IDENTIFICATION

Introduction

• Identification is the determination of the individuality of a

person based on certain physical characteristics.
• It can be:
1. Complete (absolute): Absolute fixation of the
individuality of a person.
2. Partial (incomplete): Ascertainment of only some facts
(e.g. race, sex, age or stature) about the identity, while the
others remain unknown.
Identification is necessary in: Living persons pertaining
to:

Civil cases Criminal cases

Marriage Persons accused of
assault,murder or rape

Passport/license Interchange of new born babies

in hospital

Inheritance Impersonation
Disputed sex Absconding soldiers and
criminals

Missing persons
Dead people

i. In cases of fire, explosion and accidents.

ii. When an unknown dead body is found on the road,
fields, railway compartment or water.
[Link]
In cases of decomposed body.
[Link]
In cases of mutilated body.
v. Skeleton.
CORPUS DELICTI
• Corpus delicti ('body of offence') refers to the principle that it
must be proven that a crime has actually occurred before a
person can be convicted of committing the crime.
• In a charge of homicide, it includes:
• i.. Positive identification of the dead body (victim)
• ii. Proof of its death by criminal act of accused
• The term includes body of the victim, bullet or clothing
showing marks of the weapon or photographs showing fatal
injures.

• The main part of corpus delicti is the establishment of

identity of the body and infliction of violence in a particular
way, at a particular time and place by the person or persons
charged with crime and none other.

• The identification of a dead body and proof of corpus delecti

is essential before a sentence is passed in murder trials, as
unclaimed, decomposed bodies or portions of a dead body or
bones are sometimes produced to support a false charge.
 Identification data
▫ In living and dead both In living only
▫ Race and religion
• Handwriting
▫ Sex
▫ Age • Speech and voice
▫ Teeth • Gait, manner and habit
▫ General development and stature
▫ Anthropometric measurements • Memory and education
▫ Fingerprints, lip prints and footprints
▫ External peculiarities, like scar or tattoo
▫ Hair
▫ Personal effects: clothes, pocket contents

Sex,, age and stature are primary

characteristics of identification—
—they are
unaltered even after death.
Race and religion

Important in cases of mass disasters, e.g. in case of railway accidents or

air crashes, when persons of different races are traveling together.
RACE
It is determined by:
• i. Clothing:: Traditional Indian dress is different from Western dress.
• ii. Complexion:: Skin is black in Negroes, brown in Indians and fair in
Europeans (Caucasian).
• iii. Eye:: Indians have dark or brown, Negroes have dark brown and
Europeans have blue or gray iris.
• iv. Hair : Indians have black, long and fine hair which is rounder and
thicker than Caucasians or Negroes.
• v. Skull: Cephalic Index (Greek kephale:
kephale head) or Index of Breadth is
the percentage of breadth to length in any skull.

CI = Maximum transverse breadth of skull 100

Maximum anteroposterior length of skull
 Skull can be classified into three types based on cephalic index (CI)—
1. Dolichocephalic
2. Mesocephalic
3. Brachycephalic

Type of skull Cephalic index Race

Dolichocephalic (long- 70-74.9 Aryans, Aborigines,

headed) Negroes

Mesaticephalic (medium- 75-79.9 Europeans, Chinese

headed)

Brachycephalic (short- 80-84.9 Mongolian

headed)
RELIGION
• Hindu males - not circumcised, sacred thread, necklace of wooden
beads, caste marks on forehead, tuft of hair on back of the head
and piercing of ear lobes.
• Muslim males – normally circumcised, marks of corns &
callosities on lateral aspect of knees & feet
• Hindu females – sarees, vermillion on head, silver toe ornaments,
nose ring aperture etc
SEX
Sex determination is required for following reasons:
• For the purpose of identification in living/dead.
• For deciding whether an individual can exercise certain civil
rights extended to one sex only.
• For deciding questions relating to divorce, paternity, marriage,
rape etc
In normal cases, in the living:
Most certain evidence of sex:: Possession of ovaries in females and
testes in males.
Highly probable evidence of sex:: Possession of sexual structures, e.g.
developed breasts and vagina in females, and male distribution of
hair and penis in males.
Presumptive evidence of sex:: Outward appearance of individual
features, contours of face, clothes, voice and figure.
In normal cases, sex determination is easy from external
examination, but it is difficult in cases of :
i. Intersex – they have features resembling one sex and the
internal gonads could of other sex or of both sexes
ii. Concealed sex – individual who hide their real sex for a motive
by cross dressing
iii. Advanced decomposition & Skeleton-
Skeleton uterus & prostrate resist
putrefaction
Sex verification tests

i. Physical morphology
ii. Nuclear sexing or sex chromatin
iii. Gonadal biopsy
iv. Assay of testosterone levels
Nuclear sexing
It is a method of sexing cells which may help in determining sex in
doubtful cases, decomposed and mutilated bodies and fragmentary
remains
Histological examination
• Barr body (sex chromatin)- inactive single X chromosome found in
the nuclei of somatic cells of most females
• Davidson body - in females, neutrophil leucocytes contain an
attachment of drumstick form.
In decomposed bodies, sex chromatin cannot be made out.
Gonadal biopsy (from testes or ovaries):
Confirmatory method of determining sex - detection of internal
gonads & sex chromosomes

Assay of testosterone levels

Helps in differentiating the sex of an individual for females, they
should have low levels < 10nmol/l
Intersex/Disorders of sexual development
It
It is an intermingling of sexual characters of either sex in one
individual to a varying degree including the physical form,
reproductive organs and sexual behavior
It
It results from some defect in embryonic development . It is
divided it into four groups:
i. Gonadal agenesis
ii. Gonadal dysgenesis
iii. True hermaphroditism
iv. Pseudohermaphroditism.
1. Gonadal agenesis:
Sex organs (testes and ovaries) never developed in these
individuals. Nuclear sexing is negative
2. Gonadal dysgenesis:
External sexual characters present, but testes or ovaries fail to
develop at puberty, e.g. Turner syndrome, Klinefelter syndrome
Klinefelter Syndrome

• The most common sex chromosome disorder

• Second most common condition caused by the presence of extra
chromosomes.
• Anatomically male, but nuclear sex is female
• Classical karyotype is 47 XXY
• Delay in onset of puberty, gynecomastia at puberty, Axillary and
pubic hair are absent, hair on chest and chin are reduced etc
Turner Syndrome

• The most common sex chromosome abnormality of human

females
• Anatomical structure is female, but nuclear sexing is negative
• Sex chromatin pattern is XO (45 chromosomes)
• It can be recognized at birth by lymphedema of dorsum of hands
and feet, loose skin folds in the nape of neck and low birth weight
etc
3. True hermaphroditism

• It is a rare condition; also known as double-sex

double or bisexual.
• Both ovarian and testicular tissues are present.
• Sex chromatin may be either male or female pattern
4. Pseudohermaphroditism
In this, gonadal tissue of only one sex is seen internally, but
external appearance is that of opposite sex.
Sex from skeltal remains
Features Male skull Female skull

General appearance Larger, heavier, marked Smaller, lighter, smoothe

muscular markings
Forehead Receding, irregular, less Vertical, round , smooth
rounded
Cranial capacity More capacious ( 1450-
1450 Less capacious (1300-
1550 cc) 1350 cc)
Glabella Prominent Less prominent

Supraorbital/ supraciliary Prominent Less prominent

ridge
Frontonasal junction Distinct angulation Smoothly curved
Orbits Square, rounded margins, Rounded, sharp margins,
small large

Frontal and parietal Less prominent Prominent

eminence

Zygomatic arch Prominent Not prominent

Mastoid process Large, round, blunt Small, smooth, pointed

Palate Large, U-shaped,

shaped, broad Small, parabolic

Foramen magnum Relatively large, long Small, round

Male & female skull
Male & female mandible
Features Male pelvis Female pelvis

General appearance Massive, rougher, Less massive, slender,

prominent muscular smoother, muscular
markings markings not prominent
Shape Deep funnel Flat bowl

Acetabulum Large Small

Obturator foramen Large, oval, base Small, triangular, apex

upwards forwards

Greater sciatic notch Narrow, deep, small Broad, shallow, large

Ischial tuberosity Inverted Everted

Body of pubis Narrow, triangular Broad, square

Features Male pelvis Female pelvis

Subpubic angle V-shaped,

shaped, sharp angle U-shaped, rounded,
broader angle

Pelvic brim or inlet Heart-shaped

shaped Circular or elliptical
shaped

Pelvic cavity Conical, funnel shaped Broad, round

Pelvic outlet Smaller Larger

Coccyx Less movable More movable

Features Male sacrum Female sacrum
General appearance Larger, heavier, rough, Smaller, lighter, smooth,
narrow broad

Breadth of body of 1st More than breadth of one Less than breadth of one
acral vertebra side ala side ala

nner curvature Uniformly curved Abruptly curved at the las

anteriorly two segments
Sacroiliac articulation Extends upto 3rd segment Extends upto 2-2½
segment

Sacroiliac joint surface Large, less sharply L-shaped, elevated

angulated anteriorly
AGE
Age determination can be done through many means, and an analysis of
all possible age-related
related attributes is best for an overall estimate. Some
of the utilized features include
i. Dental eruption
ii. Epiphyseal unions
iii. Pubic symphyseal morphology
iv. Cranial suture closures
v. Mandibular and sacral changes
vi. Miscellaneous
a. Secondary sexual characters b. Age-related
Age degenerative conditions
Parts of a tooth
• Each tooth has a crown, neck and a root embedded in jaw bone
• Teeth are composed of dentin covered on the crown by enamel
and on the root by cementum which is attached to the alveolar
bone by periodontal membrane.
• Types Incisors, canine, premolars, molars
Temporary teeth
• Deciduous teeth/ milk teeth/ primary dentition
• 20 in nos
• 8 incisors, 4 canines, 8 molars
• No premolars are present in childhood
• Deciduous teeth begins to develop during the 6th week of IUL
• The eruption of the deciduous teeth commences at about 7 months
after birth and is completed about the end of the 2nd year
Permanent teeth

• 32 in number— 4 incisors, 4 premolars, 2 canines and 6 molars in each

Permanent teeth appear few months earlier in girls than in boys.

• Eruption of teeth is useful in estimating age upto 15 years. The third mola
(wisdom tooth) erupts after this time, but is so variable in age of eruption
that it is not a reliable age indicator

• If, in the jaw all 3rd molars are present, then the age is over 18 years, but
their absence gives no certain idea about age
Period of mixed dentition
• Starting from the day of eruption of first permanent molar till
before the eruption of last permanent canine—both
canine temporary and
permanent teeth are present in the jaw. This duration is known as
period of mixed dentition
• Usually, it is between 6-11
11 years, but may persist until 12-13
12 years
Number of teeth with age
• There is addition of teeth from the age of 12-14
12 years, when the
second molar erupts and the total number becomes 28.
• Then the number remains constant till 17 years
• 4 more are added from 17-25
25 years and the number becomes 32.
Estimation of age from teeth beyond 25 years

• Gustafson's method
• Aspartic acid racemization
• Chemical method
• Radiocarbon analysis
Gustafson's Method

• Microscopic examination of longitudinal section of central part of

the tooth to assess changes in teeth as a result of wear and tear with
advancing age
• Estimate age between 25-60
60 years
• Useful only while examining a dead body or skeletal remains
Gustafson's criteria
HANGES DESCRIPTION

ttrition Wearing down of occlusal surface due to

mastication, first involving enamel, then
dentin and lastly pulp
eriodontosis Retraction of gum margin and loosening
of tooth exposing the neck and adjacent
parts of roots
econdary dentin Progressive infilling of the dental pulp
cavity, decreases the size of cavity and
may completely obliterate it
ementum apposition Cementum increase in thickness around
the root due to changes in tooth position,
continuously deposited throughout life
and forms incremental lines
Root resorption Involves both cementum and dentin.
Starts at apex and extends upwards.
Least reliable of all criteria

Root transparency Occurs in root from below upwards in

lower jaw and above downwards in
upper jaw due to rarefaction of the
dentin tissue. Most reliable of all
criteria.
Other Information from Teeth

• Sex determination
• Race
• Occupation and habits
• Social status
Age from ossification of bones
• The clavicle is the first bone to ossify in the body
• In majority of the bones, primary centres of ossification appear
between 7th and 12th weeks of intrauterine life
• By the age of 11-12th
12th week of IUL, there are 806 centres of
ossification
• At birth, there are about 450 ossification centres
• The adult human skeleton has 206 bones, this shows that 600
centres of bone growth have disappeared
• If all the epiphyses of all the long bones are united, the person is most
probably over 25 years of age
• X-rays
rays of elbow, wrist, clavicle and shoulder joints (upper extremity)
and hip, knee and ankle joints (lower extremity) are usually
recommended to determine the age before 25 years of age
Symphyseal Surface of Pubis
• The pubic symphyseal face in the young is characterized by an
undulating surface, such as the crenulated surface of a typical non-
non
fused epiphyseal plate.
• This surface undergoes a regular progressive change from 18 years
onwards
• It is the best single criterion for determining age-at
age death for
individuals from third to fifth decade
Cranial suture closures
• This method based upon the degree of closure, union or
ossification of the cranial sutures.
• The closure of the skull sutures is considered to be a reasonably
reliable index of age estimation between 25-40
25 years of age (useful
in living also
• Closure of skull sutures begins on the inner side (endocranially)
( 5-
10 years earlier than on the outer side (ectocranially).
( The closure
of ectocranial suture is variable and it may not close at all
• The most successful estimate of age is done from sagittal suture,
followed by lambdoid and then coronal.
• The sutures start closing on the inner side at about 25 years of age.
On the outer side, posterior one-third
third of sagittal suture closes at
about 30-40 years; anterior one-third
third of sagittal and lower half of
coronal at about 40-50
50 years; and middle of sagittal and upper half
of the coronal at about 50-60
60 years
Mandibular and saccral changes
Changes in mandible
Saccral changes
• The five sacral vertebrae remain separated by cartilage until
puberty and with the onset of puberty, ossification of intervertebral
discs starts from below upwards and fusion becomes complete by
20-25 years.
General Features in Estimation of Age
It includes secondary sexual characters, baldness or graying of
hair, arcus senilis and skeletal changes

In males

The first sign of puberty in boys is increase in size of the testicles

(gonadarche), seen at about 13-14
14 years which is followed a few
months later by the growth of pubic hair (pubarche) and
enlargement of penis
In females

The first sign of puberty in girls is the development of breasts

(thelarche), seen at about 10-12
12 years
Older years
• Many non-pathogenic
pathogenic conditions such as arthritis and osteoporosis
become more prevalent and pronounced in old age and can be used
to give corroborative evidence in the determination of age.
• Pubic hair does not turn gray before 50-55
50 years.
• Arcus senilis: Opaque zone around periphery of cornea may be
noticed as a result of lipoid degeneration after 50 years.
• Xiphisternum and manubrium unite with the body of sternum around
40 years and above 50 years respectively
• Skull bones with advancing age tend to become lighter and thinner
• X-ray
ray of skull, vertebrae and sternum is used to determine age in
old people
Medico-legal
legal importance of Age

[Link] responsibility :

Any act which is done by a child under 7 yrs of age is not an offence
( Sec.82 IPC )

2. Judicial punishment :

Acc to Juvenile Justice Act , 2000 “ juvenile means a person( boy or

girl ) who has not completed eighteenth year of age . No juvenile in
conflict with law shall be sentenced to death or life imprisonment, or
commited to prison.
3. Statutory Rape :
Sexual intercourse by man with a girl under 15 yrs even if she is own
wife, or with any other girl under 18 yrs even with her consent is rape
( S.375 IPC )

4. Kidnapping :
It is an offence a) to a kidnap a child with the intention of taking
dishonestly any movable property, if the age of child is under 10 yrs
b) To kidnap a minor from lawful guardianship, if the age of a boy is
under 16 and that of a girl under 18 yrs.
c) To kidnap or maim a minor for purposes of begging
d) Kidnapping , abducting or inducing woman to compel her
marriage.
e) To procure a girl for prostitution, if her age is under 18 yrs
f) To import to India from a foreign country a female for purposes of
illicit intercourse, if her age is less than 21 yrs
5. Employment :

A child below 14 yrs cannot be employed for any type of work.

6. Attainment of majority :
A person attains majority on the completion of 18 yrs, but when a person is
under the guardianship of court of wards etc, he attains majority on the
completion of 21 yrs
7. Evidence :
All persons will be competent to testify, unless they are prevented from
understanding the questions put to them, or from giving rational answers du
to tender years, extreme old age, diseases of body or mind etc.
Marriage contract :
A female under 18 yrs and a male under 21 yrs, cannot contract marriage.
Criminal abortion

A women who has passed the child bearing age cannot be charged of
procuring criminal abortion

.Identification

An approximate age is important in any chain of identity data

. Impotence and sterility

A boy is sterile though not impotent before puberty. Women becomes sterile
after menopause
Age of foetus
Developing ovum – first 7 to 10 days after conception, i.e until the
implantation occurs.
Embryo –1 week to the end of 8th week
later it is called as ‘foetus’
Infant – when completely born
Gestational age can be determined from maturation of chorionic
villi,, foot length and ossification centres
RULE OF HAASE
• Rough method of calculating the age of the foetus.
• Length of the foetus is measured from the crown to the heel in
centimeters.
• During the first five months of pregnancy the square root of the
length gives the approximate age of the foetus in months.
• During the last five months, the length in cm divided by five gives
the age in months
STATURE
• Stature varies at different times of the day by one and half to two
cm.
• It is less in the afternoon and evening.
• After the age of 30 , there will be gradual decrease in stature by
about 0.6mm per year on an average.
• On an average ,the body lengthens after death by about 2 cm.
SCARS

It is a fibrous tissue covered by epithelium without hair follicles,

sweat glands or pigment, produced from the healing of a wound.
Scar is formed, if injury is at the level of dermis and below.
Age of scars
Medico-legal
legal importance

1. Identification of the individual

2. Shape of scar may indicate the nature of weapon or agent that
caused injury
3. Age of scar indicates time of infliction of injury which may have
value as circumstantial evidence
4. If a person is disfigured by scar due to assault, it constitutes
grievous hurt
6. To charge an enemy with assault, a person may attribute scar due
to disease as those of wound
7. Scars on wrist or throat may indicate previous attempts of suicide
8. Linear needle scars indicate an IV drug abuser and depressed
scars a skin popper
Tattoo marks

• Tattoos are designs made in the skin by multiple small puncture

wounds with needles dipped in coloring matter
• Dyes used: Indigo, cobalt, carbon, vermilion, cadmium, selenium,
Prussian blue and Indian ink.
• Tattoos are recognized even in decomposed bodies and bodies
recovered from water when the epidermis is removed.
Medico-legal
legal Importance

• Identity
• Religion and nationality
• Political affiliations
• Profession/occupation
• Behavioral characteristics
Anthropometry (Bertillon system)
The first scientific method of criminal identification
Based on the principle that the measurements of various parts of the
human body do not alter after adult age (21 years)
It includes Descriptive data :Color of hair, eyes, complexion, etc,
Body measurement: Height, AP diameter of head and trunk, span o
outstretched arms, length of middle finger, left little finger etc
Body marks :such as moles, scars and tattoo marks etc
Photographs : of front view and right profile of head etc
Dactylography (Dactyloscopy)

• Dactylography (dermatoglyphics, Galton system)

• The study of fingerprints as a method of identification.
• A fingerprint match is widely accepted as most reliable evidence
of identification
 What are fingerprints ?
• The fingers, palms of the hands, and soles of the feet of humans (and
some other primates) bear friction ridge skin. On the tip of the
fingers, the friction ridge skin forms a number of basic patterns.
Within each basic pattern are numerous possible variations.
• Dermal carvings or ridges appear first time from the 12th-16th
12th week
of IUL and their formation gets completed by 24th week, i.e. 6th
month IUL and remain constant throughout embryonic life, birth and
the life of the individual.
Finger print patterns
There are four basic ridge patterns

[Link] Type Percentage

1 Loop 60-70

2 Whirl 30-35

3 Arch 5-10

4 Composite 2-3
 Recording of Fingerprints

Hands are washed, cleaned and dried to ensure clear prints. Print is
taken using printer's ink on an unglazed white paper.
i. Plain or dab impression is obtained by gently pressing the
inked surface of the tip of finger on paper.
ii. Rolled impression is taken by rolling the inked finger from
side to side
 Types of Evidentiary Fingerprints
Three types of fingerprint may be encountered:
i. Patent (visible) print : needs no processing to be clearly recognizable
as a fingerprint. It is often made from grease, dark oil, dirt or blood,
rendering it visible and recognizable and even suitable for comparison
without additional processing
ii. Plastic (impression/indentation) print : is a recognizable fingerprint
indentation in a soft surface, such as butter, soap, cheese, paint, putty or
tar. Such prints have a distinct three-dimensional
three character, immediately
recognizable and require no further processing.
iii. Latent print : requires additional processing to be rendered
visible and suitable for comparison. Processing of latent prints to
render them visible and suitable for comparison is called
development, enhancement, or visualization.
Medico- legal aspects

i. Identification of criminals whose fingerprints were found at

scene.
ii. Problems of mistaken identity
iii. Identification of unknown deceased person, persons suffering
from amnesia, missing persons and unconscious patient
iv. Identification in case of accidental exchange of newborn infants.
v. Identification of licensing procedure for automobile, firearm,
aircrafts, etc.
Poroscopy

• It is the further study of fingerprints.

• Ridges on fingers and hands are studded with microscopic pores
formed by mouths of ducts of subepidermal sweat glands
Lip prints (Cheiloscopy)
• The study of lip prints is called cheiloscopy
• It is said that a person's lip prints are unique.
• Lip prints are revealed at the point of direct, physical contact of
the perpetrator's lips with an object at the scene of crime, e.g.
cutlery and crockery items particularly if a meal was eaten or
plastic bags and cigarette ends
Hair
• Examination of hair (trichology) can provide crime investigators
with important clues
• Apart from burning, hair is virtually indestructible. It remains
identifiable even on bodies in an advanced state of decomposition
or attached to the weapon of offence after a crime has been
committed.
Medico-legal
legal applications
• Identification
• Nature of weapon
• Nature of assault
• It helps in differentiating burns from scalds.
• Poison can be determined from hair
Superimposition
Technique applied to determine whether the recovered skull is that
of the person in the photograph.
Technologically, skull-photo
photo superimposition have passed through
three phases—the
the photographic, video and computer-assisted
computer
superimposition techniques
While performing photographic superimposition, the comparison
photograph is enlarged to the size of the unknown skull and then
the skull is positioned in the same orientation as the facial
photograph
Recently, computer-assisted
assisted superimposition has become a popular
method which digitize the skull and facial photograph using a
video computer with appropriate software and then to compare the
two images morphologically by image processing.
The complete skull is required to obtain positive identification.
Without the mandible, it cannot be positively be identified as the
presumed person, even if a good match is seen in skull-
skull
superimposition image.
If they are well matched with each other, it can only be stated that
the skull could be that of the photographed person
Arriving at a positive match does not always mean a positive
identification, since a photograph of any other person with similar
craniometry can produce a successful match with the same skull.