Identification and Notification of Next of Kin in Forensic Context

Identification Importance

• Accurate identification is crucial for multiple reasons:
  • Notification of Next of Kin: Ensures family members are informed.
  • Disbursement of Wills / Insurance: Necessary for financial legalities.
  • Certifying Death Certificate: An essential legal document post-death.
  • Law Enforcement: Helps in investigations and understanding death circumstances.

Challenges in Identification

• Unidentified Decedents: Often arise from:
  • Composure issues (e.g., Decomposition, Skeletization)
  • Trauma-related damage (e.g., Burning, Charring)
  • Absence of identification documents.

Team Approach to Identification

• Utilize a Specialist Team for thorough identification:
  • Fingerprint Examiner: Analyzes fingerprints.
  • Forensic Odontologist: Examines dental records.
  • Serologist: Analyzes bodily fluids.
  • Trace Evidence Examiner: Looks for trace evidence.
  • Forensic Anthropologist: Studies human remains.
  • Entomologist: Uses insect activity to estimate time of death.
  • Forensic Photographer: Captures crime scene evidence.
  • Artist/Sculptor: Creates reconstructions or depictions.

Identification Initiatives

• Initial Steps: Determine if remains are human.
• Start Identification at the Scene:
  • Collect personal effects.
  • Gather clues about the decedent's activities and history.
  • Ensure complete recovery of remains and relevant evidence through ground searches, sifting, aerial photography, and vegetation removal.

Certainty of Identification

• Levels of Certainty:
  • Definitive: Legally sufficient ID based on clear comparison of antemortem and postmortem data.
  • Presumptive: Established ID that suggests a connection but cannot exclude other possibilities.
  • Speculative: Lowest certainty; remains unidentified.

Definitive Identification Methods

• Methods Used:
  • Visual Recognition: By individuals who knew the decedent.
  • Fingerprint Comparison: Reliable method for identification.
  • Dental Records: Compare dentition.
  • Radiographs: Use X-ray images.
  • DNA Analysis: Crucial for precise identification.

DNA in Identification

• DNA Overview:
  • Unique genetic fingerprint within cells.
  • Mitochondrial DNA: Passed from mother to offspring unchanged.
  • PCR Testing and STR Testing: Advanced methods requiring less DNA from more degraded materials.
• Rapid DNA Technology: Demonstrated effectiveness in quick identification as seen in the Santa Barbara incident involving 34 fatalities.

Presumptive Identification Methods

• Common Clues:
  • Clothing, scars, tattoos, birthmarks, deformities.
  • Circumstantial details such as being found in a sealed residence.

Examination of Unidentified Individuals

• Comprehensive external and internal examination includes:
  • External scars, birthmarks, tattoos, and congenital abnormalities.
  • Surgical absences, diseases, and the presence of medical devices.
  • Full body radiographs for internal details.

Limitations of Visual Identification

• Challenges:
  • Denial or trauma affecting recognition.
  • Postmortem changes impacting appearance.
  • Potential crime scene cover-ups.

Personal Effects and Identification

• Evidence Collection:
  • Clothing and personal items should be documented, inventoried, and photographed.
  • Items include keys, jewelry, and papers which may assist in identification.

Fingerprint Identification

• History and Use:
  • Used since 8th Century China; formalized in 1903 USA.
  • Present after 12 weeks of gestation.
  • Utilized by local, state, and national law enforcement via systems like AFIS.

Notification Procedures

• Responsibility:
  • Government Code 27471 outlines the coroner's duty to locate next of kin.
  • Use various means such as questioning acquaintances, phone records, and online databases for contact.

Emotional Responses to Notification

• Grief Reactions can include:
  • Shock, anger, guilt, and shame; all normal to sudden loss.
  • Kubler-Ross stages of grief: Denial, Bargaining, Anger, Depression, Acceptance.

Next of Kin Rights and Responsibilities

• Health and Safety Code 7100(a) identifies who holds the rights for remains disposition:
  1. Power of Attorney for Health Care
  2. Surviving Spouse or Domestic Partner
  3. Surviving Adult Children (majority rule)
  4. Surviving Parents
  5. Surviving Siblings (majority rule)
  6. Grandparents
  7. Nieces & Nephews
  8. Cousins

Special Considerations for Control of Remains

• Legal Limitations: If the person with right of control is charged with serious crimes related to the decedent’s death, control passes to the next eligible kin as per Health & Safety Code 7100.1.

Consequences of Inaction

• Health and Safety Code 7105(a): Failure to act within a stipulated time results in relinquishing the control right to the next of kin.
• Duty of Internment: Under Code 7103, neglecting this duty is a misdemeanor.