Voting Station

Alphonse Bertillon

Please vote to return to collections.

Crime Fighter

The Resume

    (April 24, 1853-February 13, 1914)
    Born in Paris, France
    Officer in the Paris Prefecture of Police
    Pioneer in forensics
    Developed the Bertillon system, a collection of physical measurements used to identify criminals

Why he might be annoying:

    He was expelled from school and drifted through a number of jobs before his father got him a position as a police clerk.
    The Bertillon system was cumbersome and eventually supplanted by fingerprinting.
    He proclaimed himself a handwriting expert and provided testimony (described by one observer as 'a long tissue of absurdities') that helped get Alfred Dreyfus sent to Devil's Island.
    His own handwriting was described as 'horrifying.'

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was left-handed.
    He introduced the mugshot, without which The Smoking Gun would be a lot less fun.
    He was also a pioneer in ballistics, forensic document examination and crime scene photography.
    In 'The Hound of the Baskervilles,' a client described Sherlock Holmes as the 'second highest expert in Europe' after Bertillon.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 3 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 6 Votes: 66.67% Annoying
    In 2020, Out of 7 Votes: 42.86% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2017, Out of 5 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2016, Out of 3 Votes: 33.33% Annoying
    In 2015, Out of 10 Votes: 60.0% Annoying
    In 2014, Out of 13 Votes: 53.85% Annoying
    In 2013, Out of 31 Votes: 45.16% Annoying
    In 2012, Out of 12 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2011, Out of 18 Votes: 50.0% Annoying