Hard Evidence: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology

by Dawnie Wolfe Steadman (Editor)

Overview

An essential supplement to a forensic anthropology text, this reader provides case studies that demonstrate innovative approaches and practical experiences in the field. The book provides both introductory and advanced students with a strong sense of the cases that forensic anthropologists become involved, along with their professional and ethical responsibilities, the scientific rigor required, and the multidisciplinary nature of the science. For courses in Forensic Anthropology and Forensic Science.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780136050735
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	12/23/2008
Edition description:	New Edition
Pages:	360
Product dimensions:	7.90(w) x 9.90(h) x 0.50(d)

About the Author

Dawnie Wolfe Steadman is the Director of the Forensic Anthropology Center and Professor of Anthropology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. She received her Ph.D. at the University of Chicago and has been a professor at Iowa State University and Binghamton University, SUNY. Her research interests are in bioarchaeology and forensic anthropology. She has conducted excavations and skeletal analyses of several historic and prehistoric archaeological sites in Illinois, Iowa, and New York. Dr. Steadman is particularly interested in paleopathology, population genetic modeling of past populations, and the application of forensic anthropology to human rights investigations.

Read an Excerpt

Nearly twenty years ago, Ted Rathbun and Jane Buikstra published a seminal book, Human Identification: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology, with the notion that forensic anthropologists learn best by sharing case studies. The volume was oriented to their professional colleagues, as the field was little known within the general population. However, case studies made the science easily understandable and the book was therefore attractive to college students and lay people alike. Over the past decade, this accessibility, as well as tremendous media interest in the forensic sciences, has catapulted forensic anthropology out of relative obscurity. In addition to prime time programming, cable television currently offers a daily dose of "forensic detective" programs that frequently highlight forensic anthropology. The popularity of fictional books—including novels by Patricia Cornwell, who often features anthropology, and novels by Kathleen Reichs, a practicing forensic anthropologist whose female protagonist shares her chosen career path—has further thrust the discipline into the public light. Eminent professional forensic anthropologists have also written tomes about their most interesting cases in a manner accessible to scientists and nonscientists alike. The net result is that forensic anthropology is now much more visible on the popular landscape and, most important, in college curricula.

Though two decades have passed since Human Identification was published, case studies remain at the core of information dissemination among forensic scientists. Not only do case studies demonstrate how formal procedures are implemented and followed, but they alsogive authors the opportunity to discuss technical and interpretive difficulties they have encountered in the investigative process. The purpose of Hard Evidence: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology is to supplement formal forensic anthropology and osteology texts and manuals with high-quality case studies that demonstrate practical experiences and innovations in the field. While textbooks provide specific methodological and theoretical information imperative to a basic understanding of the subject matter, there is often little opportunity to present a satisfactory number of pertinent case studies that illustrate important points. This book will give introductory and advanced biological anthropology students a strong sense of the scope of forensic anthropological casework in the United States, the professional and ethical responsibilities inherent in forensics, the scientific rigor required, and the multidisciplinary nature of forensic science.

Personal identification is the cornerstone of forensic anthropology, and the importance of case reports that include appropriate, well-documented identification methods cannot be overemphasized. However, numerous methodological and technical advances have allowed forensic anthropologists to expand their knowledge beyond traditional roles to make a greater contribution to the forensic sciences. Many forensic anthropologists are well-versed in archaeology, histology, radiology, biomechanics, or odontology, while others have gained significant experience in medicolegal and international policy and procedures. Consequently, forensic anthropologists are now regular members of local search and recovery teams, federal mass disaster response units, and international human rights missions. Forensic anthropologists also facilitate teamwork with other forensic specialists, particularly forensic entomologists, geologists, and botanists, and have strengthened their time-honored partnership with forensic pathologists. Thus, the cases herein capture the spirit of traditional forensic anthropology cases and highlight some of the new skills and opportunities that have helped steer the discipline in new directions.

This book is divided into sections that demonstrate the broad scope of modern forensic anthropology as well as its scientific foundations. The five sections cover personal identification and legal considerations, search and recovery, interpretation of trauma and taphonomy, analytical techniques, and applications of forensic anthropology. Each section starts with an overview that places the case studies within a larger context of forensic science, emphasizes multidisciplinary relationships, and introduces new concepts or technologies. The chapters in this book are independent of each other and are written in a nontechnical prose suitable for undergraduate students. However, it is assumed that the reader has, or will be gaining, a basic background in human skeletal biology. While several authors take a narrative approach and follow a case from recovery through final resolution, others display the technical writing, sophisticated anatomical terminology, arid level of quantification and detail required for professional forensic reports and publications. Several chapters underscore the importance of court testimony and caution that the most effective forensic techniques mean little if the scientific components cannot be communicated proficiently to a judge and jury.

All of us who have contributed to this text hope that students will not only find the cases scientifically informative and interesting, but also will gain insight into the human aspect of forensic anthropology. Forensic anthropology provides an important service to the community. It is founded upon the desire to help the living by identifying the remains of loved ones while giving the dead an opportunity to tell their story. To understand the dead, we must be able to interpret the hard evidence they left behind—the history of their life and death recorded in the bones.

Table of Contents

Section I
Personal Identification : Theory and Applications
Chapter 1 The Marty Miller Case: Introducing Forensic Anthropology
Dawnie Wolfe Steadman and Steven A. Andersen
Chapter 2 Multidisciplinary Approach to Human Identification in Homicide Investigation: A Case Study from New York
Douglas H. Ubelaker, Mary Jumbelic, Mark Wilson, and E. Mark Levinsohn
Chapter 3 The Herring Case–An Outlier
Karen Ramey Burns
Chapter 4 An Incidental Finding
H. Gill-King
Chapter 5 Science Contextualized: The Identification of a U.S. MIA of the Vietnam War from Two Perspectives
Ann Webster Bunch and Colleen Carney Shine
Section II
Legal Considerations of Forensic Anthropology Casework in the United States
Chapter 6 Multiple Points of Similarity
Dawnie Wolfe Steadman and Lyle W. Konigsberg
Chapter 7 The Influence of the Daubert Guidelines on Anthropological Methods of Scientific Identification in the Medical Examiner Setting
Jason Wiersema, Jennifer C. Love and L. Gill Naul
Chapter 8 A Forensic Analysis of Human Remains from a Historic Conflict in North Dakota
Stephen Ousley and R. Eric Hollinger
Section III
Applications of Archaeology
Chapter 9 Love Lost and Gone Forever
David M. Glassman
Chapter 10 The Contributions of Archaeology and Physical Anthropology to the John McRae Case
Norman J. Sauer, William A. Lovis, Mark E. Blumer, and Jennifer Fillion
Chapter 11 Unusual “Crime” Scenes: The Role of Forensic Anthropology in Recovering and Identifying American MIAs 108
Robert W. Mann, Bruce E. Anderson, Thomas D. Holland, and Johnie E. Webb, Jr.
Chapter 12 Forensic Recoveries of U.S. War Dead and the Effects of Taphonomy and Other Site-Altering Processes
James T. Pokines
Section IV
Interpretation of Taphonomy and Trauma
Chapter 13 Taphonomy and Time: Estimating the Postmortem Interval
Murray K. Marks, Jennifer C. Love and Ian R. Dadour
Chapter 14 The Skull on the Lawn: Trophies, Taphonomy, and Forensic Anthropology
P. Willey and Paulette Leach
Chapter 15 Look until You See: Identification of Trauma in Skeletal Material
O. C. Smith, Elayne J. Pope, and Steven A. Symes
Chapter 16 Forensic Osteology of Child Abuse
Murray K. Marks, Kerriann Marden and Darinka Mileusnic
Chapter 17 The Interface of Forensic Anthropology and Forensic Pathology in Trauma Interpretation
Douglas H. Ubelaker and John E. Smialek
Section V
Analytical Techniques in Forensic Anthropology
Chapter 18 Mitochondrial DNA: Solving the Mystery of Anna Anderson
Terry Melton
Chapter 19 Small Bones of Contention
Sam D. Stout
Chapter 20 Approaches to Facial Reproduction and Photographic Superimposition
Douglas H. Ubelaker
Chapter 21 The Pawn Shop Mummified Head: Discriminating among Forensic, Historic, and Ancient Contexts
Dawnie Wolfe Steadman
Section VI
Applications of Forensic Anthropology
Chapter 22 Corpi Aquaticus: The Hardin Cemetery Flood of 1993
Paul S. Sledzik and Allison Webb Willcox
Chapter 23 DISASTER VICTIM RECOVERY AND IDENTIFICATION: Forensic anthropology in the aftermath of September 11
PAUL S. SLEDZIK, DENNIS DIRKMAAT, ROBERT W. MANN, THOMAS D. HOLLAND, AMY Z. MUNDORFF, BRADLEY ADAMS, CHRISTIAN CROWDER, AND FRANK DEPAOLO
Chapter 24 Forensic Anthropology and Human Rights: The Argentine Experience 290
Mercedes Doretti and Clyde C. Snow
Chapter 25 A Mass Grave in Argentina: The San Vicente Cemetery in Córdoba
Darío Olmo, Anahí Ginarte, Claudia Bisso, Mercedes Salado Puerto, Luis Fondebrider
Index

Preface

Nearly twenty years ago, Ted Rathbun and Jane Buikstra published a seminal book, Human Identification: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology, with the notion that forensic anthropologists learn best by sharing case studies. The volume was oriented to their professional colleagues, as the field was little known within the general population. However, case studies made the science easily understandable and the book was therefore attractive to college students and lay people alike. Over the past decade, this accessibility, as well as tremendous media interest in the forensic sciences, has catapulted forensic anthropology out of relative obscurity. In addition to prime time programming, cable television currently offers a daily dose of "forensic detective" programs that frequently highlight forensic anthropology. The popularity of fictional books—including novels by Patricia Cornwell, who often features anthropology, and novels by Kathleen Reichs, a practicing forensic anthropologist whose female protagonist shares her chosen career path—has further thrust the discipline into the public light. Eminent professional forensic anthropologists have also written tomes about their most interesting cases in a manner accessible to scientists and nonscientists alike. The net result is that forensic anthropology is now much more visible on the popular landscape and, most important, in college curricula.

Though two decades have passed since Human Identification was published, case studies remain at the core of information dissemination among forensic scientists. Not only do case studies demonstrate how formal procedures are implemented and followed, but they also giveauthors the opportunity to discuss technical and interpretive difficulties they have encountered in the investigative process. The purpose of Hard Evidence: Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology is to supplement formal forensic anthropology and osteology texts and manuals with high-quality case studies that demonstrate practical experiences and innovations in the field. While textbooks provide specific methodological and theoretical information imperative to a basic understanding of the subject matter, there is often little opportunity to present a satisfactory number of pertinent case studies that illustrate important points. This book will give introductory and advanced biological anthropology students a strong sense of the scope of forensic anthropological casework in the United States, the professional and ethical responsibilities inherent in forensics, the scientific rigor required, and the multidisciplinary nature of forensic science.

Personal identification is the cornerstone of forensic anthropology, and the importance of case reports that include appropriate, well-documented identification methods cannot be overemphasized. However, numerous methodological and technical advances have allowed forensic anthropologists to expand their knowledge beyond traditional roles to make a greater contribution to the forensic sciences. Many forensic anthropologists are well-versed in archaeology, histology, radiology, biomechanics, or odontology, while others have gained significant experience in medicolegal and international policy and procedures. Consequently, forensic anthropologists are now regular members of local search and recovery teams, federal mass disaster response units, and international human rights missions. Forensic anthropologists also facilitate teamwork with other forensic specialists, particularly forensic entomologists, geologists, and botanists, and have strengthened their time-honored partnership with forensic pathologists. Thus, the cases herein capture the spirit of traditional forensic anthropology cases and highlight some of the new skills and opportunities that have helped steer the discipline in new directions.

This book is divided into sections that demonstrate the broad scope of modern forensic anthropology as well as its scientific foundations. The five sections cover personal identification and legal considerations, search and recovery, interpretation of trauma and taphonomy, analytical techniques, and applications of forensic anthropology. Each section starts with an overview that places the case studies within a larger context of forensic science, emphasizes multidisciplinary relationships, and introduces new concepts or technologies. The chapters in this book are independent of each other and are written in a nontechnical prose suitable for undergraduate students. However, it is assumed that the reader has, or will be gaining, a basic background in human skeletal biology. While several authors take a narrative approach and follow a case from recovery through final resolution, others display the technical writing, sophisticated anatomical terminology, and level of quantification and detail required for professional forensic reports and publications. Several chapters underscore the importance of court testimony and caution that the most effective forensic techniques mean little if the scientific components cannot be communicated proficiently to a judge and jury.

All of- us who have contributed to this text hope that students will not only find the cases scientifically informative and interesting, but also will gain insight into the human aspect of forensic anthropology. Forensic anthropology provides an important service to the community. It is founded upon the desire to help the living by identifying the remains of loved ones while giving the dead an opportunity to tell their story. To understand the dead, we must be able to interpret the hard evidence they left behind—the history of their life and death recorded in the bones.