Fundamentals of Criminal Investigation Practice Test

Reactive investigations are those initiated in response to specific criminal incidents that have already occurred, as opposed to proactive investigations that focus on preventing crime before it happens. Crimes against property, such as burglary, theft, and vandalism, typically involve a clear victim and a report of a specific incident that law enforcement responds to. These crimes are often reported after they have taken place, triggering an investigation to understand what happened, gather evidence, and identify suspects.

In the context of the other options, while traffic violations may result in investigations afterward, they often involve more regulatory responses than criminal investigations. Cyber crimes can also be reactive but often contain proactive elements such as monitoring and prevention. White collar crimes, also reactive in nature, may take longer to investigate due to their complexity and often require extensive predication and analysis of documents and data. Thus, crimes against property most accurately represent the essence of reactive investigations, as they directly respond to events that have already affected individuals or businesses.