Bite Mark Analysis: The Unreliable Form of Dental Forensics
Date: July 17, 2013Category: Author: Infinity Dental Web
The Associated Press released a story last month that revealed the appalling history behind a branch of forensic dentistry called ‘bike mark analysis.‘ The idea behind the method is that bite marks are like fingerprints and can be traced back to individuals.
“An analyst will study a bite, match it back to a particular set of teeth, and testify that those were the only teeth in the whole wide world that could’ve delivered that particular bite.” —Slate.com
The shocking truth behind this sketchy practice is that more than 24 men have been charged with serious allegations from murder to rape since 2000 based on falsely interpreted human bite marks. Though these men have been released from prison since, many of them were incarcerated for long periods of time — even decades.
Fortunately, the practice of ‘bite mark analysis’ in determining evidence in a criminal case may be eliminated soon depending upon a New York judge’s ruling. The fact is, a small group of forensic dentists are conducting bite mark analyses on these victims, and their conclusions become the determining factor in many cases. But “there is no scientific proof that teeth can be matched definitively to a bite into human skin,” stated in the AP article.
The American Dental Association does not recognize the practice of ‘bite mark analysis’ at all. For the FBI, DNA testing is more reliable and carries heavier weight. In fact, the FBI doesn’t use the method at all. Supporters of bite mark analysis however argue that child murderers have been convicted using this method, as well as infamous serial killer Ted Bundy.
Bite mark analysis became famous with Ted Bundy, who killed dozens of females between 1973 and 1978. Finally Bundy was arrested in Florida. A dentist from Coral Cables took photographs of his upper and lower teeth and gums, noting their uneven pattern. Later on, photographs of Lisa Levy’s corpse ( one of Bundy’s last victims) revealed a unique bite mark on her buttock. In conjunction with one eyewitness testimony, the bite mark analysis was used to convict Bundy and sentence him to the electric chair. People across the country were relieved, and we had bite mark analysis to be thankful for.
But there’s still the matter of the over two dozen people who had been falsely accused of crimes based on bite mark analysis evidence. One of these people was Ray Krone, who was convicted of killing a Phoenix bartender and was sentenced to 21 years in prison. He became nick-named the ‘Snaggle-Tooth Killer’ when his supposed bite marks were found on a styrofoam cup matching the bite marks left on the victim’s body. Krone was convicted in 1992 and won a re-trial in 1996 where he was convicted based upon the evidence found by an expert ‘bite mark analyst.’ It wasn’t until 2002 until Krone was released. DNA testing had proved the saliva and blood at the scene of the crime did not match Krone’s but that of a convicted rapist.
There are countless others: Willie Jackson in Louisiana was wrongly incarcerated for 16 long years after being falsely accused of rape. Calvin Washington in Texas was falsely accused of murder and imprisoned for 13 years before DNA testing revealed his innocence. James O’Donnell in New York was wrongly incarcerated for sodomy for two years before the DNA testing results were released. And Dan Young in Illinois spent 12 years in prison before he was released on a false charge of murder.
I think we can all agree on this much: that bite mark analysis has proved unreliable. What needs to be realized is that because a famous case like that of Ted Bundy’s was resolved using this method of forensic dentistry does not mean it should be used in every instance when the innocence or guilt of a person is being determined.
Dr. Mike Malone and his team practice expert cosmetic dentistry in Lafayette, LA. Dr. Malone is the former president and current accredited member of the American Academy of Cosmetic Dentistry. He is also the official Cosmetic Dentist of the Miss Louisiana USA and Miss Louisiana Teen USA pageants. Check out his website for more information.
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Dr. Mike: As much as we have “exulted” the term forensic science, it still has its imperfections. If one digs deeply enough, one could find examples of when forensic science stumbled and even tripped over “junk science” offered as physical evidence.
Don Penven
CSI TECH Blog