Forensic Dentistry, Second Edition

Future of Forensic dentistry 409

•    In a minimum of one of these cases the dentist must have been

the primary investigator of the bitemark and have performed the

documentation of the evidence

•   The remaining cases can be identification, bitemark, malpractice,

personal injury, human abuse, peer review cases, or other cases of

forensic dental interest

•   In a minimum of 2 of the 25 cases the applicant must have provided

sworn testimony

•   350 points for other designated forensic dental activities

The requirements for human identification cases are logical and provide
sufficient experience for dentists to become proficient in managing those
cases. However, the current requirements allow a forensic dentist to become
ABFO board certified and independently participate in criminal bitemark
cases, make analyses, provide reports, and testify in trials as an expert
witness after having been the primary investigator in as few as one previous
bitemark case. Additionally, the requirements for giving sworn testimony
do not mandate that even one of the two required be given in a bitemark
case. Potentially, a newly board-certified forensic odontologist can appear
in court to testify in only the second bitemark case for which he or she is
the primary investigator. He or she would be testifying to material that may
influence a jury that has the ability to sentence a person to punishments that
include loss of liberty and, in federal courts and some state courts, death.
As stated in Chapter 14, the authors and editors are of the opinion that the
current requirements do not provide or ensure a level of experience in bite-
mark analysis, bitemark case management, and expert witness testimony to
justify this level of responsibility. The ABFO certification requirements for
bitemark cases should be made more rigorous, and there should be a proba-
tion period for new diplomates during which their bitemark case manage-
ment should be in conjunction with one or more forensic odontologists with
more experience.
Currently boarded forensic odontologists must be tested for proficiency
in all phases of forensic dentistry in a manner that realistically tests their
knowledge and skill and periodically be retested to ensure that they are
remaining current and proficient.

18.4 The Way Forward

In this book the editors and contributing authors have attempted to criti-

cally and objectively examine the disciplines of forensic identification sci-

ence, especially forensic dentistry. The above-mentioned “causes” of the past

have manifested a present forensic odontology that can only be classified as a