Question

individual vs. class characteristics
evidence that can be attributed to a single source (e.g., fingerprints, dna).
evidence that can be correlated only to a group.
part a

description	individual or class?

|1. brown hair|
|2. tire tread marks|
|3. dna extracted from red hair|
|4. fitting together broken pieces of a glass bottle|
|4. blood typing (blood type a, b, ab)|
|5. fibers|
|6. shoe impression (worn down shoe)|
|7. handwriting characteristics|
part b decide if the evidence is individual or class evidence and explain why it belongs to this group.

1. some blond hairs were found on the gloves of a suspected kidnapper who has brown hair. would they be considered class or individual evidence?

class individual
explain

Explanation:

1. Brown hair: Many people have brown hair, so it can only be correlated to a group of people with brown hair. Thus, it is class evidence.
2. Tire tread marks: Multiple tires can have the same tread pattern, so it is class evidence as it can be associated with a group of tires with that pattern.
3. DNA extracted from red hair: DNA is unique to an individual (except identical twins), so it is individual evidence.
4. Fitting together broken pieces of a glass bottle: The unique break - pattern makes it possible to attribute it to a single bottle, so it is individual evidence.
5. Blood typing (Blood type A, B, AB): There are many people with each blood type, so it is class evidence as it can only be related to a group of people with the same blood type.
6. Fibers: Many items can have the same type of fibers, so it is class evidence as it can be associated with a group of items made with those fibers.
7. Shoe impression (worn - down shoe): While some wear - patterns can be unique, in general, many shoes can have similar wear - down patterns, so it is class evidence. For the part B question about blond hairs on a suspect's gloves: Blond hair is a common hair color among a group of people. Just the color of the hair found on the gloves does not uniquely identify an individual. So, it is class evidence.

Answer:

1. Class
2. Class
3. Individual
4. Individual
5. Class
6. Class
7. Class

Part B: Class. Blond hair color is common among a group of people and does not uniquely identify an individual.