Physical description

The verbal description whereby a person describes another based on the physical description of the person is considered a reliable aid in the conducting of investigations. The degree to which an investigator can give the details of the physical description given by a witness will vary depending on the training and experience of the witness. The following items are considered basic in providing a physical description:

  • General Impression: personality, social status, comparison to a famous person with similar physical characteristics.
  • Approximate Age
  • Sex
  • Estimated Height
  • Estimated Weight
  • Build: thin, slender, medium, stout
  • Posture: erect, slouching, round-shouldered
  • Head: size, whether small, medium or large
  • Hair: color, part, straight or curly; baldness
  • Face: general impressions
    • Forehead: high, low, bulging or receding
    • Eyebrow: bushy or thin, describe shape
    • Mustache: length, color, shape
    • Eyes: small, medium or large; color; clear, dull, bloodshot; glasses, type
    • Ears: size, shape
    • Cheeks: high, low, fat, sunken
    • Nose: short, medium, big or long; pug, hooked
    • Mouth: side, small or medium
    • Lips: shape; thickness, color
    • Teeth: shape, condition, defects, missing
    • Chin: size, shape, general impression
    • Jaw: length, shape, lean, heavy
  • Neck: shape, thickness, length, Adam’s apple
  • Shoulder: width and Shape
  • Waist: size and shape of stomach
  • Hands: length, size, condition of palms
  • Fingers: length, size, shape of nails and condition
  • Arms: long, medium or short; muscular, normal or thin
  • Feet: size; deformities.