Question

4. At the scene of a crime, you find three patterns of blood spots. You measure the following lengths and widths for each spot: 1. Spot A pattern: Length = 4.0 mm, Width = 4.0 mm 2. Spot B pattern: Length = 3.0 mm, Width = 1.5 mm 3. Spot C pattern: Length = 5.0 mm, Width = 1.0 mm Use the formula given above to determine the angle of impact for each of these three bloodstain patterns. Which dropped from a point directly overhead? Which impacted at the sharpest angle? As a blood spatter analyst, how would you interpret and use this information? Explain.

Answer 1

Answer:

Spot A: 90 Degrees

Spot B: 30 Degrees

Spot C: 11.5(If rounded: 12) Degrees

Spot A would've been the stain that dropped from directly ahead. The bloodstain that impacted at the sharpest angle would be Spot C.

As a blood splatter analyst this information could be used to recreate the crime scene, or show a place or point where a victim or suspect would've been injured and how. Using the information provided by the calculations would assist in providing forensic information about the crime scene under investigation.

Explanation:

Spot A would be from directly ahead because 90 degrees doesn't provide any form of direction, and Spot C would be the bloodstain that impacted at the sharpest angle because the shape would be an exclamation point, and when blood travels at higher speeds it will scatter into smaller shapes, VS slow drops or speeds which leave room for thicker and fatter stains.