April 2000 Volume 2 Number
2
Book Review
Craniofacial Identification in Forensic
Medicine
Edited by John G. Clement and David L. Ranson
Oxford University Press, New York, 1998
ISBN 0-340-60759-9
Complemented by good photographs,
graphics, and up-to-date references, Craniofacial Identification
in Forensic Medicine carries the reader from cradle to grave
with regard to medico-legal death investigations and facial reconstructions.
The bulk of this textbook describes the methods used in determining
the identity and physiognomy of deceased and missing persons
from cranial features that give shape to the face. It is accompanied
by an examination of techniques employed in crime scene evaluation
and collection. Beyond a discussion of laboratory and investigative
work, the book describes how to communicate scientific findings
to the police, courts, and general public.
The circumstances that present
challenges in the field of forensic identification require application
of a variety of sciences. The interplay of forensic pathology
and the disciplines associated with human identification is emphasized
in Part 1.
Criminal investigative techniques
from the crime scene to the laboratory, including descriptions
of photographic methodology, superimposition, and facial approximation,
are explored in Part 2. Techniques involved in the two- and three-dimensional
modeling of skeletal features are clearly presented, as is acknowledgment
of their limitations.
Part 3 of Craniofacial
Identification in Forensic Medicine provides a discussion
of the biological determinants of facial development and elaborates
on age-related changes to the facial features.
The final section of the
text is devoted to medico-legal issues and includes an article
on forensic art by William Haglund, forensic anthropologist and
author of Forensic Taphonomy (CRC Press, Boca Raton, Florida,
1998, ISBN 0-8-493-94341). Haglund takes a practical approach
in his discussion of face building, its role in police work,
and its impact in the general community. David Ranson's article
on the presentation of evidence adds the perspective that an
effective delivery of expert testimony in court is the final
stage in a process beginning with and founded upon the initial
investigation. Reflecting shades of Sherlock Holmes, Ranson recommends
a magnifying glass as standard investigative equipment. The final
paper in Part 4, an analysis of death investigations and the
justice system by Ian Freckelton, puts English and Australian
case law on stage with a well-referenced discussion of legal
issues surrounding expert testimony.
Rounding out the 306-page
book are the Appendices, which contain procedures and equipment
for crime scene investigations and evidence packaging, dental
charts and listings of chronological tooth development, guidelines
for the radiography of cranial material, and report-writing checklists.
For those interested in the
opinions and procedures of well-respected professionals in forensic
medicine, this text is a recommended and informative read.
Reviewed by: |
C. Michael Bowers |
|
Ventura County Medical Examiner's
Office |
|
Ventura, California |
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FORENSIC SCIENCE COMMUNICATIONS APRIL 2000 VOLUME
2 NUMBER 2
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