Homicide Cleanup
Homicide cleanup of blood, tissue and contaminated materials after investigators leave.
See homicide cleanupPolice must release the property before cleanup begins. After that, safe removal of body fluids, blood, odor and fingerprint powder can help make your home or business livable again. One to three days is typical for most of these cleanups.
Crime scene cleanup means taking out tissue, contaminated materials, body fluids and blood following a violent crime. Often termed trauma scene cleanup or forensic cleaning, it includes odor removal and disinfection to make the property safe for use again.
The investigation comes before any cleaning. Detectives, police and the medical examiner remove the deceased and collect evidence, but cleanup is not part of their role. After release, responsibility for the scene passes to the family, landlord or property owner.
Crime scene cleaners, also called forensic cleaners or a forensic clean up crew, treat every drop of blood as infectious. They trace how far it traveled, remove what cannot be disinfected, clean and treat every surface, and haul the hazardous materials away under medical waste rules. It is a form of biohazard remediation, and the cleanup process covers these steps from start to finish.

Crews separate your keepsakes, documents and photos, and ask you before discarding any of them.
You can take the work scope, disposal documents and photographs to landlords or insurance companies and move forward.
Before work begins, you learn the process and cost factors so your family can choose what is right.
Calls are answered day and night, and crews arrive in unmarked vehicles so neighbors do not know what happened.
Crime scene cleaning services are needed any time a violent event leaves blood or body fluids behind. Common situations include:
Ceilings and walls may have blood spatter, and the carpet and subfloor beneath a person may be saturated.
For offices, retail spaces and warehouses, commercial crime scene cleanup includes isolating each work area while it is cleaned.
Fingerprint powder can cover the property alongside damaged doors and glass affected by blood.
A private service means your family does not need to confront the scene.
A standoff may leave tear gas or pepper spray deposits across ductwork, textiles and wall surfaces.
Blood and tissue spread across floors, walls and furniture, often into more than one room.
The first hours matter for your health, your insurance claim and the final cost. Before the cleanup technicians arrive:
Call (888) 351-0904Published cost guides put most residential crime scene cleanups between $1,500 and $7,500. Most crime scene cleanup companies price by the job, not the hour. A small area of surface blood can cost less, and scenes where blood reached the subfloor or several rooms can pass $10,000. The final price is set after the on-site assessment.
Published national cost guides are the source for these ranges, rather than an inspection of your property. The price for your property is set after the on-site assessment, and you hear it before work starts.
Ask about cost: (888) 351-0904Coverage depends on your policy. Homeowners and renters insurance may cover crime scene cleanup as a sudden and accidental loss, and a deductible may apply.
The owner usually coordinates and covers crime scene cleanup costs in rentals and common areas.
After a violent crime, coverage is based on the terms in your renters or homeowners policy. Report the event quickly and keep the claim number.
Discuss biohazard cleanup coverage, your ability to pick a cleanup company, and the adjuster's required photos or records.
Victims of violent crime can ask the Louisiana Crime Victims Reparations Board, supported by the Louisiana Commission on Law Enforcement, about crime scene cleanup. The program lists it among eligible expenses. Insurance is usually checked first.
A safe, consistent order guides the remediation process, even though every crime scene differs. From the opening walk-through until final inspection, the crime scene cleanup process follows that sequence.
You or your representative walks through the area with technicians, who document it in photos and settle the scope before cleaning begins.
The affected area is sealed with plastic sheeting and negative air, and technicians wear full personal protective equipment.
Crews cut away soaked mattresses, furniture, carpet, pad and drywall, then bag and seal them as medical waste.
All surfaces receive cleaning followed by an EPA-registered hospital-grade disinfectant applied for the full contact time.
Technicians inspect HVAC vents and target the odor source using ozone, hydroxyl generators or air scrubbers.
Paperwork follows each closed container through delivery to a permitted facility for medical waste.
You receive records and photos for the claim, and technicians can use ATP testing to check surfaces.
After the affected materials are removed, your chosen contractor or an insurer-selected vendor can install new flooring and drywall.
Call at any time. Your crime scene cleanup specialist answers the phone, describes what happens next and works with you on a start time.
Serious health risks can come from blood and bodily fluids, including contamination beyond what you are able to see.
Saturated items count as regulated medical waste. An approved facility must treat them because they cannot be placed with household waste or in a dumpster.
Cleaning the place where a loved one was hurt is a heavy burden. That emotional burden is why many families use professional crime scene cleaners.
Blood can contain HIV, hepatitis C and hepatitis B. Even if blood seems dry, the CDC says hepatitis B may live on a surface for at least seven days.
Blood runs under baseboards, soaks through carpet into the pad and subfloor, and settles into grout. A surface-only cleaning leaves concealed residue that can bring back bacteria and odor.
Can you clean it yourself? For a few drops of blood that are fresh and limited to a non-porous hard surface, use gloves plus an EPA-registered disinfectant. Anything that reached fabric, carpet, wood or drywall, or any amount you cannot see the edges of, needs professional cleanup.
The rule is simple: if a material can be fully disinfected, it is cleaned. If blood soaked into it, it is removed.

Most crime scene cleanups are completed on site in one to three days. One day may be enough for a recent, small scene. Heavy cleanup that includes structural removal may require two to five days.
| Scene | Typical time on site |
|---|---|
| Light scene, one area | Often one to two days |
| One to two rooms in a typical scene | Often one to three days |
| Major scene with multiple rooms or removed subfloor | Often two to five days |
Odor removal starts with removing the source. Spraying fragrance over blood or tissue only hides the smell for a few days.
The cleanup team can address the air after taking out contaminated materials. HEPA air scrubbers capture particles, while hydroxyl generators are safe to operate with people in the space. For persistent odor, ozone treatment can be used in vacant rooms. Thermal fogging reaches fabrics and cavities inside walls, and checking HVAC ducts keeps smell from traveling to other rooms.
Federal rule 29 CFR 1910.1030 sets requirements for protective equipment, training and handling whenever workers can be exposed to blood.
Choose a disinfectant with EPA registration for blood cleanup, then keep it in place throughout the label's stated contact period.
Louisiana treats soaked materials from a biohazard scene as potentially infectious biomedical waste. Louisiana Department of Health sanitary code rules control how it is packaged, stored and transported, so it cannot go in household trash.
Louisiana has no statewide medical examiner. Each parish has an elected coroner who investigates deaths involving violence, accidents or suspicious circumstances. Cleanup starts after police or the coroner release the scene.
Crime Scene Cleanup is available across the city and the surrounding communities.
Homicide cleanup of blood, tissue and contaminated materials after investigators leave.
See homicide cleanup
Private, careful suicide cleanup so families do not have to face the scene.
See suicide cleanup
Following accidents, violence or injuries, trauma scene cleanup addresses the affected area.
See trauma scene cleanup
Blood cleanup clears blood from furniture, walls, hard floors and carpet, followed by safe disposal.
See blood cleanup
Decomposition cleanup and odor control are needed after a death goes unnoticed for several days.
See unattended death cleanup
Air scrubbers, hydroxyl and ozone treatment support death odor removal at its source.
See death odor removal
Hoarding cleanup with respectful sorting, removal and deep cleaning.
See hoarding cleanup
Disinfection and drying follow sewage cleanup of Category 3 black water from raw sewage.
See raw sewage cleanupPublished guides put most residential crime scene cleanups between $1,500 and $7,500. A minor surface job may be cheaper, while extensive or multiple-room cleanup may exceed $10,000.
Crews typically spend one to three days working at the property. A light scene can be done in a day and a heavy scene with subfloor removal can take up to five days.
Crime scene cleanup is also known as biohazard remediation, forensic cleaning, trauma cleanup or forensic clean up. The people doing this work are known as forensic cleaners and crime scene cleaners.
Initial access and agreement on the scope require someone to be present. Once that is complete, families often leave while technicians perform the cleanup.
Yes. Viruses including hepatitis B may remain viable for days in dry blood left on a surface. Take equal care with blood whether fresh or dried.
Whether coverage applies depends on your renters or homeowners policy, with a possible deductible. Notify the insurance company, then ask if biohazard cleanup is included in your coverage.
When cleaning crime scenes, the cleaning process covers containment, affected material removal, full cleaning and disinfection, odor treatment and medical waste disposal.
The medical examiner, detectives and police gather evidence and take the deceased away, but cleanup is not their role. Crime scene cleanup is commonly arranged by a landlord, family or property owner and completed by professional crime scene cleaners.
No. Once evidence collection is complete, law enforcement releases the property. Cleanup is the responsibility of the property owner or the person in charge of the property.
Forensic cleaning includes both chemical deposits and fingerprint dust. Dry removal comes first, then the right cleaner for each surface so the powder does not stain.
You can request respectful, discreet crime scene cleanup 24 hours a day, and crews use unmarked vehicles.