Comparative Human Identification in two Charred Cars Accidents

The carbonization of a body due to a vehicle accident can require human identification through examination of the dental arches. The aim of this study was to analyze two cases of automobile accidents, each with three burnt victims, and to determine way in which the individuals were identified. This was a retrospective, exploratory, descriptive study with qualitative data analysis. The investigation used data from examination reports carried out by the Legal Medicine Institute of Roraima, Brazil. Two accidents involving pickup trucks occurred, one in 2011 and another in 2015. In each accident, there were three passengers who were charred. The cases were classified as fact A and B, and the reports were studied, seeking information about the material forwarded for identification and highlighting the information used for successful or unsuccessful human identification. Accidents denominated as fact A and B presented three bodies each, classified as A1, A2, or A3 and B1, B2 or B3. There were two male and one female in fact A, and in fact B, three male individuals. Dental records were sent for cases A1 and A3 by including a photograph of a gypsum model for A1 and a dental description for A3. Cases B1 and B2 were studied based on dental records, and in the B2 case, a radiograph of the foot was presented. Cases A2 and B3 had no dental records. The comparative study of cases of carbonized bodies with similar origins, automobile accidents, made it possible to verify congruence in the identification methods, which were carried out by scientific dental comparison. Whether there was insufficient information, another technique must be applied.