ABSTRACT
In the examination of footwear impression evidence, individual identifying characteristics are characteristics that result when something is randomly added to or taken away from a shoe outsole that either causes or contributes to making that shoe outsole unique. Class characteristics of shoes are those specific shapes, dimensions, designs, and other indistinguishable characteristics that typically repeat in the same way during the making of a quantity of shoes. The understanding and recognition of the potential for the presence of combined class characteristics and their resulting value can, however, in some cases contribute significantly to the overall examination results. The presence of other variable class characteristics could further reduce the number of shoes or pairs of shoes that shared those additional combined class characteristics. Identifying characteristics, because of their independent and countless possible origins, can range from the tiniest, almost obscure pinpoint-sized characteristic to one having tremendous distinctness and uniqueness.
