What is Identification?

o An identifying or being identified;

o Something that identifies;
o The conformity or differences between a model and reality with regard to certain
variables and parameters. A model is “identified” if all of its equations are identified.

What is Personal Identification?

Personal identification is defined as establishing the identity of an individual. The need for
personal identification arises in natural mass disasters like earth quakes, tsunamis, landslides,
floods etc.,body
when the and isinhighly
man-made disastersorsuch
decomposed as terroristtoattacks,
dismembered bomb conceal
deliberately blasts, mass murders,
the identity of and
the in cases
individual.

Types of Personal Identification

Personal
completeidentification
or partial. is a method of determination of individuality or recognition of a person. It may be

1. Complete identification means the absolute fixation of individuality. Absolute personal

identification is essential broadly in the fields like, Forensic applications, Medical

purposes, Legal purposes and Civilian applications.

2. Partial identification is ascertainment of only some facts of identity of a person while

others remain unknown.

Evolution of Personal Identification

Evolution of scientific person identification dates back in 1883, when Alphonse Bertillon, a

French police officer and expert criminologist introduced the system of recording a detailed
physical description (known as "portrait parle") including precise body measurements

(anthropometry) of a subject, as data for identification. It is based on the principle that

measurements of various
two persons show parts of humaninbody
same measurements do not alter
all respects. after the
The system is adult age (21 years) and that no

therefore applicable toadults only. It consists of registration of indiv-

idual characteristics under the following fourheads:

a) Descriptive Data like color of hair, eyes, complexion, shape of nose,

ears, chin, color ofleft iris, etc.

b) Bodily Marks like moles, scars, tattoo marks, etc.

c) Bodily Measurements like standing and sitting heights, length and

breadth of the head,breadth of the face, length of the right ear, span of

the outstretched arms, length of the leftfoot, length of the left middle

finger, length of the left little finger, length of the leftforearm and

hand.

d) Photograph of the full face and right profile.

Bertillon's method of scientific indexing and filling of the physical descr-

iptions of a person forthe purpose of his future identification suffers from

the following drawbacks: (i) It is applicableto the adults only and ide-

ntification of children is not possible, (ii) Personal factor inmeasu-

rements introduces many errors making absolute identification impos-

sible, (iii) Thesystem requires delicate instruments and well trained ope-

rators, (iv) Photographs in themselvesare not quite reliable as a means of

identification unless minute details are considered.

The Importance of Personal Identification

Identification is essential in both civil and criminal cases in living per-

sons (cases like divorce,missing person, impersonation, criminal

abortion, etc.) and the dead (identifying an individualwho is a victim of

explosion, bomb blast injuries, etc.) .

What is Corpus delicti?

Latin for the “body of the crime” It is the legal term used to

describe/physical/or materialevidence that a crime has been committed

such as the corpse of a murder victim or the cleaned ofa torched building. It

is used to refer to the underlying principle that, without evidence of a crime

having been committed, it would be unjust to convict someone.

Corpus delicti is a legal term which often turns up in murder cases. In

murder case, the mainevidence is generally the corpse. Many people

believe corpus refers to the murder victim‟scorpse, and in fact, it is this

sense in which many people use it today, though the correct meaningof the

term is “aggregate material circumstances constituting the evidence of an

offense” .

Corpus delicti is discuss here, because identification of the dead body is one

of its essential parts.Generally speaking, in a murder case, the sentence is

not passed until the corpus delicti is fullyestablished. This includes a

positive identification of the dead. This is quite reasonable asothe-

rwise an innocent person may be wrongly prosecuted for the murder of

someone who wasactually alive. A mutilated, putrefied, or an uniden-

tified and unclaimed body may be used byunscrupulous persons to bring

a false charge of murder against someone. However, there is nolaw that

a sentence cannot be passed without the corpus delicti. It is merely a gui-

deline for thecourts. Murderers are usually under the false impression

that without the corpus delicti, the