Several years ago, the International Association of Bloodstain Pattern Analysts (IABPA) created the
Suggested IABPA Terminology List [download the PDF here].
Currently there are 37 terms listed, but it is far from comprehensive. The IABPA also set minimum course requirements for the
Basic Bloodstain Pattern Analysis Course. The second section of the course outline provides a list of patterns which should be discussed.
The menu on the right combines the course requirements and the available IABPA terms from the recommended terminology list
to demonstrate a means of classifying bloodstain patterns.
When you select a pattern from the links at right, the IABPA definition will be at the top of the section with an example of the stain shown below.
A description of the stain is given below the image, followed by alternate terminology.
The majority of the images were created in a laboratory setting with fresh human blood. For the larger volume stains, sheep blood
mixed with an anti-coagulant and a preservative was used. The images are meant to serve as a general example to exhibit the
characteristics of the bloodstain pattern.
Given the limits of the IABPA terminology list, some bloodstain pattern analysts have created their own classification methods.
In Bloodstain Pattern Analysis: With an Introduction to Crime Scene Reconstruction, Tom Bevel, and Ross Gardner use a
taxonomic classification system where the main categories are The Spatter Family, The Non-Spatter Family, and Complex Patterns.
In Principles of Bloodstain Pattern Analysis: Theory and Practice, Stuart James, Paul Kish, and Paulette Sutton
have used the categories of Passive, Spatter, and Altered.
In Bloodstain Pattern Evidence: Objective Approaches and Case Applications, Anita Wonder provides a flow-diagram to assist
in classifying bloodstain patterns where the main categories are Spatter Groups, Spatters Not a Criteria, and Composites.
It should be noted that the Scientific Working Group for Bloodstain Pattern Analysis (SWGSTAIN)
is working on a SWGSTAIN Recommended Terminology document for the field of bloodstain pattern analysis
[download the PDF here].
