Impressions and

Tool marks
Chapters 15 & 16
PVMHS, 2015

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Student objectives:
Distinguish

between patent, latent, and plastic

impressions
Describe how to make foot, shoe, and tire
impressions
Use track width and wheel base information to
identify vehicles
Prepare dental impressions and match them
with bite marks
Describe the three major types of tool mark
impressions
Summarize the steps of a tool mark
examination and analysis
Match tool marks with the instrument that
produced them

Labs & activities:

Casting

a shoe impression
Examining the relationship
between height, gait, &
shoe size
Examining tires
Compare and contrast tire
tread

Find the match

Examination

of bite marks
Case study of
Alampi/Bevard hit-and-run
Study of OJ Simpson case

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PART I
Impressions
Chapter 15

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Types of impressions:

Latent shoe impression

basic categories:
Patent visible 2 dimensional impressions
produced as an object moves through soil, dust,
paint, blood, or other fine particles.
Latent hidden to the eye, but can be discovered
by dusting or applying chemiluminescence
materials. Oils, dirt, dust, or other fine
particulates can be transferred to a floor or wall
and leave a latent impression.
Plastic visible 3 dimensional impressions left in
soft materials such as snow, mud, soil, or soap.
Plastic prints are easily lost, therefore they
need
Cast
of shoe
to be photographed immediately and thenimpression
a cast
should
beimpression
taken.
Tire

plastic

Individual vs. Class

evidence
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Depending on the impression, it can be

categorized as either individual or class
evidence.
Class evidence: a particular tread pattern may
identify a specific brand of shoe or tire, but it will
not identify an individual.
Individual evidence: if distinguishing
characteristics are identified, such as unusual
wear on a tire or a scar on a shoe, can be used
as individual evidence.

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Shoe impressions
There

is a lot of information that can be

ascertained from a shoe impression:

Shoe size
Weight (plastic impression)
Type of shoe gives information about the
suspects job, personality, income, gender.
Gait
Approximate height

Databases

exist to aid investigators in

researching a tread pattern.

Ex: SoleMate, SICAR6

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Shoe wear patterns

If

two people purchase the same shoes on the

same day, over time the tread will change
even though it matched at the start.
This is because different people have habits
of walking as well as different styles of
walking.

Some people walk with more pressure on their

toes, heels, outside of foot, inside of foot.
Some people may have a high arch or a flat foot
Some people walk with toes straight, others
with toes pointing out, or in.
Some people have narrow feet, others are wide.
Etc.

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Gait & Tracks

If

there are several footprints together, it

may be possible to determine the suspects
gait.

If a person has a limp or is carrying something

heavy, it may cause an asymmetrical gait i.e.
one foot is angled differently from the other or
one impression is deeper than the other.

Tracks

can indicate if a person was running

or walking based on the length of stride,
shape of impression, and pressure points on
the impression.
Tracks can also indicate movements and
even pinpoint the order that the movements
occurred in.

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Collecting shoe impression evidence

#1!!!

Impressions should not be touched or tampered

with in any way until they are photographed.
Photograph all impressions right away, regardless of
the type of impression found.
Take additional photos with a ruler in position.

#2

Photograph

lift or cast the impression

2 dimensional impressions can be lifted using

luminol or dusting
Casts can be made of 3 dimensional impressions
and preserved to be used as physical evidence.
Casting impressions in snow can be accomplished
using a special spray wax and a material called
dental stone.

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Foot length & shoe size

Its

impossible to predict
an individuals exact height
from their shoe size.
Its important to remember
that a shoe print provides
some information about
the person who left it but:

The size of shoe varies by

brand/type
The suspect may be
wearing shoes that are not
appropriately sized.

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Shoe size & height

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Tire tread and impressions

Tire

marks can be used to identify a vehicle at the

scene of a crime.
Tire marks can indicate the speed and direction a
vehicle traveled.
Skid marks at an accident scene may indicate who
was at fault or help reconstruct what happened.
Forensic

scientists examine tire tread and

impression for 2 reasons:

Tread pattern and measurements can identify the type

of tire and potentially the make and model of the
vehicle,
The impression can determine how the car was driven
(speed, direction, etc.)

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Tire tread and impressions

Vehicles can leave 3 types of impressions:

Patent impressions occur after a vehicle has driven

through a fluid material like tar, oil, or blood.
Latent marks may be left on asphalt or concrete
roads by oils in the tire that are meant to keep the
tire soft and pliable.
Plastic impressions may occur in off road surfaces
like mud, snow, or sand.

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Anatomy of a tire
A

tires surface is divided into ridges and

grooves.

Ridges are the elevated regions

Grooves are the indentations

The

purpose of this design is to channel water

away and provide traction with the ground.
Every model of tire is unique.

Width and angle of the grooves are uniquely

engineered for each model.
Touring tires have small grooves to channel air
and water on smooth pavement.
Off road tires have wide deep grooves to
provide traction in slippery conditions.

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Anatomy of a tire
Tread

patterns are symmetrical, with the left

and right sides as mirror images.
Ribs (the ridge of the tire) and grooves are
counted across the entire tread width from
shoulder to shoulder.
If the tire has a central ridge, it will have an
uneven numbers of ribs.
Wear patterns and other imperfections should
be noted.
To match the tire pattern of a suspects car to
an impression taken at the crime scene, at
least 3 meters of tire mark must be obtained
as a sample from the suspect vehicle.

Done by inking the tire and driving it onto

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Identifying a vehicle
Because

the same type of tire may be used

on many vehicles, just identifying tread
pattern often isnt enough.
Track width and wheelbase will also need to
be measured.
Track width is measured in mm from the
center of each tire to the center of the
opposite tire.
Track width
Wheelbase
Wheelbase is measured in mm
from the
center of the front axle to the center of the
rear axle.

Identifying a vehicle
Turning diameter is the
measure of how tight a
circle a vehicle can make.
A longer wheelbase
increases the turning
diameter.
There is a large database
that contains the track
width, wheelbase, and
turning diameter for all
makes and models of cars.

This information can be

accessed to identify the
vehicle that left an
impression.

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Accident reconstruction
Establishing car movements from tire marks
A

vehicles direction of travel can be

established by studying:

Vegetation disturbed by the vehicle.

Patterns of debris cast off by a moving vehicle.
Splash patterns created as a vehicle moves from
wet to dry pavement.
Substance transfer, such as oil leakage, from
vehicle to pavement.
Tire marks

Photographs

and measurements are recorded

to reconstruct the events of an accident.
The goal of accident reconstruction is to
determine what happened.

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Hit-and-run
In

hit-and-run situations, the vehicle is gone

but tire marks, splash patterns, pattern of
debris, and substance transfer can all be used
to determine:

Speed and direction of movement

Whether brakes were applied or not
Whether the vehicle accelerated to get away
from the scene

Case

study: Alampi/Bevard case

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Tire marks
There

are three basic types of tire marks.

Skid marks
Yaw marks
Tire scrubs

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Skid marks
Formed

when someone brakes suddenly

Provides evidence of the point at which the
brakes were applied.
Calculation of velocity can be made from skid
marks.

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Yaw marks
Produced

when a
vehicle skids sideways
due to traveling too
fast as it turns.
Tires and the road
surface melt from
extreme temperatures
(friction).
Audible squeal and
smoke.

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Tire scrubs
Produced

by damaged or overloaded tires

during or immediately following an accident.
Usually appear curved, irregular in width.
May have striations that look like stripes.
Can be used to determine area of impact.

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Dental impressions
Bite

marks are considered individual

evidence.
Factors that contribute to individuality:

Number
Size
Alignment
Dental work

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Dental impressions
The

individuality of teeth can be used in forensics

two ways:

To identify remains
To implicate a suspect in a crime

Up

to 76 points of comparison may be used when

comparing bite marks, including:

Chipping
Surface indentations/grooves
Tooth dimensions
Distances between teeth
Alignment of teeth
Angle of mouth arch
Missing teeth
Dental work

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Processing a bite mark

Gloves

should be worn when touching a

bite mark.
Bite marks should be photographed
immediately

A ruler should be included for reference

Bite

marks should be swabbed for saliva.

Bite marks descriptions should be
recorded in a report.
A forensic odontologist should be
consulted
Bite mark photographs should be scanned
photographic distortion corrected.
Dental molds should be taken from any

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Part II
Tool Marks
Chapter 16

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Tools and crime scenes

Some

of the most common type of physical

evidence left at a crime scene are tools.
Tools generally have unique characteristics,
even though they are manufactured in bulk.
There are 3 categories of tool marks:

Indentation marks
Abrasion marks
Cutting marks

Photographs

should always be taken of tool

marks when processing a crime scene.

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Indentation marks
Indentation

marks occur when a tool is

pressed into a softer surface.
The impression can be measure to determine
size and shape of the tool.

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Abrasion marks
Made

when surfaces
slide across one
another.
Pliers, axes, knives,
and gun barrels are
just some of the tools
that make this type
of mark.
Some indentation
marks and abrasion
marks are made at
the same time, such
as by a pry bar
forcing a door open.

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Cutting marks
Cutting

marks are produced along the edge

as a surface is cut.
Saws & wire cutters leave cutting marks.
By

examining the cut surface of a bone, its

possible to determine the type of saw blade
used.

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Tool mark examination

Always document with a photograph, a ruler
should be included in photo for reference.
Tool mark evidence can be removed from the
scene to preserve it.

Investigator may actually cut a section out of a

door for this purpose.

A cast can be made using a rubber-based casting

material if the evidence cant be removed.
Always dust for fingerprints first.
Always wear gloves.
Evidence collected should be wrapped in paper
and labeled or placed in a box so that it does not
become damaged.

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Any questions?
THE END

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