1.1 Forensic Odontology: An Introduction Flashcards
Latin word where the law courts of ancient Rome were held.
forensis –“of the forum”
Relating to the application of scientific methods and techniques to the investigation of crime.
Forensic
Encompasses the application of specialized scientific and/or technical knowledge to questions of civil and criminal law, especially court proceedings.
Forensic Science
A special science or discipline that deals with relationships and applications of medical facts and knowledge to legal problems.
Forensic Medicine / Legal Medicine / Medical Jurisprudence
The American Academy of Forensic Sciences Recognizes 10 Areas of Forensic Endeavor
- Criminalistics
- Engineering Science
- General Jurisprudence
- Odontology
- Pathology / Biology
- Psychiatry
- Behavioral Science
- Questioned Documents
- Toxicology
- Physical Anthropology
the establishment of a person’s individuality.
- Identification
- “The characteristics by which a person may be recognized.”
THE SCIENCE OF PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION
- Visual recognition
- Personal property
- Physical features
THE SCIENCE OF PERSONAL IDENTIFICATION
- The most commonly used method of identification and is used to establish both positive and presumptive identification in which a family member or friend tells the police or emergency medical personnel.
VISUAL IDENTIFICATION
- Use of identification card, photograph, driver’s license, clothing, jewelry etc.
VISUAL IDENTIFICATION
- Personal identification such as body tattoos and piercing, scar, keloids, antemortem radiographs and autopsy.
VISUAL IDENTIFICATION
The least reliable methods:
Visual recognition by relatives and friends.
IDENTIFICATION PARAMETERS (4)
Dental Comparisons
Fingerprints, palm prints and footprints
DNA Identification
Radiographic Superimpositions
The gold standard of biological human identification.
GENETIC DNA IDENTIFICATION
hereditary material in humans and almost all other organisms.
- DNA or deoxyribonucleic acid
- Nearly every cell in a person’s body has the same DNA. (True or false)
True
- Most of the DNA is located in the cell nucleus (where it is called ____________), but a small amount of DNA can also be found in the mitochondria (where it is called _________________).
nuclear DNA
mitochondrial DNA or mtDNA
- An important property of DNA is that it can replicate or make copies of itself. (True or false)
True
a forensic technique in criminal investigations, comparing criminal suspects’ profiles to DNA evidence to assess the likelihood of their involvement in the crime.
- DNA Profiling
It is also used in:
o Parentage testing
o To establish eligibility
o Genealogical and medical research
DNA PROFILING
6 USES OF DNA PROFILING
1) Identifying Criminals
2) Exoneration and Freedom
3) Identifying Remains in Tragedies
4) Establishing Paternity
5) Establishing Family
6) Determining Ancestry
Bodily fluids, shedding skin or hair follicles.
1) Identifying Criminals
Revolutionary method, both for its ability to identify perpetrators of serious crimes and for its ability to exonerate people who are innocent.
2) Exoneration and Freedom
DNA profiling is often the best way or only way to clearly identify remains.
3) Identifying Remains in Tragedies
An essential tool in the legal process by which custody, parental rights, and parental financial obligations are determined.
4) Establishing Paternity
Establishing the biological relationship between siblings, parents and children, or other extended family can be essential for the legal process of immigration on the basis of family relationships.
5) Establishing Family
An essential tool in the legal realm, for criminal investigations, for custody and paternity cases, and for immigration cases.
6) Determining Ancestry
Extraction of DNA can also be used for _______ determination
sex
Types of DNA that are of interest to Forensic Scientists
- Nuclear DNA
- Mitochondrial DNA
- Y Chromosome DNA
- The DNA sequence or order of the base pairs are the same for every cell in a person’s body that has a nucleus, with the exception of reproductive cells.
- Nuclear DNA
- Inherited from both parents.
- Nuclear DNA
- A small genome found multiple times in the cytoplasm of the cell surrounding the nucleus.
- Passed from mother to each of her children.
- Mitochondrial DNA/ mtDNA
- A man’s mtDNA is inherited from her mother but he ___________ pass it to his children.
does not
The mtDNA of only a single relative, even distantly related can be compared. (True or false)
True
Not a unique identifier because maternal relatives share the same mtDNA type. (True or false)
True
- Inherited by males from their male parents.
- All members from the same paternal lineage will therefore have the same Y-STR
- Y Chromosome DNA
The scientific study of fingerprints.
- Dactylography
the pattern on the inside of the finger in the area between the tip and the first joint and stays the same from the day of a person’s birth to the day they die.
fingerprint
- A reproduction of the friction ridge arrangement present on the (nails/tips) of the fingers when an impression deposited on a touched surface.
tips
- The arrangement of the friction ridge skin is (temporary/permanent) due to the underlying structure of the skin and unique because of complex physiological events both genetic and environmental that occur during fetal development.
permanent
from the Latin word forensis / forum which means “court of law”.
forensic
study of teeth
Ø Odontology
- A specialized area of dentistry which includes the gathering and interpretation of dental and related evidence within the overall field of criminalistics.
FORENSIC ODONTOLOGY / FORENSIC DENTISTRY
“that branch of dentistry which, in the interest of justice, deals with the proper handling and examination of dental evidence and with proper evaluation and presentation of dental findings.” defined by who?
FDI (Federation Dentaire Internationale)
- Primarily deals with identification, based on recognition of unique features present in an individual’s dental structure
FORENSIC ODONTOLOGY / FORENSIC DENTISTRY
- Plays a major role in identification in man-made natural disasters or when multiple fatalities may not be identifiable.
FORENSIC ODONTOLOGY / FORENSIC DENTISTRY
- Relies on sound knowledge of the teeth and jaws, incorporates dental anatomy, histology, radiography, pathology, dental materials and developmental anomalies.
FORENSIC ODONTOLOGY / FORENSIC DENTISTRY
Ranges from the identification of persons using dental records to the identification and analysis of bitemarks, to the estimation of a person’s age based upon dental development or other characteristics.
Forensic Dental Evidence
Can withstand decomposition, heat degradation, water immersion and dessication.
Enamel
Source of DNA
o Pulp & Crushed Tooth
Nuclear or mitochondrial DNA.
Established relative age of a person
o Every human body age in a similar manner
Teeth’s age of eruption.
No two person has the same dentition (T/F)
T
Each dentition is unique (T/F)
T
- Identify unknown human remains through dental records and assisting at the location of a mass disaster.
Forensic Dentist / Forensic Odontologist
- Presenting evidence in court as an expert witness.
Forensic Dentist / Forensic Odontologist
- Eliciting the ethnicity and assisting in building up a picture of lifestyle and diet of skeletal remains at archeological sites.
- Determining the gender of unidentified individuals.
- Age estimation of both the living and the deceased.
- Recognition and analysis of bite marks found on a victims of attack and in other substances such as foodstuff.
Forensic Dentist / Forensic Odontologist
refers to a forensic investigation of the cause of death, and it is done after the occurrence of the death.
Post-mortem
injuries occur after death.
Post-mortem
injuries occur before death.
Ante-mortem
refers to events occurring prior to death.
Ante-mortem
SCOPE OF FORENSIC ODONTOLOGY (3)
Ø Dental identification
Ø Bite marks analysis
Ø Reconstructive postmortem: dental profiling
