CHE 113 1

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FORENSIC ANTHROPOLOGYA Very Brief Overview
CHE 113
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Forensic AnthropologyBrief Overview

• Defined as the field of study that deals with
  the analysis of human skeletal remains resulting
  from unexplained deaths.
• Often done in a legal context
• An applied science
• Five subdisciplines
• 1. Biological, or physical anthropology
• 2. Archaeology
• 3. Cultural anthropology
• 4. Linguistics
• 5. Applied anthropology

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Forensic Anthropology
Goal Biological Profile
Includes 1. General Description 2. Sex of
decedent 3. Age of decedent 4. Ancestry of
decedent 5. Stature of decedent 6. Assessment
of trauma (ante-, peri-, post mortem) 7.
Pathologies noted
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Osteology study of skeletal remains
Each bone studied INDIVIDUALLY
206 Skeletal Bones (total)
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Osteology study of skeletal remains
Each bone studied INDIVIDUALLY
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Osteology
Human bone vs- Animal bone
Macroscopic differences Radiology
Observation Measurement Microscopic differences
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Osteology
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Osteology
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Macroscopic differences
Baboon femur
Human femur
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Microscopic differences
human
Spongy bone
mouse
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Osteology
Radiographs
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Information from skeletal remains Sex of decedent
Skull
Hip bone Femur
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Information from skeletal remains Sex of decedent
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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Information from skeletal remains Sex of decedent
MALE OR FEMALE SKELETON? (a) IS FEMALE and (b)
IS MALE
Handout
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Information from skeletal remains Sex of decedent
Male
MALE OR FEMALE SKELETON? (a) IS FEMALE and (b)
IS MALE
Female
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Information from skeletal remains Sex of decedent
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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What can we learn from skeletons? Age at Death
Hip bone most useful for adults
Estimate given as a range
(30 35 yrs old)
Teeth Erupted or Not?
Epiphyses fused or unfused?
Auricular surface
Pubic symphysis
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Age at DeathLong Bone Development
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Age at Death
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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Age at Death
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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Odontology Forensic Dentistry
Teeth also studied
Deciduous vs- Permanent
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Forensic Dentistry

• At the scene of the crime, odontologists collect
  the skull or remaining teeth, which are taken
  back to the forensic laboratory for the
  postmortem dental investigation. X-rays are taken
  and if the jaw is completely intact and the
  dental records used to compare are recent, the
  job of proving a match is a relatively simple
  one. Dentists mark on a chart the position of
  missing teeth, crowns, bridges, fillings, caps,
  root canals and various other treatments during a
  patient's routine check-up. The task of
  identifying a victim is made more difficult when
  the dentist records and x-rays are out of date or
  when the skull is severely damaged and has parts
  missing.

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Age at Death
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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Use of Forensic Dentistry

• Forensic odontologists or in other words,
  forensic dentists, have the job of examining
  dental evidence that is left behind after a crime
  has been committed. Teeth are an excellent source
  of identification, as they hard wearing and
  durable. With the ability to survive fires that
  destroy evidence, burn human bones to ashes and
  melt copper and glass, teeth are able to
  withstand criminal's attempts to hide the crimes
  they've committed and the evidence held within
  the crime scene and dental analysis provides a
  cost efficient alternative to solving a crime.

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Ted Bundys Teeth
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Epiphyses - A part of bone separated from the
main body of the bone by a layer of cartilage and
subsequently uniting with the bone through
further ossification
Unfused juvenile
Fused adult
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Spine
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More info from skeletal remains
ANCESTRY of decedent
Difficult determination to make
Facial bones most important
Nasal aperture
Teeth
Interorbital space
Mandible
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Stature estimate
Measure long bone(s) available
Plug in value to formula
Range established for stature of decedent
5 2 5 5
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Other information TRAUMA and PATHOLOGIES
Ante- mortem Post-mortem Peri-mortem

Gunshot
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Trauma
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Individual Identification
Person identified when it was found that the
amalgam used in her dental restorations was of a
type found only in specific areas on the Eastern
Coast of the United States.
Habitual activity can wear away the protective,
cartilagenous lining which reduces friction in
joints. The humerus in this photograph were in
contact for many years prior to this individual's
death. The surfaces are smooth and shiny,
indicating that the joint capsule and cartilage
had worn away, allowing bone on bone contact in
the cavity.
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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Individual Identification
Dental implants, braces, and other types of
dental work are often recovered with a body and
are extremely useful in identification because
they are so unique to the individual and are well
detailed in antemortem radiographs and medical
records.
Healed fracture on the sternal end of a
midthoracic rib. The area within the red brackets
is the site of injury. Note the more porous
appearance of the bone in this area - this is
woven bone.
http//medlib.med.utah.edu/kw/osteo/forensics/sast
a.html
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Case Study
From Prof. Ann Bunch SUNY Oswego
September 1999 Tourist Aircraft Crash on the Big
Island of Hawaii
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
Piper Aircraft with 9 passengers, 1 pilot
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
Aircrafts path prior to crash location of crash
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
NTSB determination of cause pilot error
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
Document remains present
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
X-ray all remains/ Possible remains
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
Personal effects and identification
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
Identification by exclusion
Osteoarthritis
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
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Big Island Aircraft Crash
Sorting out commingling
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Other Types of Evidence
Wreckage fragments
Wreckage in situ
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Race Determination Activity
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