Protective Marking Not Protectively Marked Publication Scheme Y/N N Title Personal Descriptions Version 3 Summary Student Lesson Note Branch/OCU HR3(7) Author Mick English 082060 Date created 27th August 2009 Review date 27th August 2012 Metropolitan Police Service Directorate of Training and Development Police Constable Foundation Course Personal Descriptions Lesson 012
Contents Objectives...3 Observing physical appearance...3 Describing a person yourself...7 Height...9 Ages...10 Mannerisms and Habits...10 Obtaining a description from someone else...12 Other Features...15 Identifying Suspects...15 Summary...16 Page 2 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
Introduction Police Officers, need two specific skills in the area of personal descriptions, ie, being proficient at:- - Describing people to others. - Obtaining descriptions of people from others. Objectives After you have studied the written lesson, you should be able to:- 1. State the two problems to be overcome in describing people so that others may identify them. 2. Explain why the words normal and average should not be used. 3. Explain how the accuracy of witnesses descriptions can be improved by reference to other features at the scene of the enquiry. 4. State the physical characteristics that should always be included in descriptions of people, where possible. When you have achieved the objectives listed above and after your Trainer has provided suitable learning experiences, you should be able to:- 1. Describe a person for the purposes of identification. Observing the physical appearance of people Police officers take personal descriptions to enable: themselves to recognise people when they meet them again, or others to identify them. CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 3
There are two main difficulties. 1. Most people are not trained observers. They usually see others as whole persons, so they make no detailed examination of those they meet casually. 2. Most people have difficulty in communicating a personal description to others. This is so even when people are observed carefully with the objective of describing them. Think of the members of your class. If you were told that your life depended on describing one of them so accurately that all the other members of the class would identify the person from your description, who would you pick to describe? Why would you make that choice? Almost certainly you will choose the person who has some very distinctive features, whether it is the height, build, hair colour, skin colour, accent, mannerisms, or some unusual feature, eg, a prominent scar. This is much easier in a group of people who live or work together, because they know more about each other. It is the outstanding characteristics which must always be looked for; preferably those which are not easily altered, eg, colour of eyes, scars and tattoos etc. Look for features which make people different from each other. It would probably be misleading to use the the terms normal or average, try to avoid them. Page 4 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
As you can see, those words can mean very different things to different people. What the people using these terms probably mean is that they saw nothing unusual or noteworthy about that particular feature. If there is no exact description that fits, it may be better to say nothing. The simplest situation is where you have to take a written description of a person who is with you, probably a person in a Police Station. You may be completing forms used to provide information for the National Information Service (NIS) about someone who you have arrested. To give you some idea of what identifying features of your prisoner you will need, one of the forms is shown below. You will learn more about these forms later. CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 5
As you can see some forms give guidance on terms, but, they are only a suggestion, and you should only describe the listed feature if adequate information is available. They are a guide only. It does not mean that they are the only words to be used, or that there must be a comment on each feature. Page 6 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
The notes merely draw attention to the ways in which a person may be described. Never use any of the terms unless: - you know what it means and - it fits the person you are describing. With time, and the person in front of you, you will be able to be very detailed in your description. That will not be so easy in the following cases but you must get as much detail as you can. Describing a person yourself - you have seen briefly under circumstances when you know you will need a description. or... - you have met under circumstances where you had no idea a description would be needed. CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 7
To succeed, you will have to practise observing people rather than just looking at them, in all cases, not just when they are suspects. Always make a written note of the description as soon as you possibly can. Observing people in detail whenever you have dealings with them, will help you in two ways. Not only will you be able to describe them more accurately if it becomes necessary, but also you will be more likely to identify a person from a description you have been given. How often, for example, can you describe the colour of the eyes of the person you have just been speaking to? Begin now! Make your eyes and ears work for their living! Many people have no obvious outstanding features to distinguish them from others. To describe them, we can only rely on a painstaking, accurate description of many things which, taken together, distinguishes one person from another. However, where possible, descriptions of people should always include:- Colour of skin, Age, Sex, Height. Page 8 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
Height Don t estimate it when you are at a Station where you can measure it on the scale in the Custody Office. Height must be in metric for the purposes of all criminal offences. In other cases, you can often use the scale which you always carry - your own body. You know your own height, so compare it against of the person concerned. You can measure the height of your own eyes and use that as your guide. (It's easy to do on the scale in the Custody Office). Your height at the shoulder and hip may also be useful figures to know. Whatever method, use it often and check it whenever you can to make sure it is reliable. Don t forget to notice the type of shoes which are worn - a 3½ inch stiletto heel can affect the issue! CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 9
Ages It can be difficult to estimate the age of another person. If you are unsure, ask them for their date of birth or age. Mannerisms and Habits These will not always be known to you but never miss a chance to find out about them. They are far less easy to change than appearance. Summarise your learning so far by completing the following exercises. (Answers follow.) (i) Look at the following personal description and highlight the words that are of little use in communicating an accurate picture to others:- A young man, who is quite short. He is white with long hair which is blonde in colour and very curly. He is well built and wearing normal clothes for a person of his age. He has a 75 mm scar on his head and tattoos on the back of each hand, I don t know what they represent. He has a peculiar nervous habit and a speech impediment; he stutters. He has thin lips and one of his upper front teeth is missing. I don t know the colour of his eyes but he has an average size nose. (ii) What are the two criteria that determine whether a particular descriptive term is appropriate for you to use? (iii) Describe a method of estimating people s height that will always be available to you and the factor that could make it significantly inaccurate. (iv) The features which should always be included in a personal description, where possible, are:- C A S H Page 10 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
Answers (i) A young man, who is quite short. He is white with long hair which is blonde in colour and very curly. He is well built and wearing normal clothes for a person of his age. He has a 75mm scar on his head and tattoos on the back of each hand, I don t know what they represent. He has a peculiar nervous habit and a speech impediment; he stutters. He has thin lips and one of his upper front teeth is missing. I don t know the colour of his eyes but he has an average size nose. (ii) The two criteria that determine whether a particular form of description is appropriate for you to use are: - You know what it means. and - It fits the person you are describing. (iii) Comparing the person s height with your own, but make allowance for high heels. (iv) Colour of skin Age Sex Height CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 11
Obtaining a description of a person from someone else. Remember the tips in the previous section on giving a description and apply the same principles to the method of questioning witnesses. For example:- How tall was he compared with me? Oh. Much shorter. What about compared with you? "About the same height, I think. "When you were talking to each other, did you have to look up,down or on the same level at him?" Never accept, from the public, the description of a person s height as a measurement (e.g. 1.70m ). They are notoriously inaccurate! Page 12 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
You will have further instruction later on obtaining information from witnesses but it is not too early to learn to avoid leading questions - those which suggest the answer and may put words into the witness s mouth. Make your question open-ended, eg, What height was he compared with you? as opposed to, Was he about my height? Which is likely to lead some witnesses into saying Yes, about that regardless of their true impression. Beware of assuming things not said. For instance, if a witness says a suspect had a crew cut and was wearing jeans, don't assume he was a skinhead. Don t allow witnesses to use words like skinhead or hippy as complete descriptions. Avoid, too, things like He looked like a bank manager. Find out what it was about the person s appearance that created the impression. Associating the dress or behaviour of a person with a general group is known as stereotyping and can be very misleading. You will learn more on this subject as the course unfolds. Witnesses often have information of which they are unaware. Be gently persistent, and cross-check answers, eg:- I ve no idea what he was wearing officer. "I know it s difficult but anything you remember would help." "Try casting your mind back to when he was running away." Oh yes, he was certainly wearing a jacket. CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 13
Certainly? What did you see that makes you certain? Well, it was flapping open as he ran" Good. That's a good start. How long was it? Mmm, I don't know really. Was it down to his thighs,or was it below his waist? Ah! That s right it was one of those waist length bomber jackets. Great. We re really getting somewhere. Well done. Now, think of his trousers. Were they a dark or light colour...?" If witnesses use obscure terms to describe something, eg, a colour taupe, get them to point out something that you can both see that is the same. Ah! A kind of beige colour! A similar method may be used to check the accuracy of a witness who does give a height in figures. Page 14 CST Police Constable Foundation Training
Remember, a witness is not trained to observe, and may have been under stress. They must not be blamed for the inadequacy of the description. You are the professional. It is your responsibility to develop the skill of obtaining accurate and full descriptions from people. In many cases, an inadequate description is due to inadequate skill in the police officer! Other Features Sometimes the smallest of details may assist in trapping an offender. Armed robbers, for instance, frequently wear masks to cover their faces but what about their hands? Some people have small tattoos on their hands and fingers. The tattooed hand of a masked bank robber could give away as much information as a passport photo of him. Missing or deformed fingers are another foolproof method of identification, so make sure you check points like these when you question your witnesses. Even nicotine stained hands these days may help pinpoint the suspect. Even where victims have been attacked from behind and say that they didn t see their attacker, they probably saw something of the attacker, such as his hands or feet. If you can circulate the colour and type of trousers and shoes of a fleeing offender, it may assist one of your colleagues to trap the suspect. Identifying Suspects There are albums of photographs of known criminals kept at Scotland Yard which may be examined by witnesses. The photofit system for building up a picture of a suspect from the witness s description is also used. You will learn how these are used when you have joined your borough. CST Police Constable Foundation Training Page 15
Summary In this lesson you have: - Identified the two main difficulties to be overcome when obtaining descriptions of people. - Considered ways to make the descriptions you obtain and communicate as precise and useful as possible. - Explored methods to help untrained people to describe a person as fully and precisely as possible. - Become aware of the existence of systems of identifying suspects by use of photographs and Photofit. You should begin practising the techniques mentioned in the lesson NOW! Get together with a class-mate. Describe members of your class to each other, then move on to any people that you both see regularly. 2009 Metropolitan Police Authority. All world-wide rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means: photocopy, electronic, mechanical recording or otherwise, without the prior written permission of the copyright holder. Subject to Crown Copyright. Enquiries telephone 020 8358-1668. Page 16 CST Police Constable Foundation Training