Location, Recovery, and Metamorphosis of Snow Impressions Hidden Beneath Subsequent Snowfall
Charles S. DeFrance & Toni Y. Payne
Abstract: A series of tests were conducted to determine if impressions in snow could be recovered from beneath subsequent snowfall. Various techniques were evaluated to determine which were most successful in preserving the detail of the original impression. It was found that a significant level of detail could be recovered. The various techniques that were tested are discussed and the authors provide recommendations on techniques they found to be most successful, which involved the use of compressed air. The effect of snow metamorphosis on the stability of snow impressions is discussed.
PDF: Location, Recovery, and Metamorphosis of Snow Impressions Hidden Beneath Subsequent Snowfall
Evaluation of a Method for Rehydrating Desiccated Friction Ridge Skin
Leah Innocci
Abstract: A method of rehydrating mummified or desiccated tissue was evaluated by our laboratory. The rehydration method was simple to employ using the equipment and chemicals available within the laboratory. This rehydration technique provided successful results. The methodology rendered the skin pliable, durable, and provided excellent preservation of friction ridge detail.
Assessing Structured Light 3D Scanning using Artec Eva for Injury Documentation during Autopsy
Janujah Sivanandan & Eugene Liscio
Abstract: Three-dimensional (3D) scanning is gaining popularity in several forensics and medical settings. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the Artec Eva 3D scanner is appropriate for documenting bullet trajectories and better suited than photographs or manual measurements for measuring the location and size of injuries during autopsies. Eleven injury tattoos on a live participant underwent manual measurements, digital photographs, and 3D scanning with the Eva and FARO Edge ScanArm to document injury size and location. Student’s t-tests provided p-values of 0.9513 and 0.9514 for Eva and manual measurements respectively in comparison to reference measurements from the Edge ScanArm. Eva scanning was found to be the easier method to use through a scoring system that rated technical difficulty level and documentation time. The Eva was used to scan a bullet trajectory setup and the benefits of the 3D model outweighed the time taken to create it.
PDF: Assessing Structured Light 3D Scanning using Artec Eva for Injury Documentation during Autopsy
Supplemental Material: Body Animation Movie