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Bolt Cutter Blade's Imprint in Toolmarks Examination |
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| Authors: | Nikolai Volkov M.D. Nir Finkelstein B.Sc. Yehuda Novoselsky B.Sc. Tsadok Tsach M.Sc. |
| Affiliation: | 1. Scientific Officers Toolmarks and Materials Laboratory, Division of Identification and Forensic Science, Israel Police Headquarters, Jerusalem, Israel;2. Firearms Toolmarks Examiner and Quality Assurance Officer, Division of Identification and Forensic Science, Israel Police Headquarters, Jerusalem, Israel Additional information and reprint requests: Nir Finkelstein, B.Sc. Firearms Toolmarks Examiner and Quality Assurance Officer Division of Identification and Forensic Science Israel Police Headquarters Jerusalem, Israel E-mail: nirf7@walla.co.il |
| Abstract: | Bolt cutters are known as cutting tools which are used for cutting hard objects and materials, such as padlocks and bars. Bolt cutter blades leave their imprint on the cut objects. When receiving a cut object from a crime scene, forensic toolmarks examiners can determine whether the suspected cutting tool was used in a specific crime or not based on class characteristic marks and individual marks that the bolt cutter blades leave on the cut object. The paper presents preliminary results of a study on ten bolt cutters and suggests a quick preliminary examination—the comparison between the blade thickness and the width of the imprint left by the tool on the cut object. Based on the comparison result, if there is not a match, the examiner can eliminate the feasibility of the use of the suspected cutting tool in a specific crime. This examination simplifies and accelerates the comparison procedure. |
| Keywords: | forensic science toolmarks cutting tool bolt cutter center cut blades point-to-point blades criminalistics |