BUSINESS PERSONNEL: DENTIST AT CONFERENCE

Cape Girardeau dentist Dr. Shanon Kirchhoff participated in the Missouri State Conference on Sexual Assault and Bite Mark Identification sponsored by the Missouri Department of Health. The conference was held Aug. 7 in St. Louis.

During the conference, eight internationally known experts provided training on the proper techniques of analyzing bite marks. Because sexual assault perpetrators often bite their victims during an attack, bite mark analysis can lead to the early identification and prosecution of sexual assault and rape offenders and prevent future occurrences.

Kirchhoff is a member of the Missouri Emergency Response Identification Team, which has more than 50 trained dentists, nurses and law enforcement personnel trained in dental identification. Team members and other health-care providers, members of the judiciary, medical examiners and coroners were invited.