Lecture 4 – Part I

Identification and
DNA Fingerprinting

Atty Molly Cr Abiog, MD

College of Law
University of the Cordilleras
 Identification

• IDENTIFICATION
• Determination of the individuality of a person or a
thing
• Importance:
• In the prosecution of a criminal offense, the identity of
the offender and that of the victim must be established
• Otherwise it will be a ground for the dismissal of the
case or the acquittal of the accused
 Importance of Identification
• Identification of a person missing or
presumed dead will facilitate
• Settlement of the ff
• Estate
• Retirement
• Insurance and
• Other social benefits
• It vests on the heirs the right over the
properties of the identified person
 Importance of Identification
• If the identity cannot be established, then
the law on presumption of death (Art. 390,
Civil Code) must be applied which
requires the lapse of seven years before a
person can be presumed dead
• In special instances, the seven years period
may be reduced to four years (Art. 391, Civil
Code)
 Importance of Identification
• Identification resolves the anxiety of the
next-of-kin, other relatives and friends
as to the whereabouts of a missing
person or victim of calamity or criminal
act
 Importance of Identification
• Identification may be needed in some
transactions, like
• Encashment of check
• Entering a premise
• Delivery of parcels of registered mail in post
office
• Sale of property
• Release of dead bodies to relatives
• Parties to contract, etc.
 Rules in Personal Identification

• Laws of Multiplicity of Evidence in

Identification
• Value of the different points of
identification varies in the formulation of a
conclusion
• Fingerprints
• Visual recognition
 Rules in Personal Identification

• The longer interval between death and

examination of the remains for
purposes of identification, the greater
need for experts in establishing
identity
 Rules in Personal Identification

• Inasmuch as the object to be identified is

highly perishable, it is necessary for
the team to act in the shortest possible
time especially in case of mass
disaster
 Rules in Personal Identification

• No rigid rule observed in the procedure of

identification of persons
 Methods of Identification

• By comparison –
• Identification criteria recovered during
investigation is compared to records available
in the file or
• Postmortem findings are compared with
antemortem records, eg
• Latent fingerprints recovered from the crime scene
are compared with the fingerprints on file of an
investigating agency
 Methods of Identification
• Dental findings on the skeletal remains are
compared with the dental records of the person
in possession of the dentist
• By exclusion –
• If two or more persons have to be identified
and all but one is not yet identified, then the
one whose identity has not been established
may be known by the process of elimination
 IDENTIFICATION OF PERSONS
(Outline)

I. Ordinary Methods of Identification

A. Points of Identification Applicable to Living
Person Only
1) Characteristics which may easily be changed
2) Characteristics that may not easily be changed
B. Points of Identification Applicable to Both
Living & Dead Before Onset of Decomposition
II. Scientific Methods of Identification
 Ordinary Methods of Identification

• Characteristics which may easily be changed:

• Growth of hair, beard and mustache
• Clothing
• Frequent place of visit
• Grade of profession
• Body ornamentations
Characteristics which may NOT be easily
changed
• Mental memory
• Speech
• Gait patterns
• Mannerism – stereotype movements or habits
peculiar to an individual
• Hands and feet
• Complexion
• Changes in the eyes
• Facies
• Left or right handedness
• Degree of Nutrition
Points of Identification Applicable to both Living
and Dead before decomposition sets in:

1. Occupational Mark
2. Race
• color of skin
• features of face
• features of skull
• wearing apparel
3. Stature: a person ceases to increase in
height after the age of 25
4. Tattoo marks
 1. Occupational Marks
• Shoemaker – depressed sternum
• Painters – stains of hands & fingernails
• Engineers & Mechanics – grease on hands & nails
• Baker & Miller – flour dust on clothing & body
• Mason – callosities on the palms of the hands
• Blacksmith – scars from burns at the back of hands
• Miner – tattoo on the hand
• Dyer, photographic developer, printer – chemical
stain of the hands
 2. Race Differences

Race Color Feature of face Shape of the

of skin skull
Caucasian Fair Prominent sharp nose Elongated skull
Malayan Brown Flat nose, round face Round head
Mongolian Fair Almond eyes, Round head
Negro Black Thick lips, prominent Flat head
eyes
 3. Stature

• Growth most active from 5 – 7 and from 13 – 16 yrs

• Growth of person rarely exceeds 5.0 cm after age 18 yrs
• Person ceases to grow in height after age 25 yrs
• When rate of growth is increased, horizontal growth is
reduced
• Shrinkage of height
• Old age
• Osteoporosis
• Long standing debilitating disease
 Methods of Approximating the
Height of a Person

• Measures distance between the tips pf the

middle fingers of both hands extended
laterally
• 2X length of one arm plus 12.5 inches from
the clavicle and 1.5 inches from the sternum
• 2X the length from the vertex of the skull to
the pubic symphysis
 Methods of Approximating the
Height of a Person

• Distance between the suprasternal notch and the

pubis symphysis is about one-third of the height
• Distance from the base of the base of the skull
to the coccyx is about 44% of the height
• Length of forearm from tip of olecranon process
to the tip middle finger is 5/19 of the height (or
19/5 times forearm length)
• 8X the length of the head is approximately
equal to the height of the person
 4. Tattoo Marks

Tattoo marks-- introduction of coloring

pigments in the layers of the skin by
multiple puncture
• Importance
• Helps in identifying a person
• Indicates memorable events in his life
• Indicate the social stratum to which the person
belong.
• Implies previous commitment in previous or
membership in a criminal gang
Art of Tattooing
Dracula Tattoo
Captain Elvie’s Backpiece
Grimm workpiece
German Creola
Ironstat tattoo
Mildred Hull’s Tattoo
Mildred Hull’s Tattoo
Points of Identification Applicable to both Living
and Dead before decomposition sets in:

5. Weight - easily changes from time to time.

6. Deformities - congenital or acquired
7. Birth marks - spot nevi, port wine, or a mongolian
blue spot
• described as to shape. Location, dimension, color, or
degree of pigmentation
8. Injuries leaving permanent results - amputation,
improper union of fractured bones.
9. Moles
10. Scar
 10. Scar

Scar - Remaining mark after healing of

wounds
• Characteristics of the scar may show the cause
of the previous lesion:
• Surgical operation: regular form and situation of
stitch marks
• Burns ands scald- scars are large, irregular in
shape, and may lead to keloids. Scar of scald may
show stippled surface
• Gunshot wounds- depressed are center and may
be adherent to the underlying tissue
 Characteristics of the scar

• Tuberculosis sinus- Irregular in shape furrowed,

with edges
• Flogging- Fine white lines diagonally across back,
depressed small spots are interval
• Gumma- depressed scar following loss of tissue
• Lupus – bluish-white scar
• Venesection-
• Wet cupping- Short parallel scars on lower part of
the back and loin
Points of Identification Applicable to both Living
and Dead before Decomposition Sets in:

11. Tribal marks- marks on the skin by

tattooing or branding
12. Sexual organ- circumcision
13. Blood examination- blood type,
disease, parasitic infection or toxic
substances present may be utilized to
distinguish one person from another
 ANTHROPOMETRY (Bertillon System)

• Anthropometrical measurement of the

human body as the basis of identification
• Basis:
• Human skeleton is unchangeable after the
twentieth year
• Impossible to find two human beings having bones
exactly alike
• Necessary can easily be taken with the aid of a
simple instrument
 ANTHROPOMETRY (Bertillon System)

• Information included in the Bertillon System

• Descriptive data – color of hair, eyes, skin . . .
• Body marks – moles, scar, tattoo
• Anthropometric measurements
• Body measurements – height, width, sitting height
• Measurement of head
• Measurement of the limbs
 ANTHROPOMETRY

• PORTRAIT PARLE’- (Spoken Picture)

• a verbal, accurate and picturesque description
of the person identified
 ANTHROPOMETRY

• ROGUE’S GALLERY or PHOTOGRAPHIC FILES-

• marked files wherein the picture of a suspect is compared with
the cartographic sketch
• EXTRINSIC FACTORS IN IDENTIFICATION:
• Ornamentations
• Personal belongings
• Wearing apparel
• Foreign bodies
• Identification by close relatives
• Identification records on file at the police department,
immigration bureau, hospitals, etc.
• Identification photograph
 LIGHT AS A FACTOR IN IDENTIFICATION

• Particularly important when there is an eye

witness to a crime:
1. Clearest Moonlight or starlight
• Experiments have shown that the best-known
person cannot be recognized by the clearest
moonlight at a distance greater than 16 to
17 yards and by starlight any farther than
10-13 yards
LIGHT AS A FACTOR IN IDENTIFICATION:

• Particularly important when there is an eye

witness to a crime:
2. Broad daylight
• A person can hardly recognize another person
at a distance farther than 100 yards if the
person has never been seen before,
• Persons who are almost strangers may be
recognized at a distance of twenty-five yards
LIGHT AS A FACTOR IN IDENTIFICATION:

3. Flash of firearms
• By experiment, letters 2 inches high can be read with
the aid of the flash of caliber .22 firearms at a distance
of two feet
• BUT it is hardly possible for a witness to see the
assailant in case of a hold-up or a murder because:
• Usually the assailant is hidden
• Assault is unexpected and attention of witness is at its
minimum
LIGHT AS A FACTOR IN IDENTIFICATION:

4. Flash of lightning
• Produces sufficient light for the identification of an
individual provided that the person’s eye is focused
towards the individual he wishes to identify during the
flash
5. Artificial light
• Identity is relative to the kind and intensity of the light
• Experiments maybe made for every particular
artificial light concerned
 II. Scientific Methods of
Identification

A. Fingerprinting
B. Dental Identification
C. Handwriting
D. Identification of skeleton
E. Determination of sex
F. Determination of age
G. Identification of blood and blood stains
H. Identification of hair and fibers
I. DNA Fingerprinting
 A. FINGERPRINTING

• Most valuable method of identification;

universally used because:
• There are NO two (2) identical fingerprints
• Fingerprints are not changeable
• Fingerprints are an indelible signature
which a person carries from ‘cradle to
grave’
 Uses of Fingerprints:

1. Help establish identification in cases of dead bodies

and unknown or missing persons
2. Fingerprints recovered for scène of crimes are
associative evidence, associative persons are weapons
3. Fingerprints on file are useful for comparative purposes
and for the knowledge of previous criminal records
4. Among illiterate, right thumb printing is
substitute for signature on legal documents
(Philippines), left thumb (India) and right pointing
finger (Spain)
 A. Fingerprinting

• Dactylography
• Art and study of recording fingerprint as a means of
identification
• Dactyloscopy
• Art of identification by comparison of fingerprints
• Study and utilization of fingerprints
• Poroscopy
• Type study of identification of the pores found on the
papillary or friction ridges of the skin for purposes of
identification
• aka Locards’ Method of Identification
 Methods of Producing Impressions
(Fingerprints)

• Plain method
• Rolled method
• Kinds:
• Real Impressions
• Chance Impressions
 Methods of Producing Impressions
(Fingerprints)

• Chance Impressions may be

• Visible print
• Visible without previous treatment
• Visible immediately after impression
• Plastic print
• Printed on paraffin, putty, resin, cellophane, plastic, tape,
butter, soap, and etch
• Latent print
• Prints that are not visible after impression but made visible by
the addition of some substances
 B. Dental Identification

• Important in the following reasons

1. The possibility of two (2) persons to have the same
dentition is quite remote. Why?
• 32 teeth (Adult) have five (5) surfaces
• Some of the teeth may be missing, carious, with filling
materials, and with abnormality in shape and other
peculiarities
2. Enamel of the teeth is the hardest substance of the
human body, to outlast all other tissues during
putrefaction or physical destruction
 Dental Identification

3. After the death, the greater the degree of the

tissue destruction, the greater is the importance
of dental characteristics as means of
identification
4. The more recent the ante-mortem records of the
person to be identified, the more reliable is the
comparative or exclusionary mode of
identification that can be done
 Accurate Dental Recording
• P.D. 1575 requires that practitioners of dentistry to keep
records for 10 years of their patients to make accurate
dental records available for purposes of comparison or
exclusionary mode of identification. Upon the lapse of ten
years, they shall turn over the dental records to the NBI
• Forensic Odontologist- dentist specializing in dental
identification
• Sex- examination for the presence of Barr bodies (sex
identification) from palatal scrapping
 C. Handwriting

• A person may be identified through:

• Handwriting
• Handprinting
• Handnumbering
 Handwriting, How proven?

• Sec.23, Rule 132 of Court: the genuineness of any

disputed handwriting may be proven by:
• Acknowledgement of the alleged writer that he wrote it
• Statement of the witness who saw the writing made and is able to
identify it as such
• By the opinion of persons who are familiar with the handwriting
of the alleged writer
• By the opinion of an expert who compares the questioned writing
with that of other writings which are admitted or treated to be
genuine by the party against whom the evidence is offered
• See Sec. 44 (b), Rule 130- Opinion of Ordinary witness
 Some practical uses of handwriting
examination:
• Financial crimes- bogus checks, credit cards fraud and
embezzlement
• Death investigation- suicide notes, hotel registration
cards, letter of explanation.
• Robberies- pawnshop receipts, cashing of stolen checks
• Kidnapping with ransom- demand notes, threatening
letter.
• Anonymous threatening letters
• Falsification of documents- deeds of conveyance,
receipts
 Handwriting

• Bibliotics
• Science of writing analysis
• Study of documents & writing materials to determine
its genuineness and authorship
• Experts on this is called bibliotist, handwriting expert
or qualified question document examiner
• Graphology
• Study of handwriting for the purpose of determining
the writer’s personality, character and aptitude
 Handwriting

• Handwriting- is a complex interaction of nerves,

memory and muscular movement. It is influenced
by several factors and may be changed or
modified during the life-span of a person
 Giving a Sample of One’s Signature

• As a respondent, can you be compelled to give a

sample of your signature/handwriting for the
purpose of comparing the same to a questioned
signature? Why?
• No, because handwriting is not a mere physical
movement of one’s arms, movement of hands, but
involves one’s intelligence
• Therefore, it is a testimonial knowledge violative of the
right against self-incrimination
 Points to be Considered In Questioned
Document Examination
• Size
• Slant
• Spacing
• Proportion of the letters
• Speed & Rhythm in writing
• Shading & change in position in pen hold
• Pressure
• Penlift
• Initial & Terminal strokes
• Alignment
 Handwriting Exam Done by Comparison
with known Standards

• Two (2) types of handwriting examination

• Collected (procured) standard
• Consist of handwriting by a person suspected to have written
the questioned document
• It may be found in public or private records of the person or
from other sources
• Provided it is clear and sufficient, it is the most appropriate
standard
• 15 handwriting specimens (used as standards)
 Handwriting Exam Done by Comparison
with known Standards
• Requested standard
• Standards made by the alleged writer of the document
in question upon the request of the examiner or
persons interested in the examination
• Inasmuch as one of the characteristics of a good
exemplar is that it must be contemporaneous with the
date of the questioned document was made, the use of
the requested standards is applicable only or recently
written questioned documents, like extortion letter or
“poison” notes or letter of threat or ransom, etc.
 Assignment
• Please read & review pp.71-73 of your
book, Legal Medicine by Solis, 1988 ed.:
• Handwriting Characteristics of
• Illiterates
• Old Aged Persons and
• Disguised Writing
 Signature Forgery

• Most common activity of a questioned document

examiner
• A signature may be found on a document which
appears that a person has participated in its execution
and the person denied that he had signed it
• Such signature may be found in checks, deeds of
conveyance, anonymous letters, receipts, etc.
 Classification of Signature Forgery

1. Traced forgery-
• Outlining of a genuine signature from one
document onto another where the forger wishes
it to appear
• Traced forgery is basically drawing and
consequently lacks free natural movement
inherent in a person’s normal writing
 Ways of Achieving Traced Forgery

• The paper wherein his signature is to be copied is placed o

top of the document containing the signature
• By means of a strong light underneath, the forged signature is
traced from the genuine, either directly or lightly by a pencil
outline
• By placing the paper to receive the signature tracing
underneath the document bearing the genuine signature
and by indented outline on the underneath page, or by
interweaving the documents with carbon paper to produce
a carbon outline on the forged paper
 Classification of Signature Forgery

2. Simulated forgery
- An attempt to copy in a freehand manner the
characteristics of a genuine signature either from
memory of the signature of from a model
3. Spurious forgery
- Forger’s own handwriting wherein little or no
attempt has been made to copy the
characteristics of the genuine writing
D. IDENTIFICATION OF SKELETON

• In the identification of bones, the following

points should be determined approximately:
1. Whether remains are of human origin or not
2. Whether remains belong to a single person or not
3. Height
4. Sex
5. Race
D. IDENTIFICATION OF SKELETON

• In the identification of bones, the following

points should be determined approximately:
6. Age
7. Length of interment or length of time from date of
death
8. Presence or absence of anti-mortem or post-mortem
bone injuries
9. Congenial deformities and acquired injuries in the hard
tissues causing permanent deformities
 Identification of the Skeleton

• How to determine whether the remains are of

human origin or not:
• Size, shape and general features of the remains,
especially that of the head must be studied
• Complete lay-out of the whole bones found and
arranging them in their corresponding anatomical
places
• Presence of dental fixtures, rings on the fingers,
earrings in the case of women, hair and other
wearing apparel, together with the remains---are
strong presumption of human remains
 Identification of the Skeleton

• How to determine whether the remains comes

from a single individual or not:
• A complete lay-out of the bones on a table in their
exact locations in the human body is necessary
• Any plurality or excess of the bones after a complete
lay-out denotes that the remains belong to more
than one person
• However, congenital deformities must not be
forgotten
• The inequality in sizes, specially in the limbs may be
antemortem
 Identification of the Skeleton

• Basis of the estimate for duration of

interment:
• Presence or absence of soft tissue still adherent
to the bones
• Firmness and weight, brittleness, dryness of the
bones
• Degree of erosion of the surface of the bones
• Changes in the clothing, coffin and painting
 E. DETERMINATION OF SEX

• Legal importance of determination of Sex

Determination
• As an aid in identification
• To determine whether an individual can exercise
certain obligations vested by law on one sex only
• Marriage or the union of a man and a woman
• Rights granted by law are different to different sexes
• There are certain crimes wherein a specific sex can
only be the offender or victim
Marriage or the Union of
a Man and a Woman

• Any male of the age of 16 yrs or more, and

any female age 14 yrs or more, not under
any of the impediments mentioned in
Articles 80 to 84 may contract marriage
(Art 54, Civil Code)
 Rights granted by Law are Different to
Different Sexes

• A daughter above 21 but below 23 can not leave

the parental home without the consent of the father
or mother in whose company she lives, except to
become a wife, or when she exercises a profession
or calling, or when the father or mother has
contracted a subsequent marriage (Art 403, Civil
Code)
Certain Crimes wherein a Specific Sex Can
only be the Offender or Victim

• In Case of Prostitution
• Women who for money or profit, habitually indulge in
sexual intercourse or lascivious conduct are deemed
prostitutes (Art 202. No. 5, Revised Penal Code)
• In Adultery, the offender is a married woman
• In Concubinage, the offender is a husband
 Sex Determination

• How to determine sex:

• Social tests
• Genital tests
• Gonadal tests
• Chromosomal test
 Sex Determination

• Problems in Sex Determination

• Gonadal agenesis- testes or ovaries have never
developed
• True hermaphrodism- A state of bisexuality.
The gonads of both sexes are present which
may be separated or combined as ovotestis
 Evidences of Sex

• Presumptive Evidences
• Highly Probable Evidences of Sex
• Conclusive Evidences of Sex
 Evidences of Sex

• Presumptive Evidences
• General features & Contour of face
• +/- of hair in some parts of body
• Length of the scalp hair
• Clothes & apparel, but not in transvestite
• Figure – coke, plum
• Habit or inclination
• Voice & manner of speech
 Evidences of Sex

• Highly Probable Evidences of Sex

• Possession of vagina, uterus or penis
• Developed, large breasts in female
• Muscular development & distribution of fats
• Conclusive Evidences of Sex
• Presence of ovary in female or testis in male
 F. DETERMINATION OF AGE

• Legal importance of Determination of

Age:
• As an aid to identification
• Determination of criminal liability
• Determination of right of suffrage
• Determination of exercise of civil rights
• Determine the capacity to contract marriage
• As a requisite to certain crimes- rape, infanticide,
seduction (qualified, simple), consented abduction
 As a Requisite to Certain Crimes

• Rape
• Infanticide
• Parricide
• Seductions
• Qualified vs Simple
• Consented abduction
 Determination of the Age of Fetus

• Application of the Hess’s Rule or Haase’s

Rule
• Fetus less than 25 cm. long (Crown to feet length)
• Get the square root of the length in cm and the result is the
age of the fetus in months
• Fetus 25 cm long or more
• Divide the length of the fetus by 5, and the result is the age
of fetus in months
• Examination of the product conception
 G. IDENTIFICATION OF BLOOD AND
BLOOD STAINS

• Legal importance of the study:

1. For disputed parentage (maternity and
paternity)
a. Disputed maternity may arise
• Alleged switching of babies the nursery of the hospital
• Cases of stray children claimed by two (2) or more women
• For ownership of dead fetus or newly born child found in
the trash
b. Disputed paternity may arise
• Wife committed adultery & husband denied to be the
father of the child
 G. IDENTIFICATION OF BLOOD AND
BLOOD STAINS
2.. Circumstantial or corroborative evidence against or in favor of the
perpetrator of a crime.
E.g. “A” stabbed to death-
“B” found with blooded knife
3. Determination of cause of death
4. Determination of direction of escape of victim or assailant
5. Tapering end of blood spot is towards the direction of the moving
source of blood
6. Determination of approximate time of commission of crime
7. Determination of place of commission of crime
8. Determination of presence of certain diseases
Process of Blood Examination:
1. Determine whether the stain is due to blood
2. If due to blood, determine whether it is of human
origin or not. (Precipitin test)
3. If it is of human origin, to what group does it belong?
(A, B, AB, O)
4. Does it belong to the person in question?
5. The manner, degree and condition of the article,
which have been stained;
6. Age of stain
Pigment & Shape of Hair
Genetic factor in the Color of The Skin
Features of the Skull & Bone
Height vs Age
Height vs Age
Age Factor & Stature
Pelvis Differences in Male & Female
Skeleton Identification
The Romeo of your Life
Per Single Ejaculate
Genetic Factor in Color of the Eyes
Sex Determination
Skin Color & Heredity
Fingerprint
Fingerprint
The Cell and Organelles
Blood Types
EEG Tracings
EEG Recording
Hair & Blood Stains in Struggle
Medico-legal Documentation
Medico-legal Documentation
The Kuratong Saga
Violent Death in a Vehicular Accident
Lightning Victim
Tattoo marks of the gangleader in Guatemala
Tattoo mark of gangleader in Guatemala
Tattoo mark of gangleader in Guatemala