Shoeprints

1. Shoeprints

2. History • Earliest use of shoe prints was in 1786 in Scotland • Used to discover the murderer of a young girl • Footprints were found leaving her cottage • An officer took a rough cast – compared the cast against boots of individuals at a funeral

3. Footprints • Bottom of feet and toes have prints just like on your fingers • Can be used to link you to a crime scene (if barefoot) • Footprint database has been created • FYI – Air Force takes each soldiers footprint – more likely to be found at a crash site

4. Parts of the foot • Ball - Portion of the outsole beneath the fleshy part of the foot just back of the toes • Heel - The rear-most region of the outsole, sometimes raised and sometimes a separately constructed component • Arch - The portion of the outsole beneath the arched bony framework of the foot extending from the heel forward to the toes

6. Barefoot Morphology • Based on the belief that individuals have unique patterns to the weight-bearing part of the foot • No two people have the same foot shape

7. Basic Foot Types • Normal – normal arch – imprint shows a flare but heel and forefoot are connected by a wide band • Flat – low arch – leaves a nearly complete imprint • High – high arch – very narrow band connecting forefoot and heel

10. Shoe Parts • Upper  holds foot securely in place • Midsole  cushion that cradles the foot • Outsole  bottom of the shoe (protection and traction)

12. Class Characteristics • Characteristics that repeat during the manufacturing process and are shared by one or more shoes. These include: size, design/pattern and mold characteristics. • Class characteristics reduce the number of shoes from every shoe in the world to a group of similar shoes

13. Individual Characteristics • Unique, accidental, random damage on the outsole that is the result of its use and wear. • These nicks and scratches are in the outsole accidentally and in a completely random shape, orientation and position. • Two types: • Damage characteristics • Temporary characteristics

14. Damage Characteristics • Characteristics associated with random cuts, gouges, etc. made to the outsole during the wearing or before molding • Ex: molding inconsistencies, cutting problems, bubbles found in the mold

15. Temporary Characteristics • Marks that result from foreign debris or substances becoming attached to the outsole • Ex: rocks, gum, tape

16. Wear • The continual changing of class characteristics and certain accidental characteristics, resulting in individual features • Wear patterns  patterns acquired in or on an object as a result of normal usage • Determined by  weight, gait, how they use and wear shoes

17. Shoeprint Comparison • Examination and comparison of a shoeprint is made up of 3 critical parts: • Physical characteristics of the outsoles • Manufacturing techniques of the known shoe • Wearing of the shoe

18. To Make It Valid… • There is no established minimum number of characteristics that must match to prove a relationship • Positive ID is based on: • Level of expertise of examiner • Quality and clarity of characteristics • Uniqueness and significance of the characteristics

21. Shoeprint Evidence • When collected and preserved properly, footwear can provide: • Type • Make • Description • Approximate size • The number of suspects • The path through and away from the crime scene • The involvement of the evidence • The events that occurred during the crime

23. What Can Be Told… • Theoretically, a footprint or set of footprints can tell you… • Relative height of the individual • Shoe size • Stride length • Speed at which person was walking/running • Individual characteristics – limp, cane,…

24. SICAR • Shoeprint Image Capture and Retrieval – shoeprint database