The use of the tattoo as an investigative tool at the crime scene

Tattoos have served as a subject of interest across cultures for centuries, and serve as a critical component of forensic investigations. Tattoos as traces-when properly identified and documented-are a valuable tool for investigators. This article demonstrates that uniform and detailed reporting of tattoos can be essential for providing investigatory leads in cold cases, missing persons cases and unidentified remains cases. Data was collected from redacted records provided by the Camden County Prosecutor's Office (NJ, USA) along with data collected from public databases and state police agencies across the United States to assess inter- and intra- agency inconsistencies in the documentation of tattoos with the goal of identifying the causes of variation in tattoo reporting and documentation. In addition, this study evaluated the overall lack of tattoo documentation for missing persons and unidentified remains cases in order to understand why such inconsistencies and lack of uniformity exist across agencies, and what can be done to improve the utility of the tattoo in forensic science and investigative endeavours. From this study, it is clear that there is a need to establish both a standard operating procedure for tattoo documentation and a uniform, international database in order to positively impact the burgeoning instances of cold cases featuring tattooed missing persons and unidentified human remains. The goal of this article is to raise awareness about the usefulness of tattoos as a trace and to address the need to create tattoo documentation standards across forensic science and the broader criminal justice system.