Comparing the accuracy of a photograph to actual skull morphology to classify contemporary U.S. populations into biological affinities, for forensic purposes

Forensic anthropologists, who assist law enforcement in identifying an individual, sometimes rely upon peer reviews to assist them. Photographs are the easiest manner in which to send information to colleagues; however examining the accuracy and comparability of a photograph to an actual skull is not researched in the literature today. This thesis aims to determine if I can score cranial nonmetric traits with consistency from photographs of skulls and at what level compared to a physical skull in order to estimate the ancestry of an individual. Statistical analysis following the methods of Hefner (2009) is utilized on photographs from the Harris County Institute of Forensic Sciences (HCIFS). My observations, original skull assessments and photograph assessments by the forensic anthropologists at HCIFS are compared and analyzed to determine the consistency and compatibility of a photograph versus an actual skull. This thesis highlights the importance of examining the accuracy of a photograph for comparison means and includes statistical analysis of nonmetric traits.