met you wouldn't be able to tell them from the detectives unless they told you. In some departments, the detectives are the CSIs so my answer to those questions in regards to the investigators I know is no, they don't wear designer clothes or drive Hummers.
      Maybe I watch the show a little closer than I think and look for the little (or big things) which don't seem real. Here's where reality departs from the show. Have you ever noticed how they can go tromping through the mud and never get dirty? How in the world do they get caught in a wildfire or struggle with a suspect to make an arrest and never break a sweat or mess up their hair? Sure, Horatio gets his sunglasses knocked off once in a while, but I've never seen him rip one of his designer suits. The main thing that drives me nuts about the show is how the women are always wearing those high-heeled shoes to work. That's great for the office, but more than impractical for the streets. I don't know about a lot of other departments, but in the local departments if the female detectives or police officers decided to wear those kind of shoes to work, they'd be forced behind a desk unless they changed their shoes.
      Enough about the clothes and cars. Do police and detectives talk in lingo? Usually only when they're talking to each other. There are times they may slip into the technical jargon when talking to a witness or a suspect then have to repeat themselves so they can understand what is being said. The lingo isn't meant to confuse "civilians" or a secret code, even though it can be used for those purposes. Just like with any other job, there are words and phrases specific to law enforcement. Everything has a technical name or designation so everyone isn't telling someone "Hey, hand me the thingamagig". The acronyms (abbreviations for longer names) are used so they don't have to keep saying a half dozen words.
      Overall, I think CSI: Miami is fairly accurate in showing the crime solving process. I've yet to watch close enough to catch any procedural mistakes, so detectives and law enforcement officers may have seen something I missed by not paying closer attention.