CASE 1:

A 19 year old female homicide victim was found in a motel room after an argument with her estranged boyfriend. She was observed at autopsy to have a bitemark on her left shoulder. The dental signature of the perpetrator was clearly evident, including some unusual dental characteristics; namely, an absent bruise where the maxillary right canine should have been, and what appeared to be five lower incisors.

Orientation photos show where the bite occurred on her shoulder. An alternate light image of the same injury is below, showing the contrasting injured tissue with uninjured tissue below the level of the epidermis.

An ultraviolet photo demonstrates the surface injury to the skin.

The biter's tooth models, depicting missing upper right canine and five lower incisors.

The comparison of the biting edges of the teeth on the bitemark occurs below. Some degree of distortion occurred during this bite as is evident by the larger bruise pattern than the acutal width of the suspect's upper arch, particularly in the bicuspid area. Additionally, this bite was made through clothing and on a curved surface. Even with some stretching of the skin under biting pressure, one can easily visualize the unique features of the biter's teeth and the dental signature on the skin.