Transcript File - Mrs.Marsigliano

FORENSIC
ANTHROPOLOGY
Chapter 9
BURN BARREL EVIDENCE LINKS
SUSPECT TO MURDER
 Four days passed before 25 year old Teresa Halback was
reported missing. Teresa, a photographer working for the
Auto Trader Magazine, spent much time drinv across
easter Wisconsin in her 1999 Toyota RAV 4 taking pictures
of old cars. On Friday, October 31, 2005, her last stop was
at the Avery Auto Salvage yard in Gobson, near Lake
Michigan. She was there to meet a co-owner Steven Avery
and to take pictures of a Plymouth Voyager minivan he had
for sale
…CONTINUED
 The police knew Steven and his brothers from earlier
encounters. Recently in a very public trial, Steven was
convicted of rape and attempted murder and then
released as innocent when DNA evidence pointed to
another man. He filed a $36 million lawsuit against the
state for wrongful conviction. When the police showed up
Monday afternoon after tracing Teresa’s movement to his
salvage yard, he was “being set up because of his
lawsuit.”
CONTINUED…
 In the yard, officers found a “burn barrel” with remains of a
camera, cell phone, clothes, teeth, and bones. A team of
forensic anthropologists were called to investigate, and they
determined that the remains were of an adult human female.
Damage to some of the bones also suggested the body had
been mutilated.
 When Steven’s nephew confessed to participating in the
crime, Steven was arrested on numerous charges involving
Teresa’s death. Do the bones in the barrel and the account
of a 16 year old tell the same story? Will they convict a man
who still maintains his innocence?
INTRODUCTION
 Analyzing bones can help ID
victim or suspect
 If bone found in association
with suspect, ID bones can link
suspect to crime
 Age, sex, height, race, and
background can be revealed in
bone analysis
 Reveal events before or after
death…help construct a crime
HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT
 Anthropology: the scientific study of all
aspects of human development and
intereaction
 Tools, language, traditions, social
interactions
 Forensic anthropology: studies physical
identifying characteristics on the
remains of an individual
 Show sex, race, height, physical health
HISTORY OF ANTHROPOLOGY
 In Europe in 1800’s, origins of the races of
humans were debated. Used skull measurements
to differentiate…laid the framework for today’s
knowledge
 Luetgert murder case of 1897 accused a sausage
maker for killing his wife and boiling her body.
Remains in factory appeared to be fragments of
wife’s skull, finger, and arm.
 1931, FBI opened 1st crime lab & Smithsonian
Institution became a working partner in ID of
human remains
HISTORICAL DEVELOPMENT
 1939, William Krogman published
Guide to the Identication of Human
Skeletal Remains
 Remains of soldiers of WWII were
identified using anthropologic
techniques
 New technique in DNA recently found
in mitochondria of cells have been
used to analyze skeletons of Nicholas
and Alexander Romanov
DID YOU KNOW?
 The founder of modern criminology, Dr. Cesare
Lombroso, claimed to be able to identify people
with criminal tendencies based on physical
characteristics, including head size and the
distribution and abundance of facial wrinkles and
eye defects. His theories were later proven wrong
CHARACTERISTICS OF BONE
 Our bones are alive!
 Bones carry out cellular respiration and consume energy
like any other living cells
 Inside of bones is tissue = marrow- where blood cells are
made
 Bones are regulated by hormones that affect calcium in the
blood and the hard part of our bones
 Since bones are alive.. Capable of growth and repair
DID YOU KNOW?
 Bones can reveal if a person had tuberculosis,
arthritis, and leprosy, as well as iron and vitamin D
deficiency. Although long healed, a record of any
broken bones can be detected.
DEVELOPMENT OF BONE
 Bones originate from osteoblasts- cells that
migrate to the centers of cartilage production and
deposit minerals (CaPO4) that harden to form
bone
 Ossification- begins in 1st few weeks of pregnancy
 Outline of skeleton has formed and visible through x-ray
by 8th week of pregnancy
 Perisoteum: protective membrane of nerves and
blood vessels covers surface of bone- keeps bones
moist and aids in repair of injuries
DEVELOPMENT OF BONES
 Bone is constantly
deposited, broken down,
and replaced
 When bone is broken,
blood vessels at the area
increase Calcium
phosphate deposits to
help heal
 Newly trapped osteoblasts
(osteocytes) form the new
bone
DEVELOPMENT
 Osteoclasts: dissolves bone
 As bones grow, need to be
reshaped
 Osteoclast cells secrete enzymes
that hep dissolve certain areas of
bone
 Maintain homeostasis
 Ca, mineral that is vital to normal
metabolism, may be borrowed from
bone when low levels in blood
 Osteoclasts dissolve bone and
release Ca to the blood
 Low Ca nutrition
results in osteoporosis
 Osteoclasts also
remove cellular
wastes and debris
 Secrete enzymes to
remove
injured/damaged
bone so new healthy
bone can grow
NUMBER OF BONES
 How many bones does the human body have?
 206?
 Babies are bone with over 450 bones
 Not fully developed
 They fuse together as the human grow older
HOW BONES CONNECT
 Joint: location where bones meet (articulate)
 3 kinds of connective tissue
 Cartilage: wraps end of bone for protection and
keep from scraping against each other
 Ligaments: bands of tissue connected together 2 or
more boes
 Tendons: connect muscle to bone
HOW BONES CONNECT
Cartilage
Ligaments
HOW BONES CONNECT
Tendon
5 CENTRAL QUESTIONS
1. Is it bone?
2. Is it human?
3. How old is the bone?
4. Whose bone is it?
1. Biological profile
5. How did they die?
1. Pathology and Cause of death
IS IT BONE?
 Bone, tooth, other
hard material
 Compare size, shape,
structure
 Compact vs spongy
bone
 joints? Cartilage?
Processes
(projections)
 Examine microscopic
features of the
material
 Osteon, blood
vessels, layers of
bone
IS IT HUMAN?
 If bone, is it human bone?
 Macroscopic and
microscopic examination
 Bear vs human - often
mistakes
 Pigs, dogs, sheep bones
 Size, shape, overall visual
 Fragments hard to decipher!
MICROSCOPIC DIFFERENCE
HOW OLD IS THE BONE?
 Bones can remain intact for centuries!
 Accidental discoveries…neglected burial sites or non-
marked sites
 Not for crimes but for legal ownership of land…
 Buttons, tools, coffin nails can be dated
 Traditions (skulls had green stain- due to wrapping skull
with cloth and a copper clip- copper oxidized)
 Vegetation growing in bone
 Presence of soft tissue
 Presence of insect life around remains
WHOSE BONE IS IT?
 Recent human bone?
 DNA profiling- rarely used
 Lack of known profile to
compare DNA with
 Create a biological profile
 How tall
 How old
 Which sex
AGING OF BONE
 Bones are being produced and broken down throughout a
lifetime
 Bones increase in size bc children build more bones at a
faster rate than breaking down
 After 30 years- bones deteriorate faster than built.
 Process decrease with exercise.
 Without exercise, bones become frail and less dense and
easily broken down later in life
AGING OF BONE
 Osteoporosis: at risk of breaking
bones bc bones have lost Ca and
are porous
 Vertebrae loses Ca, collapse, and
give people a hunched
appearance
 Old people shrink- due to
vertebrae collapsing
 Number of bones and conditition
tell age, health, and if there was
enough Ca in food
WHAT BONES CAN TELL US
 Osteobiography: the story of a life told by the bones
 Bones contain a record of physical life
 Age, sex, race, approximate height, and health
 Lost of bone density, poor teeth, or signs of arthritis :
nutritional deficiencies and disease
 Bones of a right arm of a right handed person will be
slightly larger than bones in the left arm
 If a person worked physically hard, bones = denser
 Some sports show wear & tear on joints & size of bones
 X ray during an autopsy would show previous fractures,
artificial joints, and pins
DISTINGUISH MALE FROM FEMALE
 Overall female skeleton appears smoother
(gracile) and less knobby than male (robust)
 Male: thicker, rougher, very bumby
 Bc of hormones, muscles are more developed…require
stronger attachment sites, surface of bone is thicker,
creating appearance of rough and bumpy area
 Knees- bones of knees are more obvious than other areas
SKULL
 See figures 13-8 and 13-9, 13-10 and 13-11
 Male: skull is more massive and bumpier
 Frontal bone is low and sloping
 Eye orbits are square
 Jaw = square with a 90 d angle
 Square chin
 Female:
 frontal bone is higher and more rounded
 Eye orbits are more circular
 Lower jaw is sloped, angle greater than 90
 Round chin or v shaped
SKULL
 Occipital protuberance (bony knob on male skull)
= attachment site for male muscles and tendons of
the neck
 Male muscles are larger than those in women’s
neck, area of attachment is thicker… creating
that protuberance on male skull
PELVIS
 Easiest method to distinguish male and female skeletons
 Compare the following: (figure 13-15)
 sub pubic angle (figure 13-13)
 Length, width, shape, and angle of the sacrum (figure 13-14)
 Width of the ileum
 Angle of the sciatic notch
 Female: surface of pelvis will have scarring if she had borne
kids- at pubis symphysis bc during the 4th month of pregnancy,
hormones are released that soften the tendons in the pelvic area
to accommodate the developing fetus. Scars are seen in pubis
symphysis (cartilaginous area where the bones meet)
 See figure 13-12
THIGH BONES
 The thigh bone (femur) gives info for gender
 Angle of femur in relation to the pelvis is greater in
females and straighter in males
 Male femur is thicker than that of a female
HOW TO DISTINGUISH AGE
 Look at particular bones and by looking at the
presence of absence of cartilage
 Not all bones reach maturity at the same time
SUTURE MARKS
 Zig zag appearance found on skull where bones
meet
 Soft tissue, like soft spot on baby’s skull (frontanel)
gradually becomes ossified (hardened)
 Suture marks slowly disappear as bones mature,
appears more smooth
 3 main suture marks (figure 13-17)
CARTILAGINOUS LINES
 Babies are born with 450 bones 206 bones
 Cartilage replaced with hard, compact bone, a
cartilaginous line is visible (epiphysis)
 When cartilage is replaced, the line disappears
 Age varies for this process
 Presence/absence of these cartilaginous lines can
be use to approximate age
LONG BONES
 When the head of a long bone, like femur and
humerus has totally fused to its shaft, indicates age
 See figure 13-19
 Fusing occurs at different times with different
bones, this information can be used to
approximate age
HOW TO ESTIMATE HEIGHT
 Measuring humerus or femur can help determine
the approx. height
 Different for males and females and different races
 If race and sex on individual is known, calculation
of height will be more accurate (see figure 13-20)
DID YOU KNOW?
 By examining Roman skeletons, archeolgists
determined that Roman males were 5’7 on
average and Roman females were 5’3 on
average. The average height in the United States
today is 5’9 for males and a little less than 5’4 for
females
HOW TO DISTINGUISH RACE
 Difficult to complete due to intermarriages, physical traits have
blended and this distinction is losing its significance
 Shape of the eye sockets
 Absence or presence of a nasal spine
 Measurements of the nasal index (ratio of the width of the
nasal opening to the height of the opening, multiplied by 100)
 Prognathism (the projection of the upper jaw, maxilla, beyond
the lower jaw)
 Width of the face
 Angulation of the jaw and face
 See figure 13-21
WHAT ELSE CAN BE SEEN WITH BONES?
 Right or left handed
 Diet and nutrition
 Lack of vitamin D or calcium
 Disease
 Genetic disorders
 Osteoporosis, arthritis, scoliosis, osteogenesis
imperfecta, previous fractures, work or sports,
surgical implants, artificial joints (w/ code #
stamped), pins, childbirth
FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION
 the exact size and shape of bones not only vary from
person to person, but also the overall shape and size of
the muscles and tissues that lay on top of bones
 It should be possible to rebuild a face from skeleton up
FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION
 In 1895, Wilhelm His used
skull of Johann Sebastian
Bach in attempt to
reconstruct face in clay
 He took measurements of
cadavers tissues…
method is basis of facial
reconstruction today
FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION
 Victims of explosions are
blunt force trauma do not
have enough bone structure
in place to help ID
 Facial markers are placed at
key places on face, and clay
is contoured to follow the
height of the markers
 King Tutankhamen
FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION
 Faces (Interquest) performs computerized facial
reconstruction
 Investigators generate an image of the skull on the
computer based on actual measurements, features can be
deleted, and easily modified
 Nose/jaw lengths can be adjusted, as well as hairline, and
the color of the skin and shape and size of the eyes
DIGITAL FACIAL RECONSTRUCTION
 Called video-
superimposition
 Used to match
photographs to
someone’s remains for
the purpose of ID
 Facial landmarks are
measured and overlaid
on photo of the skull for
comparison
 Also used to age missing
persons and criminals
who are still on the loose
 Facial recognition systems
may be used in the future
to recognize terrorists and
other criminals who
attempt to superficially
disguise their appearance
DID YOU KNOW?
 The skull fragments of Josef Mengele, a Nazi
officer who performed experiments on Jews
during World War II, were reconstructed and
identified by this process
DNA EVIDENCE
 DNA profiling usually uses nuclear DNA, in nucleus
of white blood cells and body tissues
 Bone contains little nuclear DNA, but
mitochondrial DNA
 Mitochondria- organelles found in all cells that
contain DNA inherited from MOTHER only
 Found in bone, and profiled
 Can be compared with living relatives on mother’s
side to determine identity of skeletal remains
SKELETAL TRAUMA ANALYSIS
 Weathering and animals damage bones exposed to
elements
 Forensic anthropologist are trained to recognized these
marks
 A knife leaves parallel scoring on a rib BUT mice and
rodents chew marks can look similar
 Skeletal trauma analysis – makes distinctions between the
patterns caused by weapons and the damage and wear
caused by the environment after death to decipher what
happened to body before and after death
SUMMARY
 Bones are alive and carry on all life functions. Living cells
replace the cartilage of our skeleton at birth by depositing
calcium phosphate, creating a chard, compact material. This
process is called ossification.
 The condition of bones can tell an investigator about a person’s
health and nutrition during life
 Male and female skeletons differ in many ways, including
roughness and thickness of bones, size, and shape of frontal
bone in the skull and the shape of the eye cavity, the angle of
the pelvis, and the presence or absence of childbirth scars.
SUMMARY II
 The age of a person at death can be estimated by the number of
bones, the suture that mark bones joints, and the presence and
location of cartilaginous lines
 The height of a person can be estimated by the legnth of the
long bones in the arms and legs. Estimates are most accurate
when the sex and race of the skeleton are known.
 Facial reconstruction is possible using the physical
measurements of the skull. Forensic investigators can match a
skull’s size and shape to a photograph of a person’s head to
make a positive identification
 Mitochondrial DNA can be extracted from bone and used to
help identify skeletal remains by comparing to maternal DNA
SUMMARY III
 Skeletal trauma analysis examines the bones for evidence of
damage. This damage may provide clues to injuries sustained
when the person was alive or damage to bones after death
 X-rays are a critical tool during an autopsy to reveal skeletal
features, number of bones, conditions of bones, previous
fractures, implants, disease, and disorders of the bone.