ShoeprintsShoeprints

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

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

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

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

Basic Foot Types

1. Normal – normal arch – imprint shows a flare but heel and forefoot are connected by a wide band

2. Flat – low arch – leaves a nearly complete imprint

3. High – high arch – very narrow band connecting forefoot and heel

Shoe Parts

• Upper holds foot securely in place

• Midsole cushion that cradles the foot

• Outsole bottom of the shoe (protection and traction)

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

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 characteristicsTemporary characteristics

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

Temporary Characteristics

• Marks that result from foreign debris or substances becoming attached to the outsole

– Ex: rocks, gum, tape

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

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

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 examinerQuality and clarity of characteristicsUniqueness and significance of the

characteristics

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

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,…

SICAR

• Shoeprint Image Capture and Retrieval – shoeprint database