SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-83 For APRIL 2000 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION WHAT IS FORENSIC ANALYSIS OF KNOTS? ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal We have always strived to provide the readers of Crime and Detective with the latest that is occurring in the field of crime. Keeping with the tradition, this time I am going to tell you something about a new and a very exciting discipline of forensic science – the forensic analysis of knots. Knots are encountered in criminal situations a number of times. When a man is strangulated, his killer ties a rope or some similar material around his neck, and a knot has to be tied to prevent the rope from loosening. A frequent question in such situations is whether the person could himself have tied the noose. If he could, the case could be that of suicide, but if he couldn’t, then the case would have to be of homicide, and this would go far in solving the crime. Ropes or other ligature materials such as nylons, belts, wire and clothing, just to mention a few, have been used in the commission of a variety of crimes from Break and Entry to Murder. Although knot analysis is usually confined to death investigations, it can also assist with investigations in other criminal activities. These could be when a robber has tied the hands of a servant to facilitate robbery, or a person tying the hands of a girl in order to rape her. In some cases, people kill themselves accidentally by hanging when masturbating. Such deaths usually come to the doctor as accidental cases of hanging and are termed asphyxiophilia or autoerotism. A proper explanation of this type of death requires a detailed study, and I am not going to take it up here. It has already been taken up in an earlier issue (See Crime and Detective December 1995 issue pages 14-16). Forensic knot analysis is also useful in cases of suicide, where knots are used. The ligatures in these cases can, in some instances, yield clues to their origin and possible ownership. A comparison of a ligature from a victim or scene could also be physically matched back to a ligature seized from the suspect or his possessions. Where ligatures have been used, invariably the investigators have noticed knots tied within. The knots located in crime scenes, on victims of crime and in police cases, have been used to bind, restrain, strangulate, hang or gain entry to an area inaccessible otherwise. Many readers at this stage may ask how an analysis of knots can help in identifying a criminal. It may be stressed here that knot tying is acquired normally by habits and design. Thus a person ties his necktie and scarf by a certain knot. Similarly in different trades we tie various knots in different ways. A surgeon would tie a knot (while tying a suture) in a different way than a sailor. Often the way a knot has been tied would give away the criminal and his trade. Knot tying is acquired by:- habit - such as with tying your shoes, neckties, scarves, etc. or, design - taught specifically by a trade, or learned as a hobby, craft or recreation Crime scene knots are most often found to: bind or restrain the victim, strangle, or are sometimes located on or near the victim, but not directly associated to the victim. These knots located at the crime scene are most often done under duress and without planning, so we can therefore draw an inference of the tyer's: skills in knot tying, trade or occupation, hobby, craft or recreation, chirality in knot tying (not his handedness) The word chirality may be explained here. This word is often used in chemistry, and is basically a scientific word, but I would like to explain it in as simple terms as possible. Hold both your arms up and look at them. The thumb of the left palm would be facing on the left side, and that of the right palm on the right side. The two palms look similar, but actually they are not. You can’t superimpose one palm over the other. You can join them as in doing a prayer, but that is not superimposition; this is apposition. Proper superimposition means to put them one over the other, so the back of one palm comes in contact with the front of the other. And if you do that, the thumbs would look in different directions. This is due to different chirality of the two palms. Similarly two knots may look the same, but you may not be able to superimpose them one over the other. It is because of different chiralities of the two knots. The word chirality actually comes from Greek root cheir meaning hand. Incidentally this root also gives us several other interesting words such as Cheirology, which is examination of the hand to forecast the future. After proper collection and preservation of the knotted exhibits, a forensic knot specialist can provide some additional information about the case, which, in the past, has been ignored or not investigated. (Editor please reproduce figures 001.jpg, 002a.jpg 002b.jpg, 003.jpg here. [Caption: Some types of knots encountered in crime analysis]) More on forensic knot analysis Simply put, Forensic Knot Analysis is the identification and interpretation of knots and ligatures, in conjunction with other relevant crime scene evidence, which can enable a subjective opinion to be made. When qualified as an expert by the court, an opinion can be given of the knotted ligatures as they pertain to the crime scene, for example: Ligatures can be identified to a source in most cases and such identification can reveal information about the ligature, such as: brand name, manufacturer, model or type class characteristics (material, lay, size, color) uses for the ligature (job specific or particular uses in recreation and/or hobbies) availability / rarity (such as Spectra fibers) specific clients (BCTel has rope specifically designed and coded for them) tensile strengths / breaking strengths physical evidence, such as matching crime scene exhibit to an exhibit from suspect ligature marks left on the victim can sometimes be matched to a ligature removed from the victim by the suspect Knots are identified as they exist on the exhibit. However, due to stresses, mis-handling or usage, the original knots in some cases can be capsized to look like a different knot. In such cases the questioned knot (believed the original knot before capsizing) can be identified and explained as to its transformation, as in these cases: reef knot to lark's head, cow hitch, or bale sling hitch granny knot to clove hitch or two half hitches Knots such as the overhand knot and the figure of eight, can be introduced into the exhibit simply by placing a lengthy rope exhibit, as a tangled mess, into an exhibit bag. Here, knots would be identified that were not tied by human hands and would lead to an erroneous conclusion and inaccurate opinion. Identification of the knots, can provide some profiling of the tyer such as: knot tying skills chirality of the knot tied linkage to job, trade, hobby, craft or recreation of the tyer designed or intended use of the knot Identity of the knots can also provide alternate knot names for the same knot. In some instances, very common knots have several alternate names including foreign language names. Knowledge of these alternate names can help the investigator when statements are obtained and a knot is described using a specific name for it. The following are examples of alternate knot names: reef knot also known as, square knot, Hercules knot, ambulance knot (bandage knot) overhand knot also known as, thumb knot and half knot becket bend (or hitch) also known as cat's paw (by loggers, tree toppers) Who is a forensic knot specialist/expert "A person who, through experience, has acquired a special or peculiar knowledge of a subject of which he undertakes to testify, and, whether such knowledge has been acquired by study of a scientific work or by practical observation is immaterial." The expert witness reports fact known, and relevant to the knotted evidence in a particular case. His observations and examination of the knots, ligatures and related crime scene evidence, can result in an opinion as to the significance of these facts. An expert must be objective and impartial; his evidence should be reliable, clear and relevant. He should keep pace with advances within his field of discipline, and associate or liaise with organizations which help to advance the understanding of this field. Knot specialist training He should have an understanding of the historical development of knots, and materials used as ligatures. He should have knowledge of the reference materials available on knots, crime scene techniques, and other related scientific papers on the topic, and how to research the information required. He should have an understanding of the manufacturing process of ropes and other ligature materials. This would entail visiting rope manufacturing plants and observations of the techniques to make these ligature materials. Such knowledge can enhance his abilities to conduct physical matching of ligature exhibits. He should possess the ability to show a demonstrated skill in knot tying techniques, be able to replicate the knots observed or identified in knotted ligatures, and be a practitioner of the discipline. DESIRED SKILLS The ability to educate, and communicate his analysis to investigators, medico legal professionals, and the courts, by the preparation of a report of his findings, and/or testimony in court. The ability to illustrate knotted ligatures, as a means of providing demonstrative evidence to help in explaining his analysis or opinion. Be able to conduct experiments to prove or disprove a point, such as: "Could the victim have tied himself up?", or "Was a particular knot used, that would have enabled self-release from the ligature?". By investigating and/or researching knot cases, the specialist can gain practical experience and knowledge. The ability to author and publish scientific papers on related research done. Be able to teach or lecture on his knowledge, experience, or work performed within the discipline. Be able to acquire some computer literacy with respect to using databases, word processors, and drawing programs. Detection, Collection and preservation of knotted exhibits Upon the discovery of knotted exhibits at a crime scene, the utmost care and attention must be taken if this evidence is to be analyzed, and information, in the form of an opinion, be obtained. Like any other piece of evidence, care must be taken to protect it from contamination, movement or change, prior to its removal and any movement or change be recorded. (Editor please insert Pictures insitu1.jpg [caption: Exhibit 'in situ' at scene] and insitu2.jpg [caption: Exhibit after delivery by courier service] here) At all major crimes, there are a number of services to assist in the investigation, in particular, the Forensic Identification Services, have the responsibility of recording the scene by measurements, photography and in some instances, videography. After the victim is removed (assuming that there is a murder), then knotted exhibits should be photographed during their removal and examination at the post mortem. This extra step also ensures that any change to the knots from the scene to the analysis, are recorded. In cases where there is suspected wire used as a ligature, and/or the exhibit has been extensively coated with dirt or mud, or the coating on the wire has been fused by exposure to heat or fire, techniques such as fluoroscopy and X-Rays can be done to reveal the intricacies within the knotted exhibit. (Editor please reproduce figure tie_vcr.jpg here [Caption: This is one instance where an X-ray of the knots may be useful. In this case the hands are tied at the back. The ligature is wound round the hands in a complicated way, and its intricacies can not be made out easily. An X-ray can help in such cases.] Editor please also reproduce figure xray_vcr.jpg here [Caption: Xray of tied hands shown in the above picture. The intricacies of the loop can be made out now]) Removal Of Knotted Exhibits A forensic knot analyst has to keep in mind several things when encountering knots on the scene of crime. You may want to know what are those precautions. The following are guidelines to assist in the proper collection and preservation of the exhibits that contain suspected knots: (Editor please reproduce figure 004.jpg here. Caption: The noose of a hanging victim should be preserved. This is best done by cutting the noose away from the knot and securing the ends with string or wire. To assure preservation of the knot, it may be necessary to secure it independently.) 1.Never untie a knot. 2.Cut ligatures away from the knots. 3.The cut ends of the ligature should be labeled (e.g. A-a, 1-1) so cut ends can be matched. 4.Tape or string can be used to preserve cut ends from fraying. 5.The knotted exhibit should be laid out and labeled to preserve orientation to the victim. 6.Be careful that loose knots don't fall apart, or that bights and/or crossings not be lost. 7.Where several turns have been used (e.g. around wrists, neck), cut each turn individually and label, then label the group of turns and secure with a string or tape. 8.Don't place lengthy exhibits into a container so that it can become tangled up or knots be introduced into the exhibit. 9.Other forensic examinations required of the exhibit (e.g. Chemistry, DNA, Hair and Fiber) should be done first so that there is no contamination of this trace evidence. 10.If the exhibit is to be examined by the Forensic Laboratory first, the investigator should notify the laboratory personnel that further examinations of the exhibits are to be done and not to disturb the knots contained therein. ****** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com, and his website is http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html)

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-82 For MARCH 2000 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION WHAT IS COMBINED SUICIDE? ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal Suicide is much in news these days. Keeping our old tradition of informing the readers on the latest, this time I wish to inform our gentle readers about a relatively new term "combined suicide". Not many readers may be conversant with this term. Combined suicide is a term, which was first used by Mueller almost 50 years back in 1953 in his publication Gerichtliche Medizin. This is a German name, which translated in English, means "Forensic Medicine". The term refers to a situation when a person uses two or more than two methods simultaneously to kill himself. Normally however a person uses only one method, say hanging, poisoning, or cut throat as a means of suicide. Very few cases of combined suicide have been reported in literature, so this term may not be very familiar to all. I will give you some examples of a "combined suicide" to make this term clearer to all. Cases have been reported where a person has committed suicide by first ingesting a solution of strychnine ( a dangerous poison), and then drowning himself. Here if he had used either of the two methods for suicide, he might have in all probability succeeded. But in order to ensure his demise from this world, he used two different methods. This is a typical case of combined suicide. Another case has occurred in which a person first ingested digitalis (a strong poison), and then cut his throat. This is also an example of combined suicide. There may be more than two methods employed. In one case, the suicide first ingested sulphuric acid (once again a deadly poison) first, then cut his wrists and throat and finally hanged himself! Other cases of combined suicide are also there, but this time I am going to tell you about a special case of combined suicide, which occurred some years back. This is a special case, because in this case, I had to apply all my knowledge to exclude murder. Police was initially thinking in terms of murder, but proper forensic investigation proved that it was a case of “combined suicide”. Well, let us begin the story from the beginning. The deceased, a man called Ramesh, was a male government servant, about 50 years old and single and lived with his mother in a rented house together with another family. One morning he woke up early and prepared food to earn merit by giving it to a Buddhist monk. Later in the morning his mother saw him going upstairs with an aluminum bowl. She probably thought that there was food in it, but it actually contained a very dangerous poison – caustic soda. Readers might recall that caustic soda is used to make soaps. He went to his room along with that bowl, and was not seen alive after that. After some time, a young boy went up to his room to call him for breakfast. The room was open, and Ramesh’s dead body was lying on the floor. There was blood all over the floor. Ramesh’s face and trunk were also smeared with blood. His mother fainted on seeing his body. The boy gave a scream. Several neighbors collected at the scene, and the police was called immediately. The police saw the dead body of Ramesh, with a very large gaping wound in his neck. Any layman would have thought that this was a case of murder. It definitely appeared that someone had slit open the throat of Ramesh. The knife was actually found in Ramesh’s hand, but the police thought that the clever killer had placed the knife in Ramesh’s hand after killing him. This was to trick the police into thinking that the case was of suicide. But interestingly I found a large brown stain around his mouth. This set me thinking. There was no way that this stain could appear around his mouth, until and unless he had drunk some poison. I asked the police to investigate more thoroughly. On investigation, it was found that Ramesh had bought a large amount of caustic soda only a few days back. When the shop keeper enquired why he wanted to buy caustic soda, he told him, that he wanted to make some soap at home. Ramesh had no history of illness before. He had no diseases whatsoever, so it was improbable that he had killed himself to end his agony. Nor was Ramesh having any economic problems. There was no attempt of any previous suicide as well. All these facts went against my theory of suicide, yet I stuck to my theory. At the scene, I found some additional minute points, which I would like to tell my readers. For instance, Ramesh’s body was lying on the floor. The face and chest were blood stained. Blood splashes appeared around the body. The furniture of the room was undisturbed, which went against the police theory of homicide. Actually before any homicide, a scuffle generally ensues. People struggle, and during that struggle, the furniture may get overturned. This overturned furniture actually tells us that the case may be of homicide. There was no such indication here. There was a razor in the right hand of Ramesh with the sharp edge directed inwards. About two meters from the body, there was an aluminum bowl containing some grayish semi-solid material. This was actually the caustic soda, which was drunk by Ramesh. His mother had thought that the bowl contained food, but it actually had caustic soda. There was a circular brownish area around the mouth, as I already mentioned. There was also a gaping, incised, transverse wound on the front of the neck. This was undoubtedly produced by the knife which was found in Ramesh’s hand. The wound in the neck had cut his windpipe completely. Blood had entered his windpipe, and from there to the lungs. In fact Ramesh died because of choking due to his own blood. In the stomach, I found a lot of caustic soda. There is no way caustic soda can be given by a murderer to his victim. It is so corrosive, that the victim would immediately refuse to drink it. It can only be taken by a person with suicidal intent. What actually happened was this. Ramesh first drank the solution of caustic soda. He expected a quick death by this act, but this did not happen. And he was experiencing terrible pain. This drove him to find another way to end his life. As the razor was near at hand, he used it as the second suicidal tool. The motive for his suicide was in doubt. Among the reasons suspected was his financial condition. Finally when his creditors started approaching the police for their payments, it indeed turned out that financially he was in bad shape. Actually the concept of “combined suicide” helped me conclude that it was a case of suicide. Otherwise with a large gaping incised wound in the neck, it would have been very very difficult for the police to believe that it was not a case of murder. They would have thought that it was a case of murder. No doubt I could have shown the police the stain around the mouth, and the caustic soda in this stomach, but the police – and later the courts – would have always wanted to know, why a person would like to kill himself “twice”. Why he would first drink the poison and then cut his throat. And most probably they could have got away with the concept of murder. But I told them that “combined suicides” are not unknown and they do occur. Thus a case of suicide was labeled as such, and not erroneously as homicide. Undoubtedly this was because of the help of forensic science. ****** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com, and his website is http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html)

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-80 For JANUARY 2000 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION Taking post-mortem X-rays of the skull ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal The new millennium is arriving, and everyone is waiting anxiously, and with new hope for the new millennium. The first article of the new millennium is the 80th (an interestingly round figure!) in our series “Science in Crime Detection”. As this is the first article of the new millennium, I want to make it somewhat special. And that is why I am giving a special forensic technique in this issue. Many times, we have to take a postmortem x-ray of the skull. You might be surprised why such a strange procedure is required at all. In a country, where it is difficult to get X-rays done even for living persons, what purpose is served by taking X-rays of a dead person. Well, there are many purposes and this is the basis of this month’s article. Imagine that five people are missing from a particular village or a locality. Three of them are girls and two boys. It is quite possible that these five people have run away from their families over some disputes. But it is equally likely that they have been murdered by some person and the dead body has been disposed off. Now imagine that a villager on one fine day finds a skull in some bushes. Now the natural suspicion of all villagers would be that this skull could belong to either of these five missing people. Doctors can examine the skull closely and can say whether the skull belongs to a male or a female. So as far as the question of sex is concerned, the doctor can help the police. But remember that three girls and two boys are missing. So it the doctor, say, tells the police that the skull belongs to a boy, that still leaves two boys, and the police would want to know which of the two boys the skull belongs to. The doctor can not say this merely by naked examination of the skull. It is here that post-mortem radiography – the topic of this month’s article – comes in handy. Before proceeding further, I would like to tell you that certain air spaces in the skull, situated behind the forehead are quite unique in each individuals. Technically these air spaces are known as frontal sinuses. These sinuses look rather like a bunch of inflated balloons of different shapes and sizes. Normally the function of these sinuses is to keep the skull light, and to make it more resonant. It is partly because of these sinuses, that our face shapes are different. These sinuses are unique in all individuals. Thus if an X-ray of your and my skull are taken, the frontal sinuses would be different in both the skulls. In fact, it has been alleged that the frontal sinuses of all individuals in this world are different. These frontal sinuses are very clearly visible in X-rays, but if you have to actually see them in the skull, you would have to break the skull to see them. Another thing I would like to tell the gentle reader, before I proceed further. Even the shapes and sizes of teeth in all the individuals are different. Other things such as diseases of the teeth, carious teeth, root canal treatments, etc all make the teeth further highly individualistic. Although all these things – such as root canal treatments – are difficult to see by naked eye examination, these changes appear very well in the X-rays. In modern world, most people go to doctors for minor ailments, and doctors advise them X-rays. It is quite possible that these boys had also gone to the doctor sometime in their life for some treatment, and the doctor had advised X-rays to them. If such X-rays of the skull are available with the family, it becomes very easy for the doctor to identify the skull. The idea is to take an X-ray of the skull (which was found in the bushes), and to compare this X-ray to that available with the two families. Taking X-rays of the skull is not a simple matter and requires some specialized techniques. First of all, the skull is fixed in a special machine called cephalostat. Look at figure 1, where the skull is found attached to cephalostat. The lower jaw is loose in a skull, and to keep it attached to the rest of the skull, the forensic specialist may apply some pads of silicone rubber. Upper and lower teeth can also be held together using Plasticine. Note in figure one that the X-ray film is on the right side. Figure 2 shows an X-ray of this skull which was taken. Figure 3 shows the position of skull for taking X-rays in a slightly different position, and figure 4 shows the X-ray taken in that position. Now these X-rays can easily be compared with the X-rays taken during the life of the person. If the frontal sinuses of the skull match with, say the first boy, the specialist can positively say that the skull belongs to him, and the police can start investigation in that direction. If the X-rays of the skulls do not match, the skull would obviously belong to the second boy. In the rare instance when the X-ray of the skull does not match with that of either of the boy, the police would have to look for some other possible victim. This procedure makes it very easy for the doctor to identify the victim, even from his skull. The doctor can double check by taking the X-rays of the teeth also. Figure 5 shows how the lower jaw (called mandible in the medical parlance) can be placed and an X-ray taken. In this figure, the mandible is kept upside down ( note the teeth touching the table). The X-ray tube can be seen on the upper left hand side. Figure 6 shows the X-ray of the lower teeth taken in this fashion. If the teeth show some special disease, which was present in one of the victims, the identity can be positively established. Figure 7 and 8 show two more specialized ways of taking postmortem X-rays of the teeth of the individual. These give different views of the teeth, and make things somewhat easier for the forensic specialist. Last year a case was brought to me, in which the police found two skulls lying on a riverside. Some days back a lover couple had disappeared from the nearby areas, and there was a strong suspicion that these skulls belonged to that couple. However, about 14 more people had reported drowned in that river at different periods, and it was quite possible that the skulls could belong to any of those fourteen people too. The relatives of the couple refused to believe that these were the skulls of their relatives. There were questions of inheritance involved too. Thus the whole scene became very much charged with emotion. The police approached me with the skulls and asked me if I could tell whether the skulls belonged to that couple or not. I applied the same procedure in that case, and could positively say that the skulls belonged to that couple. My conclusions were based on certain special characteristics of the teeth of the two individuals which were recorded in the X-rays taken during their life. The police accepted my findings and started finding the killers of the couple. Very soon three goons were arrested, who had accosted the couple some days back in the night. They were basically small time crooks looking for some valuables and money. But when they saw a beautiful girl, they could not contain themselves. They first killed the man; then raped the girl turn by turn, and when they had done the misdeed several times, they killed her too. Thus it was my analysis of the skulls of the two individuals which could establish their identity and it was on that basis that the killers were caught. ****** Captions of figures 001: Skull in a cephalostat. The mandible has small pads of silicone rubber replacing the lost cartilaginous discs of the temporomandibular joints. The anterior teeth are temporarily held in their sockets using Plasticine. The film cassette is on the right of the field. 002: Typical post-mortem lateral cephalometric view of a skull disarticulated from the axial skeleton. The absence of soft tissue negates the need for an aluminum step wedge over the face, and considerable adjustments need to be made to typical exposure settings. Two radiographs may still be required to image all parts of the specimen adequately. 003. Skull in a cepahlostat aligned for an antero-posterior view. The skull can be rotated 180 degrees to facilitate posteroanterior views, which are more likely to correspond with available ante-mortem records. 004. Radiograph of the skull. The radio-opacity of dental restorations obscures some detail in this projection. Similarly, the aligning rod placed at the root of the nose masks the frontal sinus outline. If this is removed, care needs to be taken to stabilize the skull and prevent rotation about the ear rods. 005. Mandible disarticulated from the skull making it easier to take anterior occlusal views of the mandibular dentition. Note the use of boxes covered with a towel to achieve the necessary orientation of the jaw. 006. An example of the radiograph obtained using the configuration and positioning of the specimen in figure 005. Radiographs of the skeleton divested of all soft tissue show excellent contrast and fine bone and dental details. 007. A human skull showing the position of an intra-oral film holder. This demonstrates the use of Plasticine to hold the teeth within their sockets and rubber bands to mimic the muscles of mastication. 008. Same skull as that shown in figure 007, demonstrating the position and use of a cone-centering device. This ensures the production of consistent, reproducible radiographic projections during test exposure. (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com, and his website is http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html)

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-78 For November 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION Reconstructing face from the skull ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal Many persons may not believe it, but we can often make a perfect face of a person merely from his skull. This is an important part of our practice. Many times, the police brings us merely the skull found in a forest and a nallah, and want to know us who that person was. If we can make the exact face of the person from that skull, the police can publish that photograph in the newspapers, and the person’s relatives can come forward to claim the skull. They can help in the police investigation as to when their relation disappeared, whom they suspect and so on. So in this installment, I am going to tell about this strange art, which I am sure, many readers would find interesting. Three-dimensional facial reconstruction The basis of the soft tissue reconstruction is the use of average soft tissue thicknesses over various points on the face. We already know how thick the facial skin is over each point of the skull bone. Unfortunately, the amount of data that has been published on soft tissue thicknesses related to the skull is quite limited. The limitations include relatively small numbers of subjects in all studies, few comparisons of soft tissue thicknesses in different races and few studies detailing sex and age differences. Comparison of the studies is difficult because of the varying methods of measurement, the varying points at which measurements are taken, the different racial groups studied and the differing status of the subjects (e.g. alive versus dead, fixed versus unfixed tissues). Additional problems are encountered with the ear and nose, which have a cartilaginous frame rather than direct bony support. A considerable amount of individual variation is possible in these structures as well as in the hairstyle, length and colour, and their reconstruction is probably the most variable and least accurate. Another significant problem is that the number of reconstructions of childrens' faces reported in the literature is minimal. The soft tissue thicknesses usually appearing in forensic textbooks are based on those of adults, and their value in reconstructions of a child's face is questionable. Hodson and colleagues in 1985 measured soft tissue thicknesses in a small number of children using an ultrasound technique and found that tissue thickness tended to decrease with age in children. Differences between adult and child tissue thicknesses were clearly demonstrated by Gerasimov in 1971. With the advent of new techniques like magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasound, more objective and reproducible measurement of soft tissue thicknesses on large numbers of subjects may be possible and would clearly be desirable. However, the importance of the accuracy of soft tissue thicknesses may be overestimated given that, ultimately, a two-dimensional image of the three dimensional reconstruction is generally used for identification purposes. The anatomical landmarks from a table (giving thickness of facial tissues at various points on the skull) are marked on the duplicate skull using wooden or plastic markers. These are cut to the average soft tissue thickness for a given point and glued to the skull. Coloured plastic or the coloured ends of safety matches are useful for this purpose as the coloured ends are visible through a thin layer of clay. Reconstructions building the soft tissue thickness in bulk without regard to the underlying soft tissue anatomy have been performed, but in this article, a technique in which muscles are built up in an anatomical manner is described. The various muscles of the face such as the temporalis, masseter, buccinator and occipitofrontalis are initially built up, followed by orbicularis oris and orbicularis oculi (these last two are the muscles of the eye). (Editor: Please reproduce figures 1-4 here) The soft tissues of the neck are built up in bulk (size is greatly helped if a shirt with a collar is found on the body), although the bulge of the major neck muscle (technically known as the sternocleidomastoid muscles) and the manubrial notch are usually highlighted. At this stage, it is often useful to reconstruct the nose and lips before forming the other muscles. The lips are approximately as wide as the interpupillary distance (distance between the pupils of the two eyes), but considerable variation of form occurs with age, sex, race, occlusion and loss of vertical dimension. In young adults, the lip tends not to cover the upper incisors entirely, but it may in older age, when considerable tooth attrition or inadequate dentures are present. Class II division 2 occlusions are associated with a short upper lip and deep mental sulcus, whereas class III occlusions are associated with protrusion of the lower lip. The philtrum of the lip is affected by the length of the lip, the lip support given by the teeth and the shape of the base of the nose. The philtrum is usually placed in the midline of the face, but this may not correspond to the midline of the teeth. (Editor: Please reproduce figure 5 here) The nose is difficult to reconstruct because of the limited underlying bone and the wide individual variation possible. The profile of the nose is arbitrarily determined by projecting two lines from the skull midline, as suggested by Gerasimov in 1971. The first is a continuation of the inclination of the nasal bones, and the second is a horizontal line from the anterior nasal spine. On average, Gatliff found (in 1984) the width of the nose to be 1.67 times that of the anterior nasal aperture (this is a hole in the skull, where the nose should be), but Schultz found that racial and individual variations were considerable. The nose is positioned in the midline unless obvious bony asymmetry is present. The muscles of facial expression are then added, followed by completion of the completion of the soft tissue around the eyes. The eyelids normally cover part of the iris and extend from 2 mm lateral to the medial orbital rim to 4 mm medial to the lateral orbital rim. The orientation of the palpebral fissure (the line between the closed eyelids) varies between races; for example, Asians typically have a palpebral fissure that passes inferiorly from the lateral to the medial aspect. At this stage, the tissues are built up to within 1 mm of the soft tissue thickness markers and the ears are then reconstructed. The latter are arbitrarily positioned so that the ear canal is positioned at the external acoustic meatus and set obliquely with a 15 degree posterior inclination. Caldwell noted that virtually all authors experienced in facial reconstruction found ears 'complicated' to reproduce. Finally, fleshing of the face is carried out to the tips of the depth markers, and characterization may be added if indicated. For example, an aged appearance is simulated by the addition of wrinkles and the accentuation of skin folds. Similarly, further racial characterization may also be carried out if indicated. (Editor: Please reproduce figure 6 and 7 here) Duplication of the reconstruction Duplication of the clay reconstruction is also advisable as a plaster model is considerably more durable than a clay model. The clay reconstruction is duplicated using a split-mould technique similar to that used to duplicate the original skull. The only significant difference is that the clay reconstruction is supported by towels, and sheets of wax are used to form the 5 cm table around the head. (Editor: Please reproduce figure 8,9 and10 here) On the plaster reconstruction additional identifying material may be added, for example hair, jewelry and spectacles if these were found with the body. Alternatively, a two-dimensional image of the reconstruction may be carried out and additional alterations made with the use of computer software. This is often a more efficient method of finishing the reconstruction. (Editor: Please reproduce figure 11 here) This in short is the way we reconstruct the face from the skull. I hope this important aspect of crime detection technique is now clear to the readers. ****** Captions of figures Figures 001 to 004: These figures (figures 001-004) show the transition from duplicate skull with soft tissue thickness markers to reconstruction of the underlying muscles, nose and lips. figures 005-007: Completion of the reconstruction involves simulation of the skin (fleshing out), placement of the ears and final characterization of the face. Figure 008: Duplication of the reconstruction is similar to duplication of the original skull. However, the reconstruction is supported by towels, and a wax table is built around to support the first half of the split mould. Figure 009: Impression of the clay reconstruction. Figure 010: Plaster casts of the clay reconstruction. figure 011: Complete three-dimensional plaster model (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com, and his website is http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html)

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-76 For September 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION How do we preserve the bite marks ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal A forensic pathologist frequently encounters bite marks during his practice. They may be present following a fight between adults or children, as part of a sexual or physical assault by an adult on a child, in rape or attempted rape where bites are likely to be noted on the breasts, and between homosexuals. The marks, single or multiple in nature, may be of varying degrees of severity, ranging from a mild marking of the tissues to deep perforation of the skin, and may be found (in order of frequency) on the breasts, face and head, abdomen, shoulder, upper extremity, buttocks, female genitalia, male genitalia, legs, ear, nose and neck. An American study in 1983 by Vale and Noguchi noted that the arms were the most frequent sites, followed by breasts, legs, abdomen, back, face and head, shoulder, buttocks, female genitalia, hand and fingers, chest, neck, nose, male genitalia, ear and foot. We all know what bite mark is, but technically speaking what is it? Well, A bite mark may be defined as a pattern produced by human or animal dentitions and associated structures in any substance capable of being marked by those means. It is more commonly associated with marks in the skin, but is also of forensic odontological importance in foods and other inanimate objects. One may be wondering why the study of bite mark is so important. Well, bite marks are said to be very very unique. No two persons are said to have the same bite marks. They could be almost as unique as fingerprints. This immediately brings to one’s mind the possibility of using them to nab suspects. Suppose a person has raped and murdered a female, and during his sexual frenzy has bitten his victim’s breasts. When the body of the dead woman is brought to the forensic expert, he can frequently examine the bite marks on the breasts and tell who the culprit was. (Editor: Please reproduce figures 001 and 002 here. Captions to these photos are given in the end) Forensic specialists who specialize in deducing facts about crime by studying mouth and mouth parts are called forensic odontologists. Odontology actually means “study of teeth”, and when teeth are studied with the specific purpose of deducing crime related facts, such a study becomes forensic odontology. This author has been practicing forensic odontology for quite some time now, and in this installment I hope to share some of my experiences with our intelligent readers. When called to examine suspected bite marks it is first necessary to ascertain whether the mark could have been caused by teeth. If the answer is in the affirmative, is the bite mark human, and if so, is it caused by an adult or child? It is not unknown for victims to bite themselves, either to bring a false accusation or draw attention to themselves, or they may have had their hand or arm forced into their mouth to silence them during an assault. The position of the bite mark is carefully assessed by the forensic odontologist with this in mind, and if the position is such that it would have been possible for the victim to bite the area, then it is necessary to take impressions of the victim's dentition in addition to carrying out an examination of the bite marks. Bite mark examination is the one aspect of forensic odontology requiring an immediate response by the forensic odontologist. The marks fade rapidly, both in the living and the dead, changing appearance in a matter of hours; delay in examination may result in loss of valuable evidence. The forensic odontologist is also responsible for the examination of the dentition of those suspected of bite mark perpetration. Examination of the victim The victim may be adult or child, living or dead. The live adult The examination may be carried out in a police surgeon's room in a police station, a designated rape crisis centre, a hospital, a dental surgery or the victim's home. On receipt of a request, immediately we give instructions that the victim should not wash until after saliva swabbing has been undertaken. It must be remembered that saliva sticks to the area bitten, and we can often deduce many important things about the culprit merely from his saliva. For instance, we can find out his blood group from the saliva. We also request that a police photographer attends at the same time as the forensic odontological examination is carried out. Unfortunately, in our country, the importance of very early examination of bite mark evidence is not always appreciated by investigating authorities, and the forensic odontologist may not be called until the next day or later. The photography may have already been undertaken; if this is so, it is advisable to have repeat photography under the supervision of the forensic odontologist. Correct 1:1 photography is essential for dental evidence to be of any value. By 1:1 photography I mean that the size of the areas depicted in the photographs should be same as that of the real areas. Examination witnesses Before carrying out an examination, we generally ensure that a police officer is present if we are acting for the prosecution, or a legal representative for the accused if we are acting for the defence. Where the person to be examined is a female, a male examiner ensures that a female witness is also present. We record the names and occupations of all the witnesses present and, in the case of police officers, their rank and serial number. We also note the day, date, time and place of the examination, which is necessary for legal and court purposes. Procedure Some victims will be very distraught and will require a calm, reassuring approach by the dentist. First of all we, introduce ourselves to the victim, and explain our function and the procedures to be carried out. This makes the patient a little easier. The reasons for these procedures need not be discussed. We then obtain signed permission from the victim authorizing these procedures and have the signature witnessed. This is required for legal purposes. Suitable forms, carried in the kit, may be worded as follows: I, [name of victim] hereby give permission for [examiner's name] to examine me and take any necessary dental impressions, saliva samples and photographs. I understand that these measures are being undertaken in connection with a police investigation. Signed Witness Date We take comprehensive notes, commencing with a full history of the events, including a note of the approximate time that the bite was sustained and the position of the bitten part at the time of the incident, whether the bite occurred through clothing, and if so, the number of layers and the nature of the materials. A full description of the injury follows, with details of abrasions, lacerations, bruises and swelling. We also include a sketch of the marks indicating the direction of anatomical landmarks. (Editor please include photographs 001 and 002 here. Captions to be included are given at the bottom) Where the bite has occurred through clothing each layer of clothing is examined and photographed, the various materials being described in the notes. We also check whether there is any relevant medical history that might have some bearing on the appearance of the mark, for example blood or connective tissue disorders or the administration of anticoagulants. Anticoagulants are drugs, which prevent the blood to coagulate. If a person is taking these drugs, then there will be more bleeding from a bite mark than normal. Similarly if there are blood or connective tissue disorders, then also there may be more bleeding. Saliva swabbing are undertaken for secretory antigens if the area has not been washed. You may be wondering what the secretory antigens are. Well, these are nothing but ordinary blood groups which are excreted through saliva too. You might have heard people saying that his blood group is B+, O- and so on. Well, these blood groups refer to the presence or absence of certain proteins or antigens in the blood (+ denotes presence, - denotes absence). In about 85% of cases, these antigens are secreted in the saliva too, so just by examining the saliva, a forensic odontologist could tell the blood group of the person. Thus when a person has bitten a woman on, say, her breast, he would invariably leave his saliva also. And there is 85% probability that we can tell the blood group of the person. Needless to say, that this goes a long way for the police to include or exclude a possible suspect. If the bite was sustained through clothing it is checked that this has been (or will be) sent for saliva tests. If the case is one of sexual assault involving fellatio (i.e. when the woman has been forced to commit oral intercourse on the assailant!), check that oral swabs have been taken for semen. Even after several hours and the use of mouthwashes and tooth brushing, spermatozoa have been recovered. Supervising the photography is also an important task of the forensic odontologist. The victim should be asked to assume a posture in which the bitten area is in a position similar to that at the time of the bite, if this can be remembered. Self-adhesive scales are not be applied until the correct position has been assumed and initial photographs taken. Where the victim is unsure of the position of the bitten area at the time of the incident, several postures should be photographed as distortion of the tissues in different positions affects the appearance of the mark. Arrangements should be made for repeat photography to be undertaken 24 hours and 36 hours later, preferably by the same photographer. If for some reason it is necessary for the forensic odontologist to take photographs, note should be made of the camera used, lens, filters, flash, film and film speed, distance, shutter speed and aperture. If the bite mark has perforated the skin, or there are obvious indentations, we consider taking an impression of the area. There are two methods which are relatively quick. The first uses rubber base impression material. The investigator shapes a double thickness of wire gauze to the approximate curvature of the bitten area using a similar area as a guide. A light-bodied fast set syringe material is used (the automatic twin tube mix is the best). The investigator then commences injecting in the actual bite, avoiding air blows, and covers the bitten area as rapidly as possible. He produces a layer approximately 5 mm thick covering the complete bite and the surrounding area. The wire gauze is immediately placed gently on the unset rubber base without using pressure which might lead to distortion. Additional rubber base is injected on to the gauze so that it becomes incorporated in the impression material, acting as a strengthener. (Editor: Please reproduce figures 003 to 005 here) The impression is removed when set and the back of the impression is marked with a felt-tip pen to indicate the direction of the head. The impression is placed in a self-sealing exhibit bag and signed. (Editor: Please reproduce figure 006 here) This technique may also be used for impressions of food and other inanimate objects, and several models may be cast from the impression over a period of time as it remains dimensionally stable. Some indication of the extensibility and flexibility of the skin in the area of the bite should be looked for, preferably by examining the region opposite to the bite and moving the skin gently over the underlying anatomy, which in itself will give a clue as to any modifying factors that might influence the shape of the mark. To estimate the change of shape of the mark on skin movement, a simple method is to place three dots on the skin forming a triangle with the mark in the centre of it. The distance between the marks can then be measured in various skin positions. These marks may be made after the other investigations, have been completed. Finally, the investigator reviews the notes for any omissions; it may be many months before the case comes to trial, and he will be cross-examined on the procedures. He checks that all the exhibit bags are correctly labeled, and keeps the impressions in his bags after casting. This is a brief glimpse into the work of a forensic odontologist. This is not generally known to a lay person, and I feel this short report will give the general reader a fairly good idea of what this new exciting work is all about. ******** Captions to the photographs: 001:Human bite mark features: a,b, marks made by upper canines (canine is the third tooth from the centre). Between a to b, one can see the typical human catenary arch. c,e, marks made by lower canines. The lower arch can similarly be seen between the points c and e. Note that the lower arch radius is lesser than that of upper arch. d is an interruption in the lower arch, which represents either a missing tooth, or a tooth whose tip is below that of others. CLU is the center line of the upper arch, while CLL is the center line of the lower arch 002:Bite mark on the breast with slippage resulting in scrape marks. a, marks made by the incisal edges of the lower teeth. b, area of laceration (tears) 003: Taking a bite mark impression using rubber base impression material. The investigator covers the bite and surrounding area with a layer about 5 mm thick. 004: The investigator then places the wire gauze lightly on the unset rubber base. 005: After this additional rubber base on the gauze is injected. 006: Exhibit bag and identifying label (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com, and his website is http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html)

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-75 For August 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION OPUS 75: DOWN WITH TORTURE ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal As this piece goes to press, we are faced with the most grim news that 6 of our brave soldiers have been tortured for as many as 26 days before being finally killed in a most brutal fashion. The autopsy report has confirmed that there were the following injuries:- The left eye had been penetrated with objects; there was a compound fracture (a type of fracture in which the broken ends of bones come out of the skin) of the skull with loss of brain tissue; multiple gunshot wounds; severe compound fracture of other bones blunt injuries with penetrating objects injuries on the back of the trunk death after being shot in the mouth Many persons have asked me how it is possible to say whether these injuries were caused during life, and not after death. Not that it matters too much, once the person has died. But it could be a little comforting to the relatives if the autopsy could prove that the injuries were caused after death and not during life. Well, the method to differentiate the antemortem injuries (injuries caused during life) from the post-mortem injuries (injuries caused after death) is to look for reparative changes of the body. The logic is this: if the injuries were caused during life, the body would immediately try to repair that injury; but if the injuries were caused after death, the body wouldn’t do anything, because the person is already dead. These reparative changes can be visualized by the microscope. So the doctor takes a little piece of flesh from the injured portion, puts it under the microscope, and looks for reparative changes. If they are present, he would conclude that the injuries were caused during life, if not he would conclude that the injuries were caused after death. I am giving here four photographs for the benefit of the readers (Editor: Please reproduce figures 001.jpg till 004.jpg). These all show injuries produced after death. So these are post-mortem injuries. In the first you can see a deep gash over the neck, and it appears to the layman, as if this person was done to death by someone by cutting his neck. But this is not the case. This is a postmortem injury caused to a driver who suffered a heart attack while driving a vehicle. The cut was produced by the accident which occurred later. The absence of bleeding in the wound, indicated to the doctor that the wound was caused after death. The next three injuries are produced by animals after death. The injuries are caused respectively by ants, roaches and rats. By the criteria, which I have already explained, one could differentiate between antemortem and postmortem injuries. This is my 75th instalment of “Science in Crime Detection”. The readers’ response has been terrific during all these years. We have been getting fan mails regarding this columns from the time the first article appeared in February 1993 (Editor please reproduce figures 005.jpg till 007.jpg here). The adjacent figures show some of the fan mail that have been received at the office of Crime & Detective , regarding this column. The credit goes to the whole team at Crime & Detective headed by its energetic and charismatic leader Mr. Satish Verma. It was he who first conceived the series, which was given shape by me. I take this opportunity to go down memory lane to share some of my best articles with you in this instalment. This will also satisfy the demands of those of our readers who joined in late and want to know what exactly happened in the earlier issues. I get several letters from readers who joined late in our quest for the use of science in crime detection; they want to know what exactly went on in my earlier articles. Earlier, I wrote Opus 50, which appeared in July 1997 issue of Crime & Detective. It was to commemorate our 50th article in the series. In that article too, I went down memory lane and discussed some of my best articles. In this issue, I shall mainly concentrate on the 25 articles that appeared since. The following table summarizes all my 75 articles in various categories. There have been a total of 20 categories. The number in the series indicates the number of the article. Thus in the first category, “accidental deaths”, the article entitled “Death due to accident” was my 17th article, and it appeared in Sep 1994 issue of Crime and Detective . In this way, all my articles have been classified. “Science in Crime Detection” articles classified by Category SNo Category Number in the series Title Appearing in 1 accidental deaths 17 Death due to accident Sep 94 63 Death by heatstroke in summer: How and why Aug 98 2 Asphyxia 25 Death by strangulation Jun 95 27 Deaths from hanging Aug 95 28 Death by drowning Sep 95 62 The mystery of the infant’s death July 98 72 Death by throttling May 99 3 Biographical 50 Opus 50 July 97 75 Opus 75 Aug 99 4 Death by exotic means 16 Murder by electric shock Aug 94 22 Death by air injection Mar 95 30 An unusual case of death (lightning) Nov 95 40 Murder taken for railway injury Sep 96 45 Victims in a bomb explosion Feb 97 5 Explosives 69 Explosive investigation and Forensic science Feb 99 6 Forensic procedures 12 Examining the scene of crime Mar 94 61 Studying heart after death Jun 98 7 Forensic ballistics 2 Who handled the gun Mar 93 43 Clever way to identify the killer gun Dec 96 51 Linking the bullet with its gun Aug 97 67 A case of ricochet bullet Dec 98 8 Forensic science 15 Speech spectrograms catch criminals Jul 94 18 Use of infrared photography in forensic science Oct 94 23 Car headlights and forensic investigation Apr 95 26 Forgery of cheques Jul 95 32 Making will under a hypnotic trance Jan 96 60 How inks can catch criminals May 98 9 Forensic osteology 11 What do the bones tell us? Feb 94 71 When bones speak Apr 99 10 Forensic odontostomatology 5 What do the bite marks tell us? Jul 93 54 The importance of lip prints Nov 97 11 Identification 3 Did the communists kill the Czar? Apr 93 10 What do the fingernails tell us? Jan 94 13 How do we recognize a person from his skull? Apr 94 44 Identification of dead bodies in aircraft crash Jan 97 57 Classification of fingerprints Feb 98 64 The mystery of the missing girl Sep 98 12 Injuries 14 Contusions-the vital evidence May 94 19 Deaths in police custody Nov 94 20 Defence wounds Jan 95 21 What do the abrasions tell us Feb 95 33 In-laws burnt her alive to death Feb 96 73 The importance of Lacerated wounds Jun 99 74 Deaths due to Head injury Jul 99 13 Law and medicine 47 Crime scientists categorize injuries to assist judiciary Apr 97 14 Mysteries 68 The mystery of the fallen man Jan 99 70 Homicide or suicide Mar 99 15 Narcotic drugs 34 Loving venom took her life (Death by cocaine) Mar 96 35 The hot shot that took his life (Death by heroin) Apr 96 36 "Smoke" that took them to the next world (Death by marijuana) May 96 49 Body packing with drugs cost him his life Jun 97 16 Poisoning 53 Poisoning with Thallium Oct 97 55 Death due to Lysol Poisoning Dec 97 56 The deadly Ratti seeds Jan 98 58 Arsenic; poison of poisons Mar 98 59 Hydrogen sulphide; the knockdown gas April 98 17 Reconstruction of crime by special means 29 Hole in the skull Oct 95 37 Mystery of a mummified hand Jun 96 38 Crimes always speak Jul 96 39 Foot prints of the killer traced Aug 96 46 Deceased's blood witnessed the killer Mar 97 18 Sex 4 Was she actually raped? Jun 93 9 Testing for homosexuality Nov 93 31 When sex perversions lead to accidental hanging Dec 95 42 Killed herself for carnal gratification Nov 96 52 Perverted passions took his life Sep 97 65 Rape kit: A must in all rape and murder cases Oct 98 19 Special weapons 41 Way to identify the assault weapon Oct 96 48 Injuries with a sjambok May 97 20 Thanato Logy 1 When did the murder take place? Feb 93 6 The vital evidence Aug 93 7 When the body turns blue Sep 93 8 When the body turns into wax Oct 93 24 Clues from putrefaction May 95 66 Calculation of time after death Nov 98 When my Opus 50 appeared in July 1997 issue of Crime & Detective, I had only written articles in 16 categories. I have added 4 categories since. The additional categories are: Bibliographical, Explosives, Mysteries and Poisoning. For the readers who joined late, let me give a sampling of some of my articles in various categories. It will give some of the flavor of the various articles that have been done so far. Category 5: Explosives Article 69: HOW IS EXPLOSIVE SABOTAGE DETECTED? (February 1999) One of the techniques utilized is SONAR. It is an acronym meaning Sound Naviagation And Ranging. It pretty much works on the echo principle. We all know that sound gets reflected from surfaces, resulting in echoes, but what is interesting is that the reflected sound carries much of the information about the surface from where it gets reflected. If one sends sound waves to the bottom of the sea, and analyses the reflected sounds coming back, one can make a fairly good idea of what is lying there. Thus any aeroplane debris collected at the bottom may be quickly and painlessly visualized. One of the variants of sonar system used for such visualizations is Towed side scan sonars . These sonars have two sound emitting devices (technically known as transducers ), one installed on each side of a towed body commonly referred to as a “fish”. Sound is sent down from each device and the resulting echoes recorded. A composite image is formed from both the echoes. This image can show all the debris lying at the bottom of the sea. Category 14: Mysteries Article 70: SUICIDE WITH A FIREARM (March 99) No doubt determination of the fact whether a given wound was suicidal or homicidal is very important. If it was a homicidal wound the police has to find a culprit. On the other hand if it was a suicidal wound the police does not have to look for a culprit. So the whole investigation of a case of death depends on the fact whether the given case was of suicide or homicide. Common sense tells us that if a person shows two firearm wounds on his body then they can not be suicidal. Are you wondering why? Well, again apply common sense. If the person fired at himself, how in the world can he fire on himself again. Won’t he be dead? On the other hand if the person was killed by someone else, he can go on firing even on a dying or even on an already dead body. So literally you can find tens of gunshot wounds in a case of homicide, while in a case of suicide you would find just one wound. Well, in most cases, this is true, but this is not to say that multiple suicidal firearms wounds are not found. Category 16: Poisoning Article 53: POISONING WITH THALLIUM (October 1997) Had it not been for some counterbalancing features, thallium would have been a very popular homicidal poison. An ideal homicidal poison must not be readily detectable by analysis, but thallium salts can be readily detected. Furthermore, an ideal homicidal poison must disappear from the body after doing its job. Of course a substance can not magically disappear from the body, but what it effectively means is that the poison must at least be destroyed by putrefaction (this does happen with most vegetable poisons), so that with the onset of time, it becomes impossible to detect that poison. Thallium however remains in the body even after putrefaction. It is also not a product of putrefaction. I must now tell you a little bit about how the victim feels when he has been given a thallium salt. Thallium salts irritate the stomach and intestines (it is a gastro-intestinal irritant so to say) and that's why symptoms like abdominal colic, nausea, vomiting, diarrhoea occur first. Vomiting and diarrhoea may contain blood. There may be sores in the mouth, a symptom known in the medical parlance as stomatitis. The interesting difference from those of other irritant poisons is that the symptoms start very late- after about 24 to 48 hours of ingestion. In fact it is one of the idiosyncrasies of this poison which makes it a good homicidal poison. This then is the sampling of some of my articles appearing in the last few years. I hope you have enjoyed reading them as much as I have writing them. ******** Captions to the photographs: 001.jpg: Driver who suffered a fatal heart attack at the steering wheel of his automobile. Note the absence of bleeding (hemorrhage) in the injuries of the ear and chin. 002.jpg: Abrasions produced by ants after death. The girl was dumped face down in a wooded area after being raped and strangled. The injuries of the face were first mistaken for fingernail marks. The fine linear scratches are due to twigs and undergrowth. 003.jpg: Post-mortem artifact. Skin lesions of arm caused by roaches. These are easily confused with antemortem abrasions if the roaches are not observed when the body is discovered. Note the similarity with the postmortem injuries produced by ants. The latter are somewhat smaller and more discreet. 004.jpg: Post-mortem gnawing of flesh by rats. (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com , and his website is http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html )

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-73 For June 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION THE IMPORTANCE OF LACERATED WOUNDS -Dr. Anil Aggrawal This time I am going to tell you about a very important type of injury which we frequently encounter in our post-mortems. These injuries tell us a lot about how the murder was committed. So important are these injuries, that no forensic expert can be considered a complete expert if he does not know about these injuries. The injuries I am going to discuss this time are called lacerated wounds. These are special injuries, which in layman’s terms could probably be translated as tears. In fact their very name is derived from this. This word came to English via the French from the Latin words lacer and lacertus meaning torn or mangled. If you look carefully at these wounds, you would find that the wounds really look like tears (Editor please reproduce figure 001.jpg here). The accompanying figure shows multiple lacerated wounds of the face due to kicking. These types of wounds in fact tell the forensic expert that the attack had been done by some blunt force, such as an iron rod or lathi . If a culprit has been apprehended with a knife or some such other sharp instrument, and the person he is supposed to have murdered is showing all lacerated wounds, then this suspect can be safely ruled out. This is because, there is no way a knife or any other sharp instrument could produce a lacerated wounds. In fact, I have helped the police in many cases precisely because of this important point. It would be wrong to think that these wounds mimic the shape of the weapon they are caused by. In fact, there is absolutely no correspondence between the shape of these wounds with that of the weapon. So although by looking at the lacerated wounds we can say, they were caused by blunt weapon, we can not give the shape of weapon to the police. That is one limitation we face with the lacerated wounds. Weapons like shovels also produce lacerated wounds. In the next figure you see two lacerated wounds, which are actually produced by blows with shovels (Editor please reproduce figure 002.jpg here). By seeing these wounds, we can actually say that these wounds were produced by a weapon something like a shovel, and the culprit can be easily apprehended. Frequently during attempts at killing a person, the killer tries to stifle the cries of the victim. To achieve this, he forcibly closes the mouth and nostrils of the victim, and the victim frequently dies as a result of lack of air. This brute force over the mouth also causes lacerated wounds of the inside of mouth (Editor please reproduce figure 003.jpg here). These lacerated wounds often tell us that this victim was actually killed by someone, and he did not commit suicide. There is no way such wounds can appear in a person committing suicide. Frequently criminals kill small children by catching hold of them with their feet and then swinging them against the wall. This brute method of killing often produced lacerated wounds on the face and scalp of the child (Editor please reproduce figure 004.jpg here). The accompanying figure shows such a child. By seeing the injuries in this child, I could say that this child had been hit against a wall. Subsequent to my analysis, the police raided the house of the suspect and found blood stains over the walls of his house. The assailant had actually abducted the child from his house and had killed him in his house by hitting him against a wall. He bore a grudge against the parents of this child and hence he did this. Had I not seen the lacerated wounds on the child’s face, it would have been very difficult for me to say, how he actually died. So these lacerated wounds actually helped nab the criminal. Hitting the head with lathis can produce typical lacerated wounds (Editor please reproduce figure 005.jpg here). In this figure you can see, two deep lacerated wounds. By seeing these wounds, I could say that this person had been hit by a lathi . Finally a little bit about iron bars. These can also produce lacerated wounds (Editor please reproduce figure 006.jpg here). In the accompanying figure you can see several lacerated wounds produced by an iron bar. In this case too, the lacerated wounds of the person were instrumental in having the criminal caught. These lacerated wounds when looked through a magnifying lens have very rough edges, and these edges are contused also. This is a very easy way to identify these lacerated wounds. Needless to say that a study of lacerated wounds is very important in the training of a forensic pathologist. If you happen to see a wound produced in some person, by a blunt instrument, do try to see its edges with a magnifying lens, and you will know how the lacerated wounds look like. You can now also say with pride to your friends, that you know their forensic importance. You could in fact predict to your friend, that he was hit by a blunt instrument, and not by a sharp instrument, and he would be truly surprised by your genius. Well, you and I know that it is no genius, but a victory of forensic science! ***** Captions of figures 001.jpg: Multiple lacerated wounds of the face due to kicking. 002.jpg: Multiple lacerated wounds of the scalp produced by two blows with shovel. Contusions are present on the face. 003.jpg: Bruising and laceration of lip in case of homicide. These injuries tend to be missed in the description of external and internal injuries. 004.jpg: Lacerated wounds of the head and face caused by repeated blows against the wall of a room. 005.jpg: Multiple lacerated wounds of the scalp. 006.jpg: Multiple lacerated wounds of the head due to blows by an iron bar. ***** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal is a professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi-110002. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com and his Website address is: http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html ***** (Note to the Editor: All figures in the article have to be taken from the accompanying floppy.) Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. Professor of Forensic Medicine Maulana Azad Medical College New Delhi‑110002

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-74 For July 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION Deaths Due to Head Injury ‑Dr. Anil Aggrawal I have often been called upon to examine cases where death has apparently been due to direct violence. By direct violence, I mean a situation where a person knowingly and intentionally hits a person directly over his body in order to kill him. Deaths due to automobile accidents may also be considered under this category, as they also cause direct violence. Many such injuries are found over the head, as it contains one of the most delicate portion of the body – the brain. Once the brain is dead, the person is considered dead. In this installment therefore, I would confine myself to deaths caused by injuries to the head. These cases are not very difficult to detect. In most such cases there are usually lacerations or bruises upon the surface of the body. However, the absence of these marks should not lead one to believe that direct violence or blunt force could not have caused the death. Many insurance policies require that where claims are made for accidental death that there must be external signs, such as bruises or lacerations, to indicate that death was accidental. It is entirely possible and not infrequent that a person may suffer such a death with no such indications whatever on the surface of the body. This is important to remember. I have seen many younger doctors committing mistakes on this point. Since automobile accidents have become so frequent, the number of deaths from this cause has grown to such proportions that they are one of the major problems that come to the attention of the coroner or medical examiner. Injuries to the Head The scalp is one of the most frequent sites of injury on the body. Since the scalp overlies the hard skull underneath, it may be lacerated by blunt force in such a way that one would think the victim had been struck by a sharp instrument. For instance a fall on a smooth surface like ice or a hard floor may result in a clean straight laceration. This fact has been misinterpreted in many important cases. The skull in an adult is a solid bony structure and injuries to it do not cause death unless the brain underneath has been damaged. The mere fact that the skull may not be fractured does not indicate that there may not be serious brain damage; on the other hand a fracture of the skull may occur, yet the damage to the brain be comparatively slight. The brain in a living person has a semi-solid consistency. It is difficult to handle the brain without its falling apart because of its weight. The spinal cord which extends down inside of the spinal column is of the same consistency and is actually a continuation of the brain stem. Consequently, it often happens that when a person falls, striking his head on a hard surface, the brain tends to be compressed on the side of the injury, and is torn away from the opposite side so that the bulk of the brain damage may occur on the side opposite to that which received the blow. This phenomenon is known to medical men as countercoup. When a person is struck a blow on the head by an instrument such as a hammer, billy, or club with such violence as to cause injury to the brain, that injury is usually located directly beneath the point of impact. The distinction between these two types of brain injury is of major importance and the autopsy surgeon always tries to determine whether the damage was due to countercoup or direct impact. As a general rule injuries to the brain in the back part of the head are more likely to cause death than injuries to the brain in the forward part of the skull. It is not uncommon to see severe injuries to the front part of the head with a massive fracture of the skull and actual oozing out of the brain substance, without the person even losing consciousness. Similar injuries to the back part of the head are usually rapidly fatal. Another situation that is not infrequent occurs when a person suffers what appears to be a slight wound of the head. He may be stunned for a few moments, but soon feels much better. A few hours later he loses consciousness and may die before medical aid can be summoned. In these cases there has usually been a rupture of one of the arteries supplying the membranes that cover the brain, called the meninges. A slow oozing takes place until a large clot is formed, and the pressure from this eventually causes death. For this reason the doctor generally keeps a person in bed under close observation for a period of at least twelve hours following even a minor head injury. A severe blow on the chin may result in a fracture of the skull with severe brain injury. The force of the blow is transmitted to the point where the jaw hinges on the skull, often causing death. This occasionally happens in boxing matches. Repeated blows on the head over a long period of time may cause the formation of small areas of scar tissue throughout the brain substance, giving rise to unsteadiness of gait and mumbling speech. The victim is commonly known as “punch drunk”. Concussion of the brain is a term indicating a severe shaking up of the brain substance, without causing major lacerations or bleeding. The victim may be unconscious for a considerable period of time but generally recovers completely. Subdural Hematoma After severe head injury sometimes a large clot forms over the surface of the brain but underneath the tough membrane which encloses the brain substance. Usually it is located on the side of the brain in front of and slightly above the ear. Particularly in elderly people this condition may result from comparatively minor violence and sometimes there is no history of any head injury whatever. The clot becomes encapsulated after a few days but tends to gradually expand with increasing pressure and displacement of the brain. If the condition is recognized it may be removed surgically with complete recovery to the patient. This can be responsible for death too. This clot is technically known as subdural hematoma. In many cases of head injury, subdural hematoma is seen. Now that you have understood the basics of head injury, I will describe one interesting case which I solved by examining properly the subdural hematoma. Raju was a drunkard, and had taken alcohol on one night in excess. He went to his enemy Gajju after taking too much alcohol and picked up a fight with him. Gajju told him repeatedly to go away. He told him that he was tipsy, and that he would talk to him only the next day. But Raju was intent on picking up a fight with him. He had some old score to settle with Gajju. He picked up an iron bar and wanted to hit Gajju with it. Gajju caught hold of the iron bar. In the scuffle that ensued, Raju fell down and sustained head injury. He was immediately hospitalized. Meanwhile the police arrested Gajju on the charge of murder. Gajju said that he had no fault of his own. According to him Raju had come to him in a tipsy state and he was bent upon picking up a fight. But the police did not believe him, and arrested him. They began torturing him too in order to get his confession. Raju remained alive for about ten days after which he succumbed. The body was sent for post-mortem to a young doctor, who had been my student. Of course the main purpose of the post-mortem was to establish the cause of Raju’s death, but another important thing was to establish whether Raju was drunk at the time of scuffle or not. If it could be proved that Raju was indeed drunk at the time of scuffle, then Gajju’s story would be believed. His lawyer was sure, that in such a situation he would save his client. Generally in order to determine whether a person was drunk at the time of his death, we do his blood examination. At the time of autopsy, we take blood from one of his leg veins and send it for chemical analysis. If the blood shows significant levels of alcohol in it, we can safely tell the court that the person was drunk at the time of his death. Of course, the levels of alcohol in the blood also matter. But after a person has consumed alcohol, the body immediately begins to destroy it. In about 4-5 hours time, almost all the alcohol that the person has consumed has been destroyed. This is the reason, why the person becomes sober after 4-5 hours of a drinking session. In the case of Raju, he had survived for more than 4-5 hours; in fact for ten days. So whatever alcohol was there in his blood had already been destroyed. Had the treating doctor been wise enough to preserve some blood from Raju as soon as he came to the hospital, and sent that blood for alcohol determination, that would have been alright. The doctor in fact did take blood from Raju, but he sent it for different tests such as blood glucose, urea, and so on. These are the standard tests that are done in all emergency cases. The doctor on duty at the emergency was naturally not trained in forensic medicine and had forgotten to take the blood for alcohol determination. The young doctor to whom the body was sent for post-mortem was very confused. He gave me a call and asked me what he should do. I was on summer vacation, but since this was an important case, I reached the mortuary. I found that Raju had subdural hematoma, the blood clot which forms in the brain, about which we have talked earlier. Now this blood which collects in the brain actually comes out of the system, so the alcohol in that blood clot doesn’t get destroyed. The body enzymes, responsible for the destruction of alcohol in the blood, have no access to the blood clot in the brain, so any alcohol present in the blood must remain in the blood clot, even if the person died several days later. I immediately advised the young doctor to send the blood clot from the brain for chemical analysis. Sure enough this clot was found to contain lot of alcohol, and we could prove in the court quite convincingly that Raju had in fact taken alcohol. And Gajju’s lawyer armed with this new finding was able to save Gajju. When Gajju heard that he had been saved by forensic medicine, he came to us and thanked us profusely, but I asked him to thank forensic medicine. Another man had got justice because of the application of forensic medicine! (Note: In order to protect the identities of the individuals, the names have been changed.) Captions to figures: FIG. 1: Death due to head injury, Notice the bleeding from the ear which always indicates the possibility of a fracture of the base of the skull. FIG. 2: The base of the skull of the victim shown in Figure 1. The skull cap and the brain have been removed. Note the long fracture line extending from ear to ear across the base of the skull. FIG. 3: Death due to a blow on the head with an iron bar. Extensive scalp laceration with fracture of the skull. The victim was "taken for a ride" and while riding in the front seat was struck from the rear. Fig. 4: Murder and robbery. The victim was struck over the head by one of the timbers shown in the photograph. Note the pockets turned inside out. FIG. 5: The face of the victim shown in Figure 4 (Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. is a Professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi)

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-72 For May 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION DEATH BY THROTTLING -Dr. Anil Aggrawal This time I am going to tell you about a case, which would have surely gone down as a case of natural death, had a proper forensic examination not been made in this case. On 7 Dec 1993, the dead body of 56 year old Ramlal was brought to me. He was found dead in his flat on that very morning. He was living alone in that flat for quite sometime. His wife had expired long time back, and his only son had deserted him. Ramlal had fairly good relations with almost all his neighbors except for one Sohan, who used to have some grudge against him. Nobody knew what exactly the matter was, but probably it was in connection with some business rivalry. Both were engaged in same construction business. Sohan had told several times to Ramlal not to come in his way, but Ramlal often used to divert Sohan customers to him. When Ramlal’s body was found in his flat, initially everyone thought that it was a case of natural death. To be sure, Ramlal indeed was suffering from some heart problem, and it was very reasonable to believe that he had suffered a heart attack. But when I examined the eyes of Ramlal I found that it had some blood specks over it. Technically we call them petechial hemorrhages . (Editor: Please reproduce figure 001.jpg here). This immediately made me suspicious and I realized, it could not be a case of natural death as the police was suspecting. To make myself more sure of the death, I opened the eyes of Ramlal, and saw more blood effusion under his eyes. This made me more sure that it was not a case of natural death. You can yourself see, how much blood was there in Ramlal’s eyes. Technical we call them subconjunctival hemorrhages (Editor: Please reproduce figure 002.jpg here). These types of hemorrhages in the eyes are seen in certain special kinds of deaths which we call asphyxial deaths . Basically in such deaths, the person does not get the amount of oxygen he should get. He dies as a result of want of oxygen. I suspected that someone had actually strangulated him. When I looked at Ramlal’s neck, I found certain strange looking marks (Editor: Please reproduce figure 003.jpg here). These were clearly nail marks of some person. I asked the accompanying police official how he had failed to see those marks. When I showed those marks to him, he said that he had indeed seen those marks, but had not paid any attention to them, as he thought those were the marks produced by antbites. Indeed at the place where Ramlal’s body was recovered, lots of ants were present, and it was not entirely unnatural for the police official to think that those marks were caused by antbites. It probably needed expert interpretation to say that those were the nail marks. These nail marks are very typical of homicide by manual strangulation or throttling. In this type of homicide, the person kills his enemy by pressing his neck till the other person is completely unable to respire. However in the struggle that ensues, the nail marks of the assailant often get imprinted on the neck of the victim. These nail marks are crescent shaped, and are very very characteristic. These marks are also sometimes said to the semilunar shaped. The word “Lunar” in Latin means “moon” and “semi” means “half”, so in fact, these marks look like half moon. To be more exact, these look like crescentic moon. Every post mortem expert knows about their shape and how they are caused. The story was now clear to me. Sohan had entered Ramlal’s house from the backyard and had strangulated Ramlal. In this process he had left some tell tale marks over Ramlal’s neck. I told this story to police who immediately apprehended Sohan. However Sohan refused to agree to his crime. The police were going to apply third degree methods against him, but I told them not to do so. Instead, I applied a scientific technique to show that Sohan had indeed killed Ramlal. I looked at Sohan’s nails and scraped some dirt from underneath his nails. My idea was that if Sohan had indeed throttled Ramlal, and had caused so many semilunar nail marks over Ramlal’s neck, some of Ramlal’s skin must have got entangled underneath his nails. That had indeed happened. I examined the material scraped from underneath Sohan’s nails under the microscope. It showed cells, which could have come from Ramlal’s neck. But this microscopic examination could not prove in a court of law that these cells were indeed from Ramlal. Sohan’s lawyer could well have said that these cells were Sohan’s own cells and caused by scratching his own skin. To prove my theory, I had to conduct a special test – the DNA test. This test can positively say, from which body the cells have come. All persons have different composition and different DNA in their cells. So in theory Ramlal and Sohan should have had different DNA. The lab report said that the cells found from underneath Sohan’s nails were indeed from Ramlal’s neck. This was the final undoing of Sohan, and he admitted he had killed Ramlal. This was indeed a victory for Forensic Medicine. ***** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal is a professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi-110002. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com and his Website address is: http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html ***** (Note to the Editor: All figures in the article have to be taken from the accompanying floppy.) Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. Professor of Forensic Medicine Maulana Azad Medical College New Delhi‑110002

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-71 For April 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION WHEN BONES SPOKE TO DR. FIMATE -Dr. Anil Aggrawal I have just attended the XXth Annual Conference of the Indian Academy of Forensic Medicine, held at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, from 6th to 8th February 1999. Many forensic scientists (known in common parlance as crime scientists) attended this conference and presented their research work. One of the best papers presented in this conference was by my erstwhile friend from Manipur, Dr. L. Fimate. I will tell you the remarkable work done by Dr. Fimate in non-technical language so everyone could understand his great work. I was sitting with Dr. Fimate, and he related me the whole story. I was wonderstruck by this story. Still more remarkable was a fact which Dr. Fimate told me about himself. Apparently Dr. Fimate’s reputation as a crime scientist is very high in Manipur, the state where he works. One incident will suffice to tell his reputation. A woman killed her husband by poisoning. The body was duly buried without any suspicion. About 6 months later, suspicion started gathering around that lady, and everyone asked her to confess to her crime. But she refused to confess. She kept asserting that it was a natural death of her husband. Ultimately the police said that they were going to call Dr. Fimate. The body of her husband would be exhumed and Dr. Fimate would do a post-mortem on the body. On hearing this, the woman at once confessed to her crime! She agreed that she indeed had poisoned her husband. That is the amount of reputation that Dr. Fimate has generated amongst the masses. Dr. Fimate is currently on the expert list of several countries, and advises the police of several countries. I would like all of you to read this short real story in the light of these facts. A bundle of bones was brought to Dr. Fimate some time back. The police wanted Dr. Fimate to tell everything he could about those bones. Obviously the first thing was to tell whether the bones really belonged to a human being. Several times, the bones of an animal look very much like those of a human being, and the layman may think, that a murder has been committed, while in reality the bones belong only to an animal. This is very true if the bones are in a powdered state or broken very badly. In such cases, it becomes difficult even for experts to tell if the bones belonged to a human or an animal. Several other questions were asked from Dr. Fimate regarding the bones. The initial question of whether the bones belonged to an animal or a human was solved very easily by Dr. Fimate. He saw the shape of the bones and from it, he could easily say that the bones belonged to a human being. Now the police enquired about the missing persons in the area. It was found that two boys were missing from that area, and quite probably the bones belonged to one of them. One boy was 10 year old and was missing since 10 years. The other boy was 8 years old and was missing since 6 years. Dr. Fimate got down to work immediately, and spread out the bones on his table (Editor: Please reproduce slide 1 here: Caption: Dr. Fimate at work along with his assistant). The following bones were found. skull left arm bones part of right arm bones ribs part of hip bones left lower limb bones shoulder blades Now Dr. Fimate set them in anatomical order, i.e. the way in which the bones are normally articulated in the body (Editor: Please reproduce slide 2 here: Caption: Dr. Fimate arranging the bones in order). Dr. Fimate found out the height of the dead person in a very interesting way. There is a special formula which one can apply to the length of the thigh bone, and the formula gives the height of the missing person. (Editor: Please reproduce slide 3 here: Caption: The completely assembled skeleton )It is known as the Karl-Pearson’s formula after the persons who first devised this formula. After applying this formula he could correctly tell the height of the missing person. A remarkable feat! But Dr. Fimate did not stop at that. Now he examined the skull. (Editor: Please reproduce slide 4 here: Caption: Two linear grooves on the skull discovered by Dr. Fimate). He noticed two linear grooves on the skull. Any other crime scientist would have surely missed them. But it goes to the credit of Dr. Fimate that he discovered them. These were about 3 cm by 0.2 cm in size. Dr. Fimate could at once say that these were the injury marks found on the skull. He also opined that they were caused during life as the grooves showed signs of healing around them. Had they been inflicted by animals after death, there would have been no signs of healing. Now Dr. Fimate examined the skull closely (Editor: Please reproduce slide 5 here: Caption: A close examination of skull by Dr. Fimate established that it was a female skull). He could say that this was a female skull. This was a remarkable revelation for the police. As we have already seen, the only two persons missing from the area were males, and the police was only thinking in that direction. The moment Dr. Fimate said the bones belonged to a female, the story changed completely. Now the police had to find out about a missing female, not a missing male. Now Dr. Fimate concentrated on the jaws. This was for a special reason. Often the study of jaws gives away the age of the person. This is because the teeth of an individual erupt at definite ages. In the beginning the temporary teeth erupt. These are known as “milk teeth” in ordinary parlance. The first temporary tooth appears at about 6-8 months of life. And the last temporary tooth appears at about three years of age. There are 20 temporary teeth in all. Thus if a skull shows absolutely no temporary teeth, the skull must belong to a child of less than 6 months of age, and if all 20 temporary teeth are present, the skull must belong to a child greater than three years of age. At about the age of 7 years, the temporary teeth start falling gradually. They get replaced by permanent teeth. The last permanent tooth to appear is the “wisdom tooth”, and it comes by 18 to 25 years. There are a total of 32 permanent teeth. Thus if a skull shows all 32 permanent teeth, the skull must belong to an adult, who is more than 18 years of age. Similarly by applying clever analysis, forensic scientists can tell the age of almost any skull. Dr. Fimate found that there were 20 temporary teeth in the skull. This meant that the child was above 3 years of age. The problem was to find out the upper age limit of the skull. Dr. Fimate found that the first permanent tooth had not yet erupted (Editor: Please reproduce slide 6 here: Caption: A study of the teeth enabled Dr. Fimate to tell the age of the child completely. This skull belonged to a child of between 3-5 years of age). This meant that the child was less than 5 years of age. Now Dr. Fimate could safely say that the bones belonged to a girl child of between 3-5 years of age. The next problem was to tell when the child had died. For this Dr. Fimate saw the condition of the bones. The bones were very soft and some soft tissues were still attached to the bones. Generally if the person is dead for a long time, the bones get dried up and the soft tissue attached to it gets completely destroyed. Some portions of bone were wet and reddish too. This enabled Dr. Fimate to say that this girl had died less than 1 year before. Now see the beauty of Dr. Fimate’s deduction powers. The police were previously looking for two boys aged 10 years and 8 years, who were missing since 10 years and 6 years before. But after Dr. Fimate had a little “chat” with the bones, they suddenly found themselves looking for a girl child of between 3-5 years of age, missing since about 1 year. This child was previously not in the police list at all. Dr. Fimate went relentlessly ahead to help the police more. He found that three of the child’s teeth had caries and had been filled up by a dentist. To sum up Dr. Fimate’s findings till now. The police was looking for a girl child of 3-5 years of age, who had dental caries in 3 of her teeth and who had been killed by hitting on the head. Certainly even if the girl herself had been talking to Dr. Fimate, she could not tell more than this. And Dr. Fimate found so much simply from the bones of that child. Armed with this information, the police flashed the information in the state. On hearing such accurate information, a couple came forward with a photograph of a four and half year old girl child. They also brought a dental record from their dentist, which showed filling up of her three teeth by their dentist. Everything matched perfectly. The couple was shown the bones. A small piece of cloth was found along with the bones, which was presumably the remains of the clothes, the child had been wearing. This piece of cloth was duly identified by the parents. This child had been missing 8 months before. Thus by Dr. Fimate’s clever deduction powers, the remains of the child were duly returned to her parents, who then cremated the remains with full honors. ***** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal is a professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi-110002. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com and his Website address is: http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.html ***** (Note to the Editor: All figures in the article have to be taken from the accompanying slides.) Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. Professor of Forensic Medicine Maulana Azad Medical College New Delhi‑110002

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-70 For March 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION SUICIDE WITH A FIREARM -Dr. Anil Aggrawal This time I am recommending the readers a very good book on the forensic analysis of skull that has recently come in the market. It is “Forensic Analysis of the Skull” edited by Mehmet Ya(ar ((can and Richard P. Helmer (Editor: Please reproduce figure 1.jpg here). This book explores all aspects of the analysis of the skull, and I am sure the readers would enjoy the book. Regarding this month’s crime story. I am going to tell you how we distinguish a case of suicide when the suicide has been done with the help of a firearm. To be sure, it is not very easy to distinguish between a homicidal and accidental firearm wound. Clever murderers are known to kill their victims with guns and then arrange the scene in such a way, that the onlookers think the deceased took his own life. For instance, they may put the gun in the deceased’s hands themselves. On the contrary, many suicides are known to take their lives in such a way that it looks like a murder. Many of you might wonder why anybody would do such a thing, especially when the person was going away from this world. The answer is that suicide is not looked after positively in our society and people don’t want that after their death anybody should speak bad about them. They want sympathy from all the people. So if it appeared they had taken their own lives, nobody would sympathize with them. Rather everybody would speak bad about them. Instead if it may be made to appear that the person was killed homicidally, everybody would sympathize with him. Not only this, there are certain life insurance policies which don’t pay up if it is proved that the person has taken his own life. On the other hand if it was a murder they would easily pay up. So the person before killing himself makes sure that his near and dear ones at least get his insurance policy money. Thus it may not be very easy to distinguish between the two types of wounds – homicidal and suicidal gunshot wounds. There are certain helpful points though. A person who commits suicide can not keep the firearm far away from his body. On the contrary a person who kills another with a gun usually does this from a far away point. Coming near would cause unnecessary scuffle, so every murderer is quite happy keeping distance from his victim and killing him from a distance. This introduces a very interesting differentiating point between the two types of wounds. All firearms work by burning gunpowder. When the trigger is pressed, it strikes the base of the cartridge which contains the gunpowder. The gunpowder is ignited; it releases lot of smoke and gases, and these gases are ultimately responsible for propelling the bullet out of the cartridge. Needless to say that the smoke also travels along with the bullet for some distance. But it travels only for a certain distance, say about 2 to 3 inches in small firearms such as revolvers and pistols. And if the firearm is kept within this distance of the body while shooting, this smoke gets deposited around the wound margins. This is technically known as blackening, and is a very good indication that the firearm was very close to the body when it was fired. See the adjacent figure (Editor please reproduce figure Ted_II_1004_1.jpg here). This figure shows a close up gunshot wound of the right temple. The wound is deeply surrounded by blackening. Just by looking at the wound, an expert forensic pathologist can say that the firearm was fired from very near the body, and hence probably it was a suicidal wound. If the wound is made by a shotgun, then we can take help of another parameter. Shotgun contains pellets and these pellets disperse as they travel farther in air. Compare the situation to that of a group of people going out of a party to their houses. Initially all of them are together; gradually they part their ways and become more and more distant from each other. Similarly initially all pellets are together, but gradually they “fan” out farther and farther. Pathologists have mathematical formulas by which they can see the distance between the individual pellets and can tell the distance from which the shotgun was fired. They would go to the body, closely examine the wound and measure the diameter of the whole wound made by the shotgun. The larger the diameter the longer the distance from where the gun was fired. Look at the next figure (Editor please reproduce fig Ted_II_1005_2.jpg here). This shows the shotgun wound of the chest. The wound is fairly big and some pellets have shown individual entries also. To me it does not look like as if the person had made it himself. In any case, suicidal injuries with shotgun are very rare, because it is very difficult to position the shotgun in such a way so as to kill oneself. Severe destruction of the skin and bones sometimes tells us that the gun was very close to the body and hence we can say it was a suicidal wound. Look at the next figure (Editor please reproduce fig Ted_II_1005_3.jpg here). It shows the figure of a man who had killed himself with a rifle. Note the amount of destruction of the head and face. This clearly indicates that it was a suicidal wound of the head. No doubt determination of the fact whether a given wound was suicidal or homicidal is very important. If it was a homicidal wound the police has to find a culprit. On the other hand if it was a suicidal wound the police does not have to look for a culprit. So the whole investigation of a case of death depends on the fact whether the given case was of suicide or homicide. Common sense tells us that if a person shows two firearm wounds on his body then they can not be suicidal. Are you wondering why? Well, again apply common sense. If the person fired at himself, how in the world can he fire on himself again. Won’t he be dead? On the other hand if the person was killed by someone else, he can go on firing even on a dying or even on an already dead body. So literally you can find tens of gunshot wounds in a case of homicide, while in a case of suicide you would find just one wound. Well, in most cases, this is true, but this is not to say that multiple suicidal firearms wounds are not found. An example is seen in the adjacent figure (editor please reproduce figure Ted_II_1005_4.jpg here). This is the case of a man who shows two distinct shotgun wounds of the head. Initially it was thought that it could only be a homicide. But careful analysis later showed that it was a case of suicide. The deceased first hit him on the lower part of the chin. But he did not die. So he returned to his house, reloaded the shotgun and then returned to the barn where he completed the act by shooting the gun into his head! Who would have thought it was a case of suicide. But only a careful deduction and analysis could solve this difficult riddle. ***** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal is a professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi-110002. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com and his Website address is: http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.htm ) ***** (Note to the Editor: All figures in the article have to be taken from the accompanying floppy.) Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. Professor of Forensic Medicine Maulana Azad Medical College New Delhi‑110002

SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION-69 For February 1999 issue SCIENCE IN CRIME DETECTION HOW IS EXPLOSIVE SABOTAGE DETECTED? -Dr. Anil Aggrawal I have just returned from a Forensic Medicine conference in Bijapur where I met a number of forensic experts. I was very pleased and satisfied to know that most of them were following my monthly column in Crime & Detective. They all liked the column very much. I asked what more they specifically wanted in my columns and I was told that I should regularly update them on the latest additions in forensic literature. This time I am recommending the readers a very good book on explosive investigation that has recently come in the market. It is “Forensic Investigation of Explosions” edited by Alexander Beveridge (Editor: Please reproduce figure 1.jpg here). This book explores all aspects of explosive investigations, but I am going to concentrate on explosions occurring within aircrafts. This book describes this kind of investigation very nicely. Most modern jetliners cruise at high altitudes – almost 6 miles high. The speed is also very high. It is almost 85% of the speed of sound, or almost 575 miles per hour. At such high speeds, any type of explosion can scatter the aircraft rubble over a vast area. An average aircraft has about 200 tons of structure, 100 tons of fuel and about 50 tons of cargo and passengers. If an explosion occurs on board, all this stuff can be scattered over a very wide area and the very first step in any subsequent investigation would be to recover the remains of the aircraft. Almost all clues relating to the cause of explosion would be found in these remains only. Explosions may occur accidentally also, but they may be engineered with criminal intent too. In the latter case, it becomes imperative to find out the cause of explosions- especially who (or which organization) was responsible for the explosion. A proper investigation can lead to catching the criminals, thereby ensuring that such instances are not repeated. Between 1961 and 1994, there were approximately 1553 fatal airline accidents which resulted in 41,730 deaths. During the same time, there were approximately 58 cases and 1812 deaths where aircraft were damaged or destroyed by the detonation of an explosive device within the aircraft. These statistics remind us that the problem of explosions occurring in an aircraft (with criminal intent or otherwise) are not to be taken lightly, and a proper investigation is a must. One of the biggest explosions in flight occurring in recent years was that occurring on 21 December 1988. The aircraft which crashed was being operated as a commercial civil airliner on a flight designated as PA103 from London Heathrow to New York (Editor please reproduce figure 2.jpg here). This was a typical case of explosion occurring on board, where all kinds of investigative devices were used. A sterling work was done. It is estimated that at least 17 million pound sterlings were spent on investigations. This gives us an indication how thorough the investigation of such cases has to be. In our own country we must strive for similar standards. Most of the investigation deals with the recovery of the rubble. If the rubble – including human bodies – can be recovered successfully, chances are that the cause of explosion can be found accurately. One of the techniques utilized is SONAR. It is an acronym meaning Sound Naviagation And Ranging. It pretty much works on the echo principle. We all know that sound gets reflected from surfaces, resulting in echoes, but what is interesting is that the reflected sound carries much of the information about the surface from where it gets reflected. If one sends sound waves to the bottom of the sea, and analyses the reflected sounds coming back, one can make a fairly good idea of what is lying there. Thus any aeroplane debris collected at the bottom may be quickly and painlessly visualized. One of the variants of sonar system used for such visualizations is Towed side scan sonars. These sonars have two sound emitting devices (technically known as transducers), one installed on each side of a towed body commonly referred to as a “fish”. Sound is sent down from each device and the resulting echoes recorded. A composite image is formed from both the echoes. This image can show all the debris lying at the bottom of the sea. Figure 3 here shows a typical sonar system employed for such works (Editor: Please reproduce figure 3.jpg here. Caption to be used: General view of a towed side scan sonar system showing the graphic recorder, shallow water tow cable, and two tow fish). This method of visualizing debris is far superior than the conventional means such as discovery by divers and manned submersibles. Another newly used technique is the use of Remote Operated Vehicle or ROV (Editor please reproduce fig 4.jpg here). These are essentially robot vehicles that are sent to the bottom of the sea. These vehicles have video cameras and other sophisticated attachments over them with which the debris can be easily viewed. This technique is much safer than actual manned diving operations. Finally a very sophisticated technique that has come into use only recently. It is known as GPS or the Global Positioning System (Editor please reproduce figure 5.jpg here). GPS is a portable, satellite based radio navigation system. An individual with a GPS receiver can instantly determine his or her precise location, elevation, speed and heading from information transmitted from orbitting satellites. This system was built by the United States Department of Defense for military positioning. Russian Federation of States uses a similar system known as Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS). However GPS is more popular and more widely used. GPS has been used for locating aircraft debris in an interesting way. An investigator in a hostile or otherwise difficult terrain can use the GPS to know where exactly he is. Thus there is no danger of him getting lost, and he can cover wide areas ranging into tens of miles. GPS receivers can be hooked upto portable computers and all the recovered debris can easily be recorded directly into computers. This is just a glimpse of how highly technical our crime investigation has become. Undoubtedly latest books in this field are keeping us informed of these developments. Professionals looking for more info can consult the book mentioned above. ***** (Dr. Anil Aggrawal is a professor of Forensic Medicine at the Maulana Azad Medical College, New Delhi-110002. His E-mail is dr_anil@hotmail.com and his Website address is: http://members.tripod.com/~Prof_Anil_Aggrawal/index.htm ) ***** (Note to the Editor: All figures in the article have to be taken from the accompanying floppy.) Dr. Anil Aggrawal, M.D. Professor of Forensic Medicine Maulana Azad Medical College New Delhi‑110002