Stature and Build

Stature and build are the important components of personal identification in forensic casework. Estimating stature and build is thus fundamental in the evaluation of dismembered and skeletal remains. Information about individuals' stature provides insight into various features of a population including nutrition, fitness, well-being, and genetics. Anatomically, stature is the composite of the linear dimensions of the skull, vertebral column, pelvis, and lower limbs. These linear relationships are well established. Stature can be estimated from various bones of the body such as long bones, sternum, scapula, vertebral column, and pelvis, as well as the smaller bones of the hand and foot. This makes it possible for forensic scientists to determine the stature of a victim based on dismembered or fragmentary body parts. In such cases, estimation of stature is an important step in establishing the identity of an individual. This article describes methods of stature estimation, including methods for estimating the stature of crime victims and victims of mass disasters. Complicating factors such as age, secular trends, population and individual variations, limb asymmetry, diurnal variation, and measurement error in stature estimation are also described in this article.