Police detectives gather evidence and examine crime scenes to discover what happened in criminal cases. As a police detective, you are among the first law enforcement officials to arrive at the scene of the crime. You look for forensic evidence and interview witnesses. Some police detectives may be general detectives, working on various types of crimes, while others are assigned to specialized departments that focus on specific kinds of crimes, such as drug dealing, financial crimes, or violent crimes. They work on their assigned cases until they are solved or set aside as inconclusive with insufficient evidence.