Crime scene staging is a recognized occurrence in the criminal justice field. Crime scene staging is an attempt to mislead investigators and frustrate the criminal justice process. In staged scenes, the offender is either intentionally or unintentionally engaged in something similar to a chess game with police, with the crime scene representing the game board. This article defines the occurrence for staging, identifies the motives for staging and the act that precipitated the staging. Results are presented from a survey of 20 highly trained law enforcement officers’ experience with 9 staging crime scene cases. The observations of the trained officers suggested that less than 3 percent of violent crimes against persons are staged. The types of staged scenes that may confront the investigator were limited by only the imagination of the staging offender and could include fatal and nonfatal incidents. In staged crimes, the investigator must recognize that motives are operative for the original fatal or nonfatal act and also, for the staging process. References