Anthropological Investigations of the Tri-State rematorium Incident

Steadman, Dawnie Wolfe; Sperry, Kris; Snow, F S; Fulginiti, Laura C.; Craig, Emily

doi:10.1007/978-1-59745-316-5_5

Cited by 9 publications

(9 citation statements)

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“…The identification of burnt bone therefore might not always be a straightforward matter, as to the untrained eye charred or calcined remains can easily be overlooked, or on the contrary, other debris can mimic the appearance of charred bone. This can pose problems for forensic personnel, whether they are tasked with the recovery of remains from a fatal fire scene or confronted with the identification of contested cremains, as was the case in the 2002 Tri-State crematory incident (1). This paper proposes the use of scanning electron microscopyenergy-dispersive x-ray (SEM-EDX) as a rapid diagnostic tool to determine whether a sample is of osseous origin.…”

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confidence: 99%

Scanning Electron Microscopy–Energy‐Dispersive X‐Ray (SEM/EDX): A Rapid Diagnostic Tool to Aid the Identification of Burnt Bone and Contested Cremains

Ellingham

Thompson

Islam

2017

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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This study investigates the use of Scanning electron microscopy-energy-dispersive X-ray (SEM-EDX) as a diagnostic tool for the determination of the osseous origin of samples subjected to different temperatures. Sheep (Ovis aries) ribs of two experimental groups (fleshed and defleshed) were burned at temperatures of between 100°C and 1100°C in 100°C increments and subsequently analyzed with the SEM-EDX to determine the atomic percentage of present elements. Three-factor ANOVA analysis showed that neither the exposure temperature, nor whether the burning occurred with or without soft tissue present had any significant influence on the bone's overall elemental makeup (p > 0.05). The Ca/P ratio remained in the osseous typical range of between 1.6 and 2.58 in all analyzed samples. This demonstrates that even faced with high temperatures, the overall gross elemental content and atomic percentage of elements in bone remain stable, creating a unique "fingerprint" for osseous material, even after exposure to extreme conditions.

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confidence: 99%

Scanning Electron Microscopy–Energy‐Dispersive X‐Ray (SEM/EDX): A Rapid Diagnostic Tool to Aid the Identification of Burnt Bone and Contested Cremains

Ellingham

Thompson

Islam

2017

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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“…Due to this trend toward greater use of cremation, the number of litigations against funeral homes and cremation facilities is expected to increase (2)(3)(4). Forensic anthropologists are often asked to determine whether the contents of an urn are consistent with cremains, and also to address questions regarding the identity of the remains (2,(5)(6)(7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)(14)(15). In previous research, metric analysis has been successful for identifying inconsistencies between a set of cremains and a decedent using equations that take into account aspects of the biological profile, such as sex, stature, and weight (2,5,11,14,16).…”

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A Case of Contested Cremains Analyzed Through Metric and Chemical Comparison

Bartelink

Sholts

Milligan

et al. 2015

Journal of Forensic Sciences

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Since the 1980s, cremation has become the fastest growing area of the U.S. funeral industry. At the same time, the number of litigations against funeral homes and cremation facilities has increased. Forensic anthropologists are often asked to determine whether the contents of an urn are actually cremated bone, and to address questions regarding the identity of the remains. This study uses both metric and chemical analyses for resolving a case of contested cremains. A cremains weight of 2021.8 g was predicted based on the decedent's reported stature and weight. However, the urn contents weighed 4173.5 g. The urn contents also contained material inconsistent with cremains (e.g., moist sediment, stones, ferrous metal). Analysis using XRD and SEM demonstrated that the urn contained thermally altered bone as well as inorganic material consistent with glass fiber cement. Although forensically challenging, cremains cases such as this one can be resolved using a multidisciplinary approach.

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“…Several class-action suits of note have involved literally hundreds of plaintiffs-each with potentially millions of dollars at stake (Bass and Jefferson 2003;Iverson 2001;Maples and Browning 1994). Several of these cases have received national media attention, such as the Tri-State Crematory case (Steadman et al 2008). As a result, crematories and funeral homes have been placed under public scrutiny as industry standards and practices are developed and instituted.…”

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confidence: 99%