No one has hours to scour the papers to keep up with the latest news, so we’ve curated the top news stories in the field of Forensic Science for this week. Here’s what you need to know to get out the door!
Third Set of Remains Found with Gunshot Wound in Search for 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre Graves, State Official Says (CBS News – 8/3/2024)
A third set of remains with a gunshot wound has been found at Tulsa cemetery in the search for graves of victims of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, according to a state official.
The remains are one of three sets exhumed so far during the latest search and were found in an area where 18 Black men killed in the massacre are believed to have been buried, Oklahoma State archaeologist Kary Stackelbeck said in a statement on social media Friday.
“We have exhumed him, he is in the forensic lab and undergoing analysis,” on-site at Tulsa’s Oaklawn Cemetery, Stackelbeck said.
The discovery comes nearly a month after the first identification of remains previously exhumed during the search for massacre victims were identified as World War I veteran C.L. Daniel from Georgia.
Volusia County Sheriff’s & Medical Examiner’s Office Team with Othram to Identify a 1978 John Doe (DNASolves – 8/4/2024)
In October 1978, the partial skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were discovered on the property of what was then the Volusia County FFA Agriculture Farm. The land in DeLand, Florida now belongs to the Volusia County Farm Bureau. DeLand is a city in central Florida, just 35 miles north of the business district of Orlando. Investigators arrived at the scene, and the Volusia County Medical Examiner’s Office determined that the remains were that of a male between the ages of 21 and 35. At the time of the man’s discovery, he had remnants of gold foil restoration on the surface of several teeth.
Upon further examination, the individual’s ancestry could not be definitively determined, and his cause of death was likely due to natural causes. It was also determined that the time between death and the discovery of the remains was more than 18 months. After the remains were recovered, details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP1381. Despite investigators’ efforts to identify the man, his identity remains a mystery.
In 2024, in collaboration with the Volusia County Medical Examiner’s Office, the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office partnered with Othram to determine if advanced DNA testing can help identify the man. Anyone with information that could aid in the investigation is encouraged to contact the Volusia County Sheriff’s Office by calling 386-736-5961 and referencing agency case number 1978-00388.
Authorities in Florida Identify Murder Suspect From 1972 (Forensic – 8/5/2024)
After finally identifying a “Jane Doe” murder victim in Florida from 52 years ago earlier this year, police have now identified the person most likely responsible for the killing.
Authorities last week said during a press conference that Jerry Lee Fletcher, who died in prison in 2014, is the individual responsible for the death of his ex-wife Peggy Joyce Shelton in Hillsborough County.
Joyce was originally discovered wrapped in a blanket in a wooden area of Brooksville. While Shelton and Fletcher were married, it took more than 50 years to identify Shelton largely because she had no criminal record and was never reported missing.
Riverside County District Attorney, Sheriff’s Office, and California DOJ Team with Othram to Identify a 1988 Homicide Victim (DNASolves – 8/6/2024)
In December 1988, the remains of an unidentified individual were discovered on the 300 block of East 4th Street in Perris, California. Perris is located nearly halfway between Los Angeles and San Diego. Investigators believed that the woman was likely between the ages of 30 and 40 years old. She stood 5’9” tall and weighed approximately 105 pounds. Her death was ruled a homicide.
Investigators observed that the woman had multiple tattoos, including the head of a horse that turned into a flower, a depiction of a Harley Davidson eagle with the name “John” underneath, and a rose with leaves and the name “Stoney” underneath. She also had pierced ears. A forensic sketch depicting how the woman may have looked during her life was developed and released to the public in hopes that it would generate leads about the woman’s identity. Despite the extensive efforts of law enforcement to identify the woman, no matches were found, and the case went cold due to a lack of viable leads. Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP7120.
In 2022, the Riverside County District Attorney’s Office, in collaboration with the California Department of Justice, submitted skeletal evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas, to determine if advanced DNA testing could help identify the woman. Funding for Othram’s casework costs was provided by the Roads to Justice (RTJ) program. Othram scientists developed a DNA extract from the remains and used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile for the unknown woman. Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team used the profile in a genetic genealogy search to produce new investigative leads, which were provided to law enforcement.
Using this new information, a follow-up investigation was conducted, leading investigators to potential relatives of the woman. This investigation led to the positive identification of the woman, who is now known to be 25-year-old Jacqueline “Jackie” Danette Ebel, born January 2, 1963. Ebel was reported missing in Long Beach only days prior to the discovery of her body. Ebel had lived in Long Beach and Bellflower at times and had previously used Yonkers and Palmer as surnames.
Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner Team with Othram to Identify a 2023 John Doe (DNASolves – 8/6/2024)
In September 2023, the partial skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were discovered by a maintenance diver at the Lawrence Hydroelectric Plant in Lawrence, Massachusetts. Lawrence is located north of Boston on the Merrimack River. The remains were found approximately 60 feet underwater along with a blue shirt, a black jacket, and a pair of thermal underwear pants, all of which were found against the water intake grate. The remains were sent to the Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner where it was determined the individual was a male who stood between 5’3” and 5’ 11” tall and estimated to be between 18 and 39 years old.
In December 2023, details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP113405. Despite extensive efforts by law enforcement investigators to identify the man, no matches were found, and the case went cold due to a lack of investigative leads.
In 2024, the Massachusetts Office of the Chief Medical Examiner submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas to determine if advanced DNA testing could help to identify the man. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the forensic evidence and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile for the unknown man. Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team used this profile to conduct genealogy research, ultimately providing new investigative leads to law enforcement.
Using this new information, a follow-up investigation was conducted leading investigators to potential relatives of the man. Reference DNA samples were collected from a potential relative and compared to the DNA profile of the unknown man. This investigation led to the positive identification of the man. His identity is not being released at this time.
From Vikings to Beethoven: What Your DNA Says About Your Ancient Relatives (Nature – 8/7/2024)
Scientists are using consumer-genomics databases to link living people to ancestors from the recent and not-so-recent past. But the meaning of these connections isn’t always clear.
DNA Evidence Connects Accused Serial Killer to Three Cold Cases in Southern California (CBS News – 8/7/2024)
North Carolina law enforcement extradited an accused serial killer to Southern California on Tuesday after prosecutors connected him to three killings from the 1970s.
The Ventura County District Attorney’s Office charged Mississippi native Warren Luther Alexander, 73, with three counts of first-degree murder after he allegedly strangled three women to death decades ago. Detectives connected him to the killings after law enforcement in North Carolina arrested him for another cold case murder from 1992.
The alleged murders of Kimberly Carol Fritz, Velvet Ann Sanchez and Lorraine Ann Rodriguez happened months apart in 1977. While detectives exhausted all leads in their initial investigation, investigators reopened the case 46 years later in February 2023. The Ventura County Sheriff’s Office assigned the case to its Cold Case Unit.
Detectives said the breakthrough in the case happened thanks to DNA evidence collected at the crime scene and victims decades ago.
Skeletal Remains Found in Talladega Brush Fire Identified as Missing Man (WVTM13 – 8/7/2024)
A three-year-old missing persons case has finally been solved after first responders made a grisly discovery in Talladega.
On March 29, firefighters responded to a brush fire behind Marvin’s hardware store in Talladega, according to the Talladega Police Department.
After the fire was extinguished, the skeletal remains of a human were found in the underbrush.
Police investigators, alongside technicians from the Jax State Center for Applied Forensics and the Talladega County Coroner’s Office, were called to the scene and transported the remains to the Department of Forensic Sciences in Montgomery.
On Monday, investigators were notified that a positive DNA identification had been made.
The remains were identified as those of Joe Samuel Whitson, a Talladega man whose family reported him missing in February 2021.
Man Found at Montreal River Harbour Identified: DNA Doe Project Resolves 2017 Cold Case (DNA Doe Project – 8/7/2024)
Skeletonized remains found in 2017 in the Montreal River Harbour area of Ontario have been identified. Authorities are withholding the man’s name at the request of his family. The DNA Doe Project, working with the Ontario Provincial Police, resolved the case using investigative genetic genealogy, using a DNA profile developed from unidentified remains and uploaded to public databases to build a family tree for the unidentified person. Analysis of the relative matches to the DNA profile and each other is used to identify a candidate lead that is confirmed by law enforcement through traditional means like fingerprints or familial DNA comparison with close family members.
When research started, genealogists noticed that the DNA relative matches were clustered in two Canadian provinces – Ontario and Newfoundland.
Two of the identified man’s second cousins had uploaded their DNA profiles to GEDmatch, one of three DNA databases that can be used for investigative genetic genealogy. Investigators with the DNA Doe Project identified their great grandparents, and then located the correct branch of the family tree. His mother’s family were from Newfoundland, and his father’s from Ontario.
A proof of life search found no sign of the man after he was mentioned in his father’s 2004 obituary, but currency found with his remains was printed in 2016. Authorities estimated he had died up to a year and a half before his remains were found in July, 2017.
“We had the right matches to resolve this case quickly,” said team co-leader Matthew Waterfield. “Between the maternal second cousins and a few in the third cousin range on the paternal side, we were able to find his name within a couple of hours.”
The DNA Doe Project is grateful to the groups and individuals who helped solve this case: the Ontario Provincial Police, who entrusted the case to the DNA Doe Project; Astrea Forensics for sample prep and whole-genome sequencing; Kevin Lord for bioinformatics; GEDmatch Pro for providing their database; and DDP’s dedicated teams of volunteer investigative genetic genealogists who work tirelessly to bring all our Jane and John Does home.
Forensic Science Cracks the ‘Unsolvable’ Case of a World War I Soldier’s Identity, Enabling His Re-burial (The Conversation – 8/8/2024)
In the early hours of July 18, 1918, the Franco-American counter-offensive against German positions began at Aisne-Marne in northern France. The first division of the American Expeditionary Force (AEF) drove the German forces back, but not without significant losses.
By the end of the assault, more than 1,000 US soldiers were unaccounted for – the fate of their mortal remains unknown. But 85 years later French archaeologists conducting salvage work ahead of a construction job on what would have been the centre of the battlefield encountered the remains of two American soldiers.
One of the two men, Private Francis Lupo, was easily identified because his name was embossed on his wallet, and he was laid to rest in Arlington National Cemetery with full military honours in 2006. But the other man proved more difficult. The remains of Private 1st Class Charles McAllister took two decades to be identified, but the young man will now finally be laid to rest with full military honours in his home town of Seattle. The burial will take place on August 21.
Forensic Scientist Protects the Innocent (Taylor University – 8/8/2024)
The brokenness of the world is on full display for those working in law enforcement. However, Taylor Chemistry alumnus Jacob Scott ’18 has hope every day because of his faith in Christ. Jacob works for the Indiana State Police as a forensic scientist, testing evidence from crime scenes for the presence of controlled substances.
Despite the nature of his job, examining the depravity of humanity, Jacob finds joy in knowing that he is having an impact on society.
“What I’m doing protects people from others who are committing crimes or exonerates people who are accused of committing crimes but haven’t,” Jacob said. “That’s important to me.”
The last two summers, Jacob has returned to campus to help at Taylor’s Forensic Science camp for a day. He gives a presentation about different roles and jobs in a forensic science laboratory and later helps students as they perform experiments that Jacob uses every day.
High school students at Forensic Science camp spend a week learning how crime scene investigators use science to unravel mysteries. Students get hands-on experience with standard procedures and techniques, ultimately applying their new skills to a mock crime scene investigation in which they are responsible for solving the mystery.
