forensic anth midterm

Anthropology

The holistic study of humankind: past, present, and future. Includes the study of biology, society, language, and culture

What is anthropology interdisciplinary with?

Psychology, biology, anatomy, geology, statistics, genetics, sociology, etc.

What are the four sub fields of anthropology?

Cultural, archeological, linguistic, and biological

What is linguistic anthropology?

Studies the ways humans communicate. Subfields include ethnolinguistic, historical, descriptive, and sociolinguistic

What is cultural anthropology?

Studies various human populations and how they differ/are similar. Subfields include ethnography, sociocultural, bio cultural, ethnobotany, nutritional

What is archeology?

Studies material remains like tools, pottery, middens, settlements. Sub fields include historical, zoo archeology, bio archaeology, archaeobotany, nautical

What is biological anthropology?

Studies human biology within evolutionary frameworks. Subfields include pathology, paleoanthropology, primatology, molecular anthropology, bio archeology, osteology, forensic anthropology

What is forensic anthropology?

Subfield of bioanth focused on analysis of medicolegally significant human skeletal remains. Means remains that are useful and can hold up as evidence in a court of law

Medicolegal

Relating to the intersection of medical science and the legal system, especially concerning the application of medical findings and knowledge to legal inquiries, criminal investigations, or court proceedings.

What fields does forensic anth borrow methods from?

Osteology, archaeology, bioarch, zoology, taphonomy, pathology, criminology, geography, geology

Osteology

The study of skeletal material

Odontology

The study of teeth

Skeletal biology

Study of bones as dynamic tissue, attempts to understand growth and development

Paleopathology

Study of disease and trauma in archeological populations

Bioarcheology

Study of archeological human remains, reconstruct past behaviors through osteological Analysis

How do cultural and linguistic anth contribute to forensic anth casework?

Sometimes cultural sensitivity is useful for on site communication

When are forensic anthropologists called upon?

When skeletal remains need id in criminal cases, war crimes, pow, natural disasters, crashes, cemetery relocation, and unidentified persons

What do forensic anthropologists actually do?

Determine if remains are medicolegally significant, recover decomposed, burnt, or skeletal remains, estimate biological profile big four, determine if single individual or commingled remains, help estimate pmi, determine cause and manner of death

Who has the ultimate say in determining cause/manner of death?

Coroners, medical examiners, or justice of the peace depending on state or country

Cause of death vs manner of death

Cause is what led to brain function stopping (ie. Blunt force trauma, stab wound, etc.) manner is how (ie. Murder, natural disaster, etc.)

What do you need to become a forensic anthropologist?

BA/BS & MS/MA in forensic anth or anthropology, doctorate in biological or forensic anthropology, and certification by the American board of forensic anth is encouraged but not needed

What are the periods of development of forensic anthropology?

Formative period (1849-1938), Consolidation period (1939-1971), modern period (1972-present)

What was the formative period like?

Localized, not standardized. Anatomists, physicians, and professors performed the job of forensic anthropologists with formal aid. There was little publication and what did exist had no peer review

Thomas Dwight

Father of American forensic anthropology. Write identification of the human skeleton: a medicolegal study in 1878. Part of the formative period

The Parkman murder of 1849

The dismembered remains of a human were found in the anatomy lab and septic tank at Harvard with burned head and dentures located in a nearby furnace. Two anatomy professors, Oliver Wendell Holmes and Jeffries wyman, reassembled the body. The dentures matched a missing Dr George Parkman, who was murdered by the convicted John w Webster due to outstanding debt the latter wished not to repay. He claimed self defense. Occurred during the formative period

The Luetgert case of 1897

The “sausage killer king of Chicago” Adolph leutgert killed his wife Louisa and disposed of her at a sausage factory where he worked. Law enforcement recovered 4 bone fragments (hand, foot, and rib) and Louisa’s inscribed ring. Anthropology George Dorsey was called in to id and claimed luetgert was guilt based on notoriously little evidence that the remains were human. This is considered the first instance of the CSI effect. Occurred during the formative period

CSI effect

Caroline bond day

First black person to receive an MA in anth at Harvard. Critiqued racially charged sampling methods of peers. Said peers needed to study non white remains. Highlighted social bias in anthropology. Part of the formative period.

What characterized the consolidation period?

World War Two was occurring, the field sought new rigor and standardization enabled by the recovery of volunteered military skeletons and need to id servicemen. First professional organizations arose. New standardized methods of estimation arose in the form of Mildred trotter’s stature estimation, t mckern and td Stewart’s age estimation, and keigman’s guide to the identification of human skeletal material. The central id lab in Hawaii was established, later became the largest skeletal id lab in the world

William M Cobb

Board certified physician with a phd in physical/bio anth. Was a black man who pushed for interdisciplinary collaboration, founded biocultural anth, and founded the lab of anatomy and physical anth at Howard university (now known as the Cobb bio anth lab). Contributed during the consolidation period.

What characterizes the modern period of forensiccanth?

Increasing professionalization, first body farms appear, skeletal collections become common, aafs created a database on modern skeletons, further formal education and standardization. Begins post ww2 around 1970.

What is the scientific working group for forensic anthropology (swganth)

Verify methods of estimation and their error rates, identify and codify existing standards, develop standards where needed, write method guidelines and make them accessible. Formed during the modern period

What are some misconceptions about modern forensics?

DNA does not guarantee id or a solved case (individuals may not be in the database). You won’t always find the body. You need to be more flexible in skills than most assume (you won’t always have necessary specialists on site). You don’t spend most of your time on casework, and most cases are not criminal. The work is monotonous, detail oriented, banal, and methodological.

Dr phoebe stubblefield

Lead forensic anthropologist for the Tulsa race massacre investigation, locates and recovers individuals from unmarked graves. The director of the CA pound human id lab at the university of Florida

What do forensic anthropologists do in museums?

Maintain skeletal collections, work on forensic cases, work on historical and archeological cases, and provide training and education

Dr Bradley Adams

Former director of forensic anthropologist unit at the office of the chief medical examiner nyc, specialist in commingled and fragmentary remains

Dr Jean McLaughlin

U Oregon and lane community college, works with dmort, sheriffs office, me, and local search and rescue, specializes in forensic taphonomy

Clyde snow and human rights

Worked with human rights groups in Argentina, trained forensic anthropologists, founded Argentine forensic anthropology team eaaf in 1984

Humanitarian and human rights resource center (hhrrc)

Operated by AAFS

Disaster mortuary operational response team (dmort)

Deals with both natural and man made disasters, recovers remains and identifies them

National transportation safety board (ntsb)

Part of us department of transportation, identifies bodies from major transportation accidents

What is NamUs?

The national missing and unidentified persons system, a database housing info on us missing persons

How many are unidentified in the us? In Texas?

15k roughly and 2k roughly respectively

Forensic anthropology center at Texas state (facts)

13 associated faculty (7 forensic anthropologists), work with le mes attourneies and others, have a large associated body ranch

UNT center for human id

Forensic anth unit consists of three forensic anthropologists, caseworkers helps with Texas law enforcement and coroners. Has notable forensic genetic genealogy program accredited for snp and mps tech analysis, also manage local codis operations and manage the Texas missing persons dna database

Southeast Texas applied forensic science facility (stafs)

Affiliated with the department of forensic science, offers human vs nonhuman id, bio profile estimates, and skeletal trauma analysis. Outdoor decomp research facility receives 55 donations per year, their skeletal collection houses 450 donated skeletons

Forensic anth research lab (far lab)

Store unidentified remains from brooks county, aid bcso in search and recovery, affiliated with brooks county sheriffs office, identify deceased migrants crossing the Texas border

What makes a case medicolegally significant?

ID unknown, unnatural or unattended death, remains are human, remains are primarily skeletal (esp if fragmentary), human remains are recent

What makes a case forensic vs archeological?

After 50 yrs, a skeleton is considered archeological

Origin of coroners

Originally created in 11th century England as tax collectors with the authority to arrest sheriffs. By the 12th century they oversaw death investigation, mostly bc they oversaw who inherited the deceased’s assets after death. NO autopsies, but would charge death taxes on the families of the deceased. Didn’t determine cause of death. In 1887 the coroners act repealed most of their powers and limited them to death investigation.

Coroner’s role in the modern us

Elected officials with NO required medical expertise, in the 1880’s was seen as the common man’s office. The 1900s saw a push to make coroners trained physicians, but this failed. The first us coroner was Thomas Baldridge

Coroners jury

Group assembled to assist coroner, also had no medical training

How is death investigation organized in the us today?

There are four different types of system each state can ascribe to

Centralized/regional ME system

14 states and DC use, no coroners, medical examiner has final say instead

County based me system

8 states have, no central me with different mes for each county

Groner’s mixed model

Has both coroner and me, 14 states

County or parish based coroner system

Each parish or county elects a coroner, 14 states

Issues with the modern me/coroner system?

Distribution of funding, lack of forensic pathologists and other specialists, outdated equipment, inconsistently implemented standards