Alma Tirtsche (1921) Alma Tirtsche's beaten body was found wrapped in a blanket in what is known as Gun
Alley in Melbourne, Australia. Because the body was relatively free of blood, the police
deduced that she had been murdered elsewhere and brought to the alley. Ger body had
been washed before being wrapped in the blanket. A local bar owner, Colin Ross, was
questioned. Ross admitted seeing Tirtsche in his bar earlier in the day.
Investigators collected blankets from Ross's home and found several strands of long,
reddish blonde hair on them. The length of the hair implied it had come from a female,
and the concentration of pigment in the hair implied a younger woman. Some of the
ends of the hair were irregular, implying the hair had been forcibly broken off. The
physical similarity of the hair found on the blanket with that of Alma Tirtschke convinced
the jury that Ross was the murderer. This was the first time that hair was used to secure
a conviction in Australia. Unfortunately, analysis of the hairs 75 years later showed that
two of the strands found on the blankets came from different individuals, which throws
doubt on Ross's guilt.
3. What other characteristics of the hair could the investigators have examined
(besides the length and color) to determine if they had come from the same
person, and that that person was Tirtsche?