Training Courses

NCJTC Death Investigation Academy

Date & Time:
  • December 6, 2027 – December 10, 2027
Location:
Bartlett, TN

This comprehensive five-day academy equips investigators with essential skills and knowledge for conducting thorough death investigations across various circumstances. Participants will explore investigative methodologies, crime scene evaluation, interview and interrogation strategies, case development techniques, and collaboration with forensic resources including crime laboratories and medical examiners, as well as gain understanding of autopsy procedures.

Training Overview

The NCJTC Death Investigation Academy is structured to provide law enforcement professionals with intensive, hands-on training in death investigation procedures. The program runs from 8:00 am to 4:30 pm each day with a one-hour lunch break, totaling 40 hours of instruction.

Learning Outcomes

Upon completion of this academy, participants will be able to:

  • Apply new techniques when coordinating and conducting death investigations
  • Identify different types of deaths and implement appropriate investigative concepts for each category
  • Execute effective interviewing and interrogation techniques
  • Create and implement strategies for collaborating with medical examiners throughout investigations

Course Topics

The curriculum covers a wide range of death investigation topics including: introduction to death investigation, scene management and documentation, forensic science services and death scene evidence techniques, investigative tools and resources, death notifications, vicarious trauma and wellness, interview and interrogation methods, drug-related death investigations, digital evidence in death investigations, digital forensics and timeline analysis, time of death determination, equivocal death and suicide investigations, crime scene analysis and suspect development, infant and child death investigations, major case management, cold case investigations, court preparation and prosecution coordination, and investigative genetic genealogy.

Who Should Attend

This training is designed for law enforcement personnel, prosecutors, forensic service units, coroners, and medical examiners who are involved in death investigations.

Training Dates and Location

Primary Session: December 6-10, 2027 in Bartlett, Tennessee at the Bartlett Police Department CJC, 3730 Appling Road, Bartlett, TN 38133

Additional Dates and Locations Available:

  • December 7-11, 2026 in Everett, Washington
  • June 7-11, 2027 in Sandy, Utah
  • September 20-24, 2027 in Bellevue, Nebraska

Cost and Registration

The registration fee is $650.00 per participant. This fee includes 40 hours of comprehensive training, program materials, and instructional costs. Participants are responsible for arranging and paying for meals, travel, and lodging. The registration deadline for the December 2027 session is November 1, 2027.

Lodging Options

Recommended hotels near the Bartlett venue include:

  • Hampton Inn & Suites Memphis-Wolfchase Galleria, 2935 N Germantown Parkway, Bartlett, TN 38133
  • Hilton Garden Inn - Memphis-Wolfchase Galleria, 7955 Ikea Way, Cordova, TN 38016
  • Holiday Inn & Suites - Memphis-Wolfchase Galleria, 2751 New Brunswick Road, Memphis, TN 38133
  • Hyatt Place Memphis-Wolfchase Galleria, 7905 Giacosa Place, Memphis, TN 38133

Instructors

James Holmes – Special Agent (Retired), Wisconsin Division of Criminal Investigation. A certified law enforcement officer since 1995, Jim has extensive experience including service with the Dane County Sheriff's Department and Fitchburg Police Department. As a Special Agent with the Wisconsin Department of Justice's Division of Criminal Investigation since 1996, he has been assigned to multiple specialized bureaus including White Collar Crimes and Internet Crimes Against Children. His work in the Major Crimes Unit has involved numerous adult and child homicide investigations, equivocal death cases, officer-involved death investigations, and cold case homicides.

Matt Bell – Lieutenant, Milwaukee Police Department Criminal Investigation Bureau Homicide Unit. Matt holds a Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice from Carroll University and a Master of Science in Criminal Justice from the University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee. Beginning his career in 2001 with the Wisconsin Department of Corrections, he joined the Milwaukee Police Department in 2004 and advanced through the ranks to Lieutenant in 2026. His expertise spans crime scene processing, interviewing, interrogation, and homicide investigation. Matt serves as an adjunct Criminal Justice instructor at Carroll University and provides expert testimony while consulting nationally on critical incident response.

Patrick Eller – President and CEO, Senior Digital Forensic Examiner, Metadata Forensics LLC. Patrick is a nationally recognized digital forensics professional with over 25 years of investigative and forensic experience. A retired U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command Special Agent, he served in progressively senior positions including at CID Headquarters in Quantico, Virginia, where he oversaw a digital forensic program of more than 80 examiners. He also deployed to Afghanistan to establish and manage the Army's only deployed digital forensics laboratory. Patrick has extensive teaching credentials, having instructed at Champlain College and University of Maryland University College, and has provided specialized forensic instruction through the National Forensics Academy, the International Homicide Investigators Association, and military legal training programs.

Contact Information

For additional information about this training, contact Jessica Heimann at (855) 866-2582 or jessica.heimann2274@fvtc.edu.