title: Two sources and two kinds of trace evidence: Enhancing the links between clothing, footwear and crime scene.
abstract: The body of a murdered woman was found on the planted periphery of a busy roundabout in Dundee, United Kingdom. A suspect was apprehended and his footwear yielded a similar palynological (botanical and mycological) profile to that obtained from the ground and vegetation of the crime scene, and to that of the victim's clothing. The sources of palynomorphs at the roundabout were the in situ vegetation, and macerated woody mulch which had been laid on the ground surface. The degree of rarity of individual forensic markers, the complexity of the overall profile, and the application of both botanical and mycological expertise, led to a high level of resolution in the results, enabling the exhibits to be linked to the crime scene. The suspect was convicted of murder. The interpretation of the results allowed conclusions which added to the list of essential protocols for crime scene sampling as well the requirement for advanced expertise in identification.
authors.affiliation: Department of Geography and Environment, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Elphinstone Road, Aberdeen AB24 3UF, UK; Mycology Section, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Surrey TW9 3DS, UK. Electronic address: patricia.wiltshire1@btinternet.com.
authors.forename: Patricia E J
authors.initials: PE
authors.lastname: Wiltshire
authors.affiliation: Mycology Section, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, Surrey TW9 3DS, UK; Departamento de Biologı́a Vegetal II, Facultad de Farmacia, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Plaza Ramón y Cajal, Madrid 28040, Spain; Department of Life Sciences, The Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, London SW7 5BD, UK.
authors.forename: David L
authors.initials: DL
authors.lastname: Hawksworth
authors.affiliation: 2 Dorchester Court, Blenheim Road, Kidlington, Oxford OX5 2JT, UK.
authors.forename: Judy A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Webb
authors.affiliation: Department of Geography and Environment, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Elphinstone Road, Aberdeen AB24 3UF, UK; Department of Archaeology, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, Elphinstone Road, Aberdeen AB24 3UF, UK.
authors.forename: Kevin J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Edwards
mesh_terms: D001901:Botany; D003020:Clothing; D005260:Female; D044707:Forensic Sciences / Q000379:methods; D006708:Homicide; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009172:Mycology; D010944:Plants; D012775:Shoes; D013172:Spores, Fungal; D006113:United Kingdom
keywords: Comparator samples; Exotic plants; Mycology; Palynology; Rare forensic marker; Taphonomy