Cold cases and serial crimes are law enforcement’s most challenging investigations. These crimes are carefully planned and executed by predatory criminals who are intelligent and cunning. They often leave little evidence at crime scenes and even fewer eyewitnesses.
In cases with a surviving eyewitness, a composite sketch of the suspect becomes your best evidence. Investigations that languish for years may benefit by advancing the age of your existing sketch. An updated composite sketch freshens up your case and generates media interest.
The passage of time is the enemy of eyewitness memory. An experienced police sketch artist who uses memory retrieval techniques can create an effective composite sketch months, or even years, after a crime, underscoring the eyewitnesses’ crucial role in your investigation. Your best option is to create a composite sketch as soon as possible.
At SketchCop®, we understand the importance of strong communication skills in guiding your eyewitness through the interview and helping us construct an effective facial composite.
My experience in homicide and violent crime investigations makes us uniquely qualified and valuable as case consultants, advising you on which type of forensic facial imaging would be most helpful to your case.
We have listed our expert services below to help you determine what’s the best option for your investigation.
Please don’t hesitate to contact us if you have any questions.
SketchCop® REMOTE is an online global composite sketch service connecting investigators with (Ret.) Police Sergeant Michael W. Streed, Forensic Facial Identification Consultant and founder of SketchCop® Solutions, Inc.
Michael is one of the world’s most experienced police sketch artists & forensic facial imaging experts. During his distinguished career, he’s gained considerable experience and a reliable reputation for assisting law enforcement with their most complex cases.
Now, Michael is ready to go live with your eyewitness and create a compelling sketch that will help your case reach a successful conclusion.
Michael uses ZOOM to connect with you 24/7. He conducts interviews in a virtual space, delivering high-quality facial composites that grab the public’s attention and generate leads. (Microsoft Teams and Skype are other available options.)
Like our SketchCop® Facial Composite System Software, SketchCop® REMOTE helps significantly reduce investigative cycle times.
Interested law enforcement agencies may also request our Self-Guided Interview for Facial Composites. We strongly encourage investigators to use the guide to help eyewitnesses capture details of a suspect’s face soon after they commit a crime. Michael will use the information to create a more effective facial composite for their investigation.
SketchCop® REMOTE is unique in allowing eyewitnesses to participate from the comfort and safety of their home or office. This is convenient for busy eyewitnesses and will enable investigators to focus more time and energy on their investigation.
With SketchCop® REMOTE, scheduling police sketch artist appointments that were once difficult is now effortless. These appointments are available in ‘real-time’ online, often allowing for same-day interviews and prompt delivery of sketches via e-mail upon completion.
If you’re interested in scheduling a remote facial composite interview, download our Sketch Request form. Once completed, save it and send it to us. We’ll do the rest.
Postmortem forensic facial imaging refers to approximating the appearance of an unidentified deceased person to how they might have appeared when alive. Two postmortem facial imaging techniques, facial approximation, commonly referred to as facial reconstruction, and postmortem imaging, are the most widely used. When combined with DNA phenotyping it becomes an even more powerful tool.
Michael W. Streed and his team of experts blend traditional illustration
techniques with the latest photo-editing, 3-D sculpting software, and AI technology.
Using information supplied by medical experts and scientists, we can approximate a person’s facial appearance in both 2-dimensional and 3-dimensional formats as described above.
Michael recognizes that each agency has budgetary restrictions that limit its ability to use postmortem forensic facial imaging during investigations. If you have questions, Michael can help you choose your best option.
Please note that museums and historical societies may also use facial approximation and facial photo restoration techniques to depict the faces of historical figures and ancient people in planned exhibits.
If you want to learn more or hire us for your next project, please use our Contact page.
Craniofacial superimposition is a valuable and accurate facial identification method in the absence of comparison-quality dentition/X-rays or DNA profiles.
Skeleton ID, is designed for efficiency. It uses the skull face overlay module to automatically overlay the 3D skull with the facial photograph(s) of the individual in question.
Locating anthropometric points in 2D and 3D images is a manual and time-consuming task, so in the latest version of the software it can also be done automatically.
The availability of such a robust forensic facial identification tool is especially helpful in addressing the following: Involuntary missing persons, disaster victim identification, enforced disappearances, mass migration, armed conflict, historical memory, Education, and Research.
Objectivity is key in forensic analysis. As part of the skull face overlay
analysis, Skeleton·ID automatically considers the camera’s orientation, facial pose, focal length, and subject-to-camera distance for all images used. This ensures that the results of the craniofacial superimposition are measured with a likelihood ratio, providing a reliable and unbiased assessment. Skeleton ID’s skull face overlay is a powerful identification tool for examination and comparison by trained professionals.
Please contact us if you have questions or would like us to consult on a case in which you feel our service would benefit you.
Missing person reports are difficult cases to investigate. Due to the great number of people who are reported missing annually, it has often been described as a “silent epidemic.”
In the United States alone, over 600,000 persons disappear annually. Another 4,400 unidentified bodies are recovered by authorities during the same period. (Source: NAMUS.org)
Many of those missing often return home voluntarily or are located by law enforcement. Countless others remain missing.
Those who remain missing do so voluntarily for personal reasons or are fugitives from justice, purposely evading law enforcement to prevent their arrest. Others fall prey to human traffickers or as the result of enforced disappearances orchestrated by dictators and criminal cartels. Migration, wars, genocide, and natural and transportation disasters round out the list of reasons why people disappear.
Unidentified bodies found by authorities require specialized skills and technology to help forensic investigators identify them. We offer investigative support in the form of age progression photos, facial reconstruction, and craniofacial superimposition using skull-to-face overlay technology.
Please contact us if you have any questions or require case assistance.