1.1 The Garden of Eden
Vale wrote in 2005, “It is always tempting to suggest that the history of bitemark evidence [and hence forensic dentistry] began with the eating of forbidden fruit in the Garden of Eden.”
Temptation now, as then, is genuine. However, forensic odontologists and court reporters were very rare at that time; there is no dependable record of the event, analysis, comparisons, or testimony.
Moreover, there were a limited number of suspects in this closed-population case and the suspects reportedly confessed.
1.2 Aggripina the Younger—Lollia Paulina
A later, but still early, and better-documented reference to the use of teeth for identification occurred during the first century CE. Agrippina the Younger, fourth wife of Emperor Claudius I and the ambitious mother by a previous marriage of Nero, contracted for the death of Lollia Paulina. To ensure that the contract was accurately concluded, Agrippina had Paulina’s head brought to her. The confirmation of identification was made based on dental misalignments and other peculiarities.
1.3 Jai Chand, Last Raja of Kanauji
In 1193, a great Indian monarchy was destroyed when Muhammad’s army established the seat of his empire at Delhi. A significant battle during the invasion of the sacred city of Kanauji involved the sacking of the holy shrines of Muttra, the birthplace of Krishna, an important site in the Hindu religion.
During the siege, Jai Chand, the Raja of Kanauji, was murdered after being taken prisoner and was identified by his false teeth when he was found among those slain.
1.4 The Earl of Shrewsbury
The Earl of Shrewsbury was killed in the battle of Castillon in 1453. His herald was able to identify him by his teeth.
1.5 Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy
After inheriting additional lands, Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, decided to create an independent state between France and Germany. He was killed in the battle of Nancy in 1477 while trying to accomplish the task. The duke’s page was able to identify him according to his dentition, as he had lost some teeth in a fall years previously.
1.6 Peter Halket
During the French and Indian Wars Peter Halket was killed in a battle near Fort Duquesne in 1758. The fort was later captured by British General Forbes, who arranged to have the dead buried prior to leaving for Philadelphia. Three years later, a Native American who had fought in the battle remembered Officer Halket and was able to lead Halket’s son to the area where he was killed during the battle. The son was able to recognize his father’s skeleton by an artificial tooth.
1.7 Dr. Joseph Warren—Paul Revere
In Boston in 1776, at the battle for Breed’s Hill (often misidentified as Bunker Hill), Dr. Joseph Warren was killed. His face was unrecognizable as he suffered a fatal head wound, a rif le ball to the left side of his face. Paul Revere, silversmith and dentist, identified the decaying body
of Dr. Warren by the small denture that he had fabricated for him. The denture was carved in ivory and was held in place by silver wires. The identification made it possible to bury Dr. Warren with full military honors on April 8, 1776.
1.8 Janet McAlister—Dr. Pattison
The earliest known use of a dentist as an expert witness in court occurred in 1814 in the case of a Janet McAlister in Scotland. In His Majesty’s Advocate vs. Pattison et al., the High Court in Edinburgh charged a lecturer of anatomy and two of his students for the violation of Mrs. McAlister’s grave.
Mrs. McAlister had died at the age of forty years. The night after her burial, the trio was alleged to have moved her body to the nearby College Street Medical School. Mrs. McAlister’s husband gave artificial teeth worn by his wife to a dentist, Dr. James Alexander, who was able to fit the dentures into 14 Forensic dentistry the skull. The presence of a “pivot tooth” was helpful in defining his opinion.
The defense testimony stated the dentures could be “fitted to any skull” and, therefore, did not fit just this skull. The jury returned a verdict of not guilty.
1.9 Guerin
Three years after the disappearance in 1829 of a Mr. Guerin, a new tenant discovered a human skeleton buried in the basement. Guerin’s identification was accomplished by the abrasions caused by clay pipes he had a habit of using when smoking. The abrasive marks in the dentition were unique and were similarly described by multiple witnesses.
1.10 Caroline Walsh
An elderly Caroline Walsh moved in with a young Irish married couple in 1831. She was never seen again. Later, the son of the married couple accused them of murder, stating that he saw his mother leave the home with something heavy and large in a bag. A woman fitting the description of the missing woman was found on the streets in a “squalid” condition and stated her name was Caroline Walsh. She was hospitalized and subsequently died.
It was pointed out in the trial that the missing Caroline Walsh had perfect teeth. This Caroline Walsh had lost her front teeth many years previously. The remains of the missing Mrs. Walsh were never found, but the accused were convicted.
1.11 Louis XVII
Louis XVII died in prison in Paris in 1795 at the age of ten years two months from advanced tuberculosis of the lymph nodes (scrofula). In 1816, a plan to erect a monument to the young prince generated rumors that he was still alive, now thirty-one years of age, and that another child had been buried in his place. The story did not end there. In 1846, during the reconstruction of a church, a lead coffin containing the skeleton of a child was found near a side entrance. Dr. Milicent, a physician, examined the bones and concluded the child had died of bad health and neglect. Another physician, Dr. Recamier, examined the bones and said they were those of an individual, fifteen or sixteen years of age. All twenty-eight teeth were present and the third molars could be seen. Dr. Recamier’s age assessment was accepted and the body was reinterred in an unmarked place. The quest for the Dauphin continued and in 1897, a relative of Louis XVII gained permission to again search for the coffin.
A coffin was found that contained the skeleton of a young male. Based on tooth development, three experts aged the remains at between sixteen years plus and eighteen years plus. It was concluded the remains were not those of the Dauphin. These cases represent, perhaps, the first cases of forensic dental age estimation.
1.12 Dr. John Webster—Dr. George Parkman
Dr. George Parkman, a respected professor at Harvard University, failed to return from dinner on November 23, 1849. Dr. Parkman was a physician, but also a real estate speculator and moneylender. He was sixty-four years of age and a man of very regular habits. When he failed to appear as expected, suspicion of foul play fell on his colleague, John White Webster, a professor of chemistry at the same university. Dr. Webster had been behaving somewhat irregularly of late, and it was known that he owed Dr. Parkman a considerable sum of money. His laboratory was searched and, in a tea chest, human remains were found. In a nearby assay furnace fragments of a lower jawbone, three blocks of artificial teeth in porcelain, and melted gold were also found. At Webster’s trial for murder, Dr. Nathan Cooley Keep, a dentist , identified the teeth as part of
an upper and lower denture he had made for Dr. Parkman three years earlier.
He recalled the circumstances of the denture’s construction in exact detail, as Parkman had been anxious about having the dentures ready for the opening of a new medical college at which he was to give a speech. The day before the event, when some of the bottom teeth collapsed during the baking process, Dr. Keep and his assistant worked through the night and fitted the denture some thirty minutes before the ceremony. Dr. Parkman returned in a short time and complained that the lower cramped his tongue. An adjustment was made by grinding away portions of the inside of the lower denture. Dr. Keep fit portions of the lower denture to models he had retained in the production of it and showed the court where he had done the grinding adjustment of the lower denture. The dental evidence was overwhelming and Webster was found guilty and hanged. The Parkman–Webster case represents the first case of a dentist giving expert testimony in courts in the United States.
1.13 William I, the Conqueror
Struck by a stray arrow in France in 1089, William the Conqueror fell from his horse and died at the age of forty-four. In 1868, his tomb was opened. All who were present stated the bones and teeth were in “good condition as if the King had died only yesterday, instead of 768 years ago.”
he durability and 16 Forensic dentistry longevity of teeth enable forensic dentists to make identifications even when bodies are severely damaged or long buried.
1.14 Misidentification Corrected
In the United States, in 1869, two women victims of a boat fire on the Ohio River were subsequently returned to Philadelphia, where one of the bodies was misidentified. The family dentist later examined the bodies and was able to correctly identify them.
1.15 A. I. Robinson—His Mistress
Although well respected within the community, in 1870, a Mr. A. I. Robinson was suspected of murdering his mistress. Five distinct bitemarks were found on her arm, which clearly showed individual tooth marks. An investigating dentist actually bit the arm of the deceased and later had Robinson bite his (the dentist’s) arm to make comparisons. The bitemark on the body showed that five teeth in the maxillary arch caused the mark. One suspect had a full complement of teeth and was excluded. Mr. Robinson had five maxillary front teeth but at trial was found not guilty.
1.16 Winfield Goss—Mr. Udderzook
In 1873 outside of Baltimore, Maryland, a body was found in the ashes of a burned cottage. The body was tentatively identified as Winfield S. Gross, who was known to have used the cottage for his chemistry experiments.
His widow and ten witnesses were certain that the body was that of Gross.
Mr. Gross had insured himself for $25,000 eight days prior to the fire. The insurance companies refused to pay the widow’s claim. A dental consultation was then requested. Mrs. Gross stated that “there were no artificial teeth to her knowledge and he never complained of pain or decayed teeth. No dentist saw him during the time we lived together.” The remains were examined at the Baltimore College of Dental Surgery, where Dr. F. J. S. Gorgas gave a full and detailed description of the jaws and the remaining teeth. There were two teeth in the upper jaw and some misalignment in the lower jaw. These statements were at variance from those of Mrs. Gross and other witnesses. The insurance company thus claimed at trial that the remains were not those of Mr. Gross. The verdict of the jury, however, was in favor of Mrs. Gross. The insurance companies appealed the verdict. Within a month, the body of a murdered man was discovered in Pennsylvania. Mrs. Gross’s brother-in-law, a Mr. Udderzook, had been seen traveling in Pennsylvania with an unnamed friend. When the body was examined, the height and other characteristics were similar to Mr. Gross’s. The teeth were in good shape and were well preserved. Ultimately, Udderzook was charged and prosecuted for the murder of Gross. He was found guilty and executed in 1874.
We do not know the fate of Mrs. Gross.
1.17 John Wilkes Booth, 1865 and Again in 1893
After shooting President Lincoln on April 14, 1865, John Wilkes Booth escaped and took final refuge in a barn on a farm in Virginia. The U.S. Calvary located him there on April 26. They surrounded the barn and set it on fire.
Booth exited, was shot, and died at the scene. In later years, it was rumored that he had somehow escaped, was alive, and living abroad. Because of this rumor, his body was disinterred and examined in 1893. The family could not visually identify the body, but the family’s dentist was able to recognize his work as well as a peculiar “formation” of the jaw that he had noted in his records during a dental visit for the placement of a filling.
1.18 Dr. Oscar Amoëdo—The Bazar de la Charite, 1898
Considered by many to be the father of forensic odontology, Dr. Oscar Amoedo was born in Matanzas, Cuba, in 1863. He began his studies at the University of Cuba, continued at New York Dental College, and then returned to Cuba in 1888. He was sent as a delegate to the International Dental Congress in Paris in 1889. Paris was very appealing to him and he decided to stay. He became a dental instructor and teacher at the Ecole Odontotechnique de Paris in 1890 and rose to the rank of professor, writing 120 scientific articles on many topics. A tragic fire at a charity event, the Bazar de la Charité, stimulated his interest in dental identification and the field of forensic odontology. Amoedo was not involved in the postfire identifications, but knew and interviewed many who were. His thesis to the faculty of medicine , entitled L’Art Dentaire en Medicine Legale, earned him a doctorate and served as the basis for his book by the same name, the first comprehensive text on forensic odontology.
He lectured and worked in the field until 1936, finally stopping at the age of seventy-three. His accounts of the identifications following the Bazar de la Charite were given in a paper at the Dental Section of the International Medical Congress of Moscow and published in English in 1897, one year before the book was published. In that paper he revealed that neither a dentist nor physician generated the idea of dental identification: “It was then that M. Albert Hans, the Paraguay Consul, 18 Forensic dentistry conceived the idea of calling the dentists who had given their services to the victims. His counsel was followed, and with excellent results. In the face of the powerlessness of the legal doctors, since all ordinary signs of identification had disappeared, our confreres were appealed to … Drs. Burt, Brault, Davenport, Ducourneau, Godon, and some others.”18
1.19 Strenuous Cross-Examination, 1898
In 1898, a girl was found dead. A local dentist described the state of her mouth and teeth. A missing girl’s family dentist in another town was located.
The body was disinterred and the dentist was able to identify his work. The dentist complained about how strenuously and thoroughly the defense attorney grilled him while he was on the witness stand.
Many dentists still today dread having to go into courts of law and give sworn testimony.
1.20 Iroquois Theatre—Chicago, 1903
In 1903, the Iroquois Theatre in Chicago burned and 602 of the 1,842 patrons in the theatre died. The stairways had been closed and chained to prevent the “lower-class ticket holders” from coming downstairs. Also, the outside doors opened inward, a popular design of the day, but one that proved disastrous when frightened throngs pushed others against the doors, preventing their opening. Although no records of the identifications can be found today, Dr. Cigrand stated in his article that “hundreds” were “unmistakably identified” from their dental records.
1.21 Bites in Cheese, 1905 and 1906
In 1905 and 1906, two cases were reported concerning tooth marks left in cheese. In the 1905 case in Germany, a robber bit into the cheese then left it on a windowsill. Plaster casts of the cheese were later interpreted to be from a pipe smoker. Just such a man was found among the suspects.
The 1906 British case involved a store break-in. The dentition of a store worker fit “exactly” a cast of the cheese. The store worker was arrested, but requested in court that his mouth be examined again, revealing that he had a broken tooth, the crown was missing, leaving only the root. In spite of this apparently attempted subterfuge, he was found guilty.
1.22 Chilean-German Discord Averted, 1911 In the early 1900s, forensic odontology can be credited for the help of establishing a dental school in Chile. Residents of the small village of Caleu mistook a group of German tourists for bandits and, fearing an attack, fired upon them. In the ensuing disagreements with German officials, the German consulate in Valparaiso was set on fire. Shortly after this fire, the German litigation building in Santiago burned to the ground. A body was found in the rubble. It was first identified as the secretary to the litigation, a
Mr. William Becker, according to clothing, a wedding ring (with his wife’s initials in it), a watch, and glasses. An autopsy also identified the body as Becker’s. The German minister, however, was not satisfied. Two German 20 Forensic dentistry physicians, members of the faculty of Santiago University, performed a second autopsy. The anterior teeth were severely burned, but the posterior portion of the remaining dentition was described and charted. A stab wound to the heart was discovered. During this time, news was given that a considerable amount of money was missing from the consulate. The immediate suspect was a servant, Mr. Ezekel Tapia. A Chilean dentist was then asked by a judge in the case to examine the body and any pertinent records. As a result, the body was found to be Tapia’s, and it was believed that Mr. Becker may have murdered him, dressed him with his own clothes and personal effects, and burned the anterior portion of his face to hide the fact that the secretary had gold bridgework. A witness claimed to have seen Mr. Becker during the night after the fire in Santiago. The judge in the case asked a Chilean dentist,
Dr. Guillermo Valenzuela Basterra, to review the dental facts of the case.
Mr. Becker’s dentist, Dr. Dennis Lay, had placed anterior gold and platinum fillings for Mr. Becker, and removed five posterior teeth. He shared these records with Dr. Valenzuela. The findings were inconsistent with those of the remains found in the fire. Law enforcement officials were alerted and the secretary was captured at a border crossing, trying to escape into Argentina. It is ironic that Mr. Becker was able to travel from Santiago into the mountains by wearing dark glasses and a handkerchief, hiding his identity by simulating a toothache. Mr. Becker was found guilty of multiple crimes and executed on July 5, 1910. This eased the problems between Chile and Germany, and the relationship between the two nations was repaired. To show its gratitude, the government of Chile asked Dr. Valenzuela what he most desired as a form of
reward. Dr. Valenzuela asked to see the long-planned dental school building completed. The wish was granted and the school was built two years later.
1.23 Tooth Numbering Systems and Denture Marking
Dr. Zsigmondy published a method of numbering teeth in 1861. He numbered permanent teeth from one to eight from the anterior midline and distinguished the quadrants by placing the numbers in segments of a cross.
Deciduous teeth were designated with Roman numerals. Palmer later made similar proposals in 1891.
In 1883, Dr. Cunningham proposed numbering all teeth from one to thirty-two. Numbering the teeth in this manner, starting with the upper-right third molar (1) and ending with the lower-right third molar (32), is commonly known as the universal system and is widely used in the United States. In this system the deciduous teeth are lettered from A to T in the same pattern. Most of the rest of the world uses the Federation Dentaire Internationale (FDI) numbering system, which is similar to the system proposed by Dr. Zsigmondy. Denture marking to assist in identification
was first proposed by Cunningham.
1.24 John Haig—Denture-Aided Identification, England
Dr. Keith Simpson describes a most interesting case in which dentures were useful for the identification of a body placed in an acid bath. A wealthy widow, living in a hotel in England, went out for an afternoon with a John Haig, who lived in the same hotel. She was never seen again. Investigation of Mr. Haig showed he had a police record and led to a two-story shed he used for what he called “experiments.” Some interesting things were found: two carboys of sulfuric acid, papers relating to five other individuals who had disappeared, a pistol, and blood spatter
on a wall from a possible shooting. During his interrogation, Haig admitted killing the widow and said he destroyed her body in acid. After a fourth sifting of a pile of black slush found behind the shed, a set of upper and lower dentures was found. The dentures were identified by the widow’s dentist. It was fortunate in the case that Mr. Haig admitted to the murder, as the dentures were made totally of acrylic resin and would have dissolved completely, given enough time.
1.25 Denture Tooth-Aided Identification—Australia
In the Carron murder case in Australia, the victim was thoroughly incinerated, but artificial denture teeth of a type known as diatoric were found.
A dentist was able to identify the individual by the use of this particular type of denture teeth.
1.26 Facial Reconstruction—Kollman and
Buchley, Then Gatliff Kollman and Buchley did the first scientific work in facial reconstruction.
They proposed twenty-three points of skin thickness measurements, which they provided in the form of a table. Soft materials were then used to sculpt the face, a technique that has been widely used and is still used with modifications today.
Although computerized methods are becoming more common, Betty Pat Gatliff of Oklahoma has taught many forensic artists and a significant number of forensic dentists facial reconstruction techniques.
She also contributed chapters to the excellent and comprehensive text on forensic art published in 2001 by Karen Taylor.
1.27 Adolf Hitler
After the end of World War II, rumors were rampant that Adolf Hitler had escaped with his wife, Eva Braun. They had in fact died together in 1945, but 22 Forensic dentistry their bodies had been burned and then buried in secret by Russian soldiers.
Due to a lack of antemortem and postmortem records, it was a challenge to dispel the rumors. Finally, pieces of Hitler’s jaw were found that showed remnants of a bridge, as well as unusual forms of reconstruction, and evidence of periodontal disease. Hitler’s identity was confirmed when the dental work matched the records kept by Hitler’s dentist, Hugo Blaschke.
1.28 Texas v. Doyle, Doyle v. Texas, 1954
Although bitemark evidence had been used earlier, the Doyle v. State case in Texas in 1954 marked the first time that this type of dental evidence was used in court in the United States.
Like in some earlier cases, Doyle, in the process of committing a burglary, allegedly left the imprint of his dentition in a partially eaten piece of cheese. The analysis of the evidence was made by having the suspect bite into another piece of cheese for the comparison.
Dr. William J. Kemp, a dentist and longtime dental examiner for the State of Texas, testified that the bites in both pieces of cheese matched.
1.29 Lee Harvey Oswald, 1963 and Again in 1981
Several years after the assassination of John F. Kennedy, an English author named Michael Eddowes raised suspicion concerning the identification of Lee Harvey Oswald. It was his belief that the body buried in 1963 in Oswald’s grave was really that of a Russian spy. To set the record straight, the body was exhumed and a positive identification of Oswald was made on October 4, 1981, with the aid of military antemortem dental records.
1.30 Other Cases
Other significant dental identification cases in recent years include those concerning the Symbionese Liberation Army (1973–1975), the Los Angeles police shootout (1974), Jonestown in Guyana (1978), the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon (2001), and Hurricanes Katrina and Rita (2005).
1.31 Summary
There is a defining constant found in the historical cases discussed above: forensic odontologists were involved in helping to resolve difficult questions and bring closure to the families of the victims. Forensic odontologists history of Forensic dentistry will continue to make these types of valuable contributions to society and forensic science.
There are several historical cases of interest in the area of bitemark analysis. That historical information will be discussed in more detail.
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