Santa Fe Standard

From March 23, 2023 post. 

IN RECOGNITION OF WOMEN'S HISTORY MONTH - MARCH 2023SFSO Crime Scene Investigator Marissa Poppell

Marissa Poppell is the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office crime scene investigator (CSI). She has worked in the sheriff's office criminal investigation division since joining the agency in 2021.

Marissa, a Florida native, holds a bachelor's degree in forensic science and psychology and is a certified crime scene analyst. Before joining the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office, she worked as a CSI for a municipal police department in Florida.

She has a dedicated passion for her chosen field, which is rooted in law enforcement and is typically male-dominated. According to Marissa, "CSI is a tough field to break into. It's become popular but is also a niche field, and law enforcement organizations offer few CSI positions to civilians."  Though she works in a profession mostly dominated by males, atypically, "crime scene investigators are positions mostly held by women in law enforcement," said Marissa.

As a CSI, her job involves responding to various crime scenes; most are violent and property crimes, where evidence collection is critical to helping decipher an offense and establish a solid foundation for criminal prosecutions. Her work skill set is specific yet broad. Aside from standard protocols - marking and collecting evidence and taking measurements -she is proficient in DNA analysis, photography, latent prints, and blood spatter.

Through her work, Marissa investigates various crime scenes— many of her cases are homicides. One of her initial callouts as a CSI was to collect evidence at the "Club Blu mass shooting" in Fort Myers, Florida. The evidence collected by police indicated the shooting was part of a gang war where gang members exchanged gunfire, claiming the lives of two youths and leaving 14 injured. "People in this field of work need to have a strong constitution and take care of their mental health because you're not going to see nice things," she said. "Compartmentalizing is important for me, and I try not to take my work home."

Outside of work, Marissa focuses on her family and another affinity that helps her decompress - Roller Derby! She is a Los Alamos Derby Dames member celebrated as "Rissa Rampage" by her teammates and feared by her competitors.

She discovered the sport of roller derby in 2018 and has loved it ever since. She practices two times a week with her derby dames and travels yearly to compete in derby bouts. It is a contact sport played by approximately 1,250 amateur leagues worldwide, mainly in the United States.

The Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office recognizes CSI Poppell for her professional contributions to our agency and for making Santa Fe County a safer community.

We salute Marissa and all the Santa Fe County Sheriff's Office women and thank them for their contributions to public service and public safety.

#WomensHistoryMonth #sharingherstory #santafecountysheriff #HerStoryOurStory #womentsrollerderby #CSI

Original source can be found here.