Case Studies in Forensic Anthropology

Heather M. Garvin, PhD, D-ABFA holds a B.A. in Anthropology, a B.S. in Zoology from the University of Florida, an M.S. in Forensic and Biological Anthropology from Mercyhurst College, and a PhD in Functional Anatomy and Evolution from Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine. Dr. Garvin is a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Anthropology and has served on the Editorial Board for the Journal of Forensic Sciences since 2015. A Fellow in the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and a Member of the American Association of Physical Anthropology, Dr. Garvin has been heavily involved in casework and research. She is widely published in the field and is currently Associate Professor of Anatomy at Des Moines University. Natalie R. Langley, PhD, D-ABFA received a B.A. and M.A. in anthropology from LSU and a PhD from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville. She is a Fellow of the American Academy f Forensic Sciences, and a member of the American Association of Anatomists and American Association of Clinical Anatomists. Dr. Langley has authored numerous publications, including two forensic anthropology textbooks and is currently Associate Professor of Anatomy at the Mayo Clinic College of Medicine and Science.

Introduction

Estimation of the Biological Profile & Positive Identification






Death Along the Tracks: The Role of Forensic Anthropology and Social Media in a Homicide Investigation
Eric J. Bartelink




The Skull in Concrete: A Multidisciplinary Approach to Identification
Kristen Hartnett-McCann and Ruth E. Kohlmeier




The Use of Medical Implants to Aid in the Identification Process
Jennifer Vollner




Biomechanical Analysis of Long Bones Provides the Crucial Break in Decedent Identification
Daniel J. Wescott




Race and the Role of Sociocultural Context in Forensic Anthropological Ancestry Assessment Michala K. Stock and Katie M. Rubin



Globalization, Transnationalism, and the Analytical Feasibility of Ancestry Estimation
Joseph T. Hefner and Jennifer F. Byrnes

Forensic Taphonomy




What Forensic Taphonomy Can Do for You: A Case Study in Rural Pennsylvania
Andrea M. Ost, Rhian R. Dunn, and Dennis C. Dirkmaat




Dismembered, Burned, and Dumped: But in What Order?
Lindsay H. Trammell




Body in the Barrel: Complex Body Disposal and Recovery
Soren Blau and David Ranson




Sealed for Your Protection: A Triple Homicide Involving the Use of a Corrosive Agent to Obscure Identity
Laura C. Fulginiti, Kristen M. Hartnett-McCann, and Frank Di Modica




Differential Diagnosis in Forensic Entomology: Mites vs. Pathologies and Taphonomy
César Sanabria-Medina, Luz Elena Cifuentes, and Maria Alexandra Lopez-Cerquera




Lacustrine Skeletal Taphonomy from Southeastern Tennessee
Murray K. Marks, Jonathan D. Bethard, and Darinka Mileusnic-Polchan

Trauma




Who Pulled the Trigger…First? Bone Biomechanics Recreate the Story Behind a "Police Shooting"
Steven A. Symes, Ericka N. L’Abbé, and Mark M. LeVaughn




Forensic Anthropological Contributions to Manner of Death in a Case of Multiple Suicidal Gunshot Wounds
Diana L. Messer




A Unique Case of Skeletal Trauma Involving Scissors
Alexandra R. Klales




Sharp Force Trauma with Subsequent Fire Alteration: A Complicated Case Study
Erin N. Chapman




Forensic Anthropology's Role in Clarifying Cause of Death in the Appeal of a No Body Homicide Conviction
Ashley E. Kendell, Eric J. Bartelink, and Turhon Murad

Human Rights and Mass Disasters




A Multi-Year Forensic Archaeological Recovery of Human Remains from a C-124 Cargo Aircraft Crash on Colony Glacier, Alaska, U.S.A.
Gregory E. Berg, Owen L. O’Leary, and Kelley S. Esh




Quadrilateral Defects in the Tuskulenai and Leon Trotsky Cases: Skeletal Trauma Associated with Soviet Violence in Two Different Contexts
Cate E. Bird and Rimantas Jankauskas




Sexual Offense in Skeletonized Cadavers: Analysis, Interpretation, Documentation and Case Report
César Sanabria-Medina, Jorge Andrés Franco Zuluaga, and María Alexandra Lopez-Cerquera




Making the Best of Limited Resources and Challenges Faced in Human Rights Investigations
Eugénia Cunha, Maria Teresa Ferreira, Cristina Cordeiro, and Duarte Nuno Vieira




Search for Spanish Civil War Victims in the Cemetery of Sant Ferran, Formentera (Spain): Oral Witness Testimonies, Secondary Deposition Site and Peri-Mortem Trauma
Almudena García-Rubio, Juanjo Marí Casanova, Glenda Graziani, Francisca Cardona, Pau Sureda, Sergi Moreno, Nicholas Márquez-Grant




Excavation and Analysis of Human Remains from Mass Graves in the Western Sahara
Francisco Etxeberria, Lourdes Herrasti, and Carlos Martin-Beristain

Other Considerations




The Use of Human Skeletal Remains in Palo Rituals in Orange County, Florida
John J. Schultz, Ashley E. Green, Ronald A. Murdock II, Marie H. Hansen, Joshua D. Stephany, and Jan C. Garavaglia




To Understand the Parts, it is Necessary to Understand the Whole: The Importance of Contextualizing Patterns in Forensic Anthropology Casework
Laura C. Fulginiti, Andrew Seidel, Katelyn Bolhofner




Perpetrators, Pack Rats, and Postmortem Disturbances: A Case Study Involving Multiple Contexts, Jurisdictions, and Identities
Angela Berg, Kent Buehler, and Carlos Zambrano




The Case of the … Cases: The Flow of the Ordinary into a Medical Examiner’s Office

James T. Pokines

Acknowledgements

Editor Biographies

List of Contributors

Index