Name: ______Date: ______Class: ______
Lab: Lip Prints
There are many ways to identify a person. On of them is cheiloscopy, the study of lip prints. (The term cheiloscopy comes from the Greek work cheilos, meaning “lip”.) Lip prints are unique and do not change during a person’s life, much like fingerprints. Although they are less commonly encountered than fingerprints at the scene of a crime, lip prints found on drinking glasses, cups, and even letters can be valuable evidence. One problem with lip prints is that their credibility has not yet been established in courts of law.
Lip prints are commonly classified into eight patterns. The five most common patterns are shown above. Like fingers, lips have special features that belong only to the individual making the print. No two are exactly the same. Many people’s lips have parts of at least two patterns. This allows for great variety between the lips of different individuals. When a woman wearing lipstick leaves a print on a surface, an investigator can take that object to the lab for evaluation or take a picture of the print. If a latent print is found, the investigator can dust and lift the lip print, just like they would a fingerprint.
Procedure:
1. Examine the 6 suspect prints under the stereomicroscope. (Suspects A-F)
2. Sketch the general shape of each of these lip prints in the corresponding spaces below.
3. Identify the pattern(s) seen in each lip print, and list any individualizing characteristics you observe.
4. Ask your teacher for the crime scene lip print. Write the # of the crime scene print below.
5. Examine this print under the stereomicroscope. Match the crime scene print to the correct suspect (letter).
Sketch of lip print / Lip pattern(s) / Characteristics / Sketch of lip print / Lip pattern(s) / CharacteristicsSuspect A / Suspect D
Suspect B / Suspect E
Suspect C / Suspect F
Crime Scene # ______ / Which suspect matches the crime scene lip print? ______