Bitemarks 347
twist, flex, and bend. The force, duration, volume of tissue bitten, area of the
body bitten, and the strength of the biter will all have an effect on the nature
of the bitemark. Considering just one of these dynamics, the area of the body
bitten, there are many possibilities as to how the bitemark will appear. A bite
on the buttocks or shoulder may be less distorted than one on an arm, breast,
or stomach. There will always be some level of distortion in any bitemark left
on skin. The responsible odontologist will accept this and explore the nature,
type, and degree of distortion.
Bitemarks on living victims change over time. The vital reaction of the
body to a compression wound will vary greatly depending upon numerous
factors, including but not limited to the features of the teeth; the force, dura-
tion, and direction; the area bitten; the volume of tissue; the type of tissue;
movement by the person bitten; and the age, skin type, and health status of
the victim. Other possible mitigating factors: Was the bite through clothing?
Did the victim struggle? Did the wound bleed? Did the bitten person live? If the
person bitten died, was the bitemark made prior to death, around the time of
death, or after death? Was the victim dark or light skinned? The biter and the
person who is bitten each present variables that will affect the nature of the
actual bite wound. These variables present challenges to bitemark interpreta-
tion, but they also offer opportunities to aid in the investigation of a crime.
If no saliva is found on or around a bite wound it may be because the
bite was through clothing. If the clothing was preserved and the area of
the bite located, the clothing may contain the saliva and hence the DNA of
the biter. Thus, the bitemark did produce the biologic evidence for a biologi-
cal (DNA) match. The distorted bite with very limited individual character-
istics, no specific dental characteristics, and only general class characteristics
may still be of value to the overall prosecution of a case. If the indentations
(a third dimension) are present in the bitemark, the victim may have been
bitten at or near the time of death, or after death, but certainly not hours
before. This specific type of evidence is not available from fingerprints or
DNA. Clinical testing has shown that bitemarks on living volunteers will
produce indentations initially, but vital reactions (swelling, wheal formation,
and subepidermal hemorrhage) will eliminate the indentations in a very
short period of time. Biting is violence and bitemarks are painful. This can be
important information for investigators and at trial. Forensic odontologists
should be aware of the potential value of the evidence that bitemarks present
beyond associating the teeth of a biter to a bitemark.
With the omnipresent variables in bitemark analysis, law enforcement
and judicial officials should not expect bitemark evidence to develop to the
same level of scientific certainty as DNA or even fingerprints. DNA and
finger prints have the advantage of both individuality and permanence. This
is not true of teeth. Teeth may move, break, wear, and be lost. Teeth may be
filled, crowned, or decorated. The questions of the uniqueness of the human