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!
New York State Police and the FBI Leverage Othram’s Identity Inference Platform to Identify a 1970 Homicide Victim (DNASolves – 3/12/2026)
In March 1970, the decapitated remains of an unidentified individual were found on a rural road in Allegany County, near Andover, New York. The New York State Police responded and began collecting evidence and investigating. They determined the remains were an adult man whose head and hands had been removed with an “X” carved in his chest. Investigators determined he was likely the victim of a gangland killing.
Despite a lengthy investigation, the man could not be identified and became known as Allegany County John Doe (1970). Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP16681.
In 2023, investigators teamed with Othram to leverage identity inference, a process that enables investigators to identify individuals from DNA evidence, even when there is no known reference sample to initially compare against. Officials with the New York State Police submitted forensic evidence to Othram’s laboratory headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas.
At Othram, scientists reviewed details of the case, determining that advanced DNA testing could help to identify the man. Othram scientists worked to develop a DNA extract from the provided skeletal remains, using Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive SNP profile that was returned to the FBI’s forensic genetic genealogy team, which used the profile to generate new investigative leads.
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 relative and compared to the DNA profile of the unidentified man. This investigation led to the positive identification of the man, who is now known to be Clyde A. Coppage. Clyde Coppage was a 35-year-old living in Genesee, Pennsylvania at the time of his disappearance. Coppage was not originally from the area and had never been reported missing.
Blount County Sheriff’s Office, University of Tennessee Forensic Anthropology Center, and Tennessee Bureau of Investigation Team with Othram to Identify a 1981 John Doe (DNASolves – 3/17/2026)
On April 4, 1981, a local hunter discovered the body of a man in the East Miller’s Cove area of Blount County, Tennessee. Blount County is just south of Knoxville, Tennessee. Investigators responded to the scene and began collecting evidence and investigating. A forensic anthropology examination determined that the remains were those of a white man who was likely between the ages of 18 to 35 years old when he died, likely sometime between 1977 and 1980.
Investigators with the Blount County Sheriff’s Office worked to determine the victim’s identity using the technology available at the time. Despite their efforts, the man could not be identified and he became known as Knoxville John Doe (1988). In 2007, an STR DNA profile was developed and entered into the Combined DNA Index System (CODIS) and the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) in hopes of identifying the man. However, no matches were found. Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP1591.
In 2025, as part of the Tenneesee Bureau of Investigation’s Unidentified Human Remains Initiative, TBI agents began working with the Blount County Sheriff’s Office to submit a sample of the remains to Othram for identity inference, a process that enables investigators to identify individuals from DNA evidence, even when there is no known reference sample to initially compare against.
In April 2025, forensic evidence was submitted to Othram’s laboratory headquartered in The Woodlands, Texas. At Othram, scientists worked to develop a DNA extract from the provided skeletal remains, and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive SNP profile for the John Doe. This SNP profile powered a forensic search led by Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team, resulting in new investigative leads about the man’s identity.
TBI agents and Blount County detectives conducted a follow-up investigation, leading investigators to potential relatives of the man. Reference DNA samples were collected from a relative and compared to the DNA profile of the unidentified man. This investigation led to the man’s positive identification as William Thomas Green, who was born March 29, 1942. Green was originally from the Knoxville area. It was further determined that Green was last seen by family members in Knoxville around 1977.
STRmix™ Has Produced DNA Evidence in Over 700,000 Criminal Cases Worldwide (STRmix – 3/17/2026)
STRmix™ forensic software has produced usable, interpretable, and legally admissible DNA evidence in at least 700,000 criminal cases worldwide since its introduction in 2012, according to the results of the Annual STRmix™ User Survey.
Now in use in more than 96 federal, state, local, and private organizations in the U.S. and 30 forensic laboratories internationally – including Canada, the United Kingdom, Europe, Asia, the Middle East, the Caribbean, and all nine state and territory forensic labs in New Zealand and Australia – STRmix™ has proven to be highly effective in resolving violent crime and sexual assault cases, as well as cold cases in which evidence originally dismissed as inconclusive was able to be re-examined.
“The popularity of STRmix™ is due in no small measure to its ability to interpret DNA results faster than the previous binary interpretation method and use more of the information in a DNA profile,” explains STRmix™ co-developer Dr. Jo-Anne Bright, a Senior Science Leader within the STRmix team at the New Zealand Institute for Public Health and Forensic Science Limited (PHF Science).
The Annual STRmix™ User Survey also found that a significant number of laboratories are using Y-STR DNA profiling methods in casework, highlighting the value of the work the STRmix team is putting into the development of probabilistic approaches to the interpretation of Y-STRs (Y-chromosome Short Tandem Repeats – male-specific genetic markers).
As part of this development, the STRmix team is currently undertaking a large Y-STR sensitivity and specificity study using likelihood ratios. The team is also investigating the transferability of interpretation parameters between laboratories.
Beyond STRmix™ use, the latest STRmix™ User Survey found that forensic laboratories increasingly are looking at adopting a wide array of technologies in the short- to medium-term. These technologies include Y-STR profiling, Autosomal NGS, Pedigree analysis, SNP interpretation, Database searching of mixtures, and Forensic Investigative Genetic Genealogy.
“The STRmix team’s development program aims to directly respond to the current and future needs of our users, enabling them to better address the on-the-job issues they regularly encounter,” notes Dr. Bright. “This includes developments to address interpretation of NGS and Y-STR profiles.”
The latest version of STRmix™, released in fall 2025, adds significant new features to previous versions of the software, including new functionality in the Batch Maker module which allows forensic analysts to set up replicate inputs for interpretations.
STRmix™ 2.13 also expands the visualization features first introduced in STRmix™ 2.12 by introducing a Visualize Evidence function to ignore any peak in the electropherogram representation of the evidence input file. In addition, 2.13 enables forensic laboratories to set up multiple PDF report templates and choose to automatically generate more than one report at a time for a given calculation.
The team behind STRmix™ has also developed and regularly updated three related software applications:
• DBLR™, an application which when used with STRmix™ allows forensic laboratories to undertake extensive kinship analysis, carry out rapid database searches and mixture-to-mixture matches, and visualize the value of their DNA mixture evidence;
• FaSTR™ DNA, expert forensic software which seamlessly integrates with STRmix™ (when in use) to rapidly analyze raw DNA data and assign a number of contributors (NoC) estimate;
• STRmix™ NGS, fully continuous mixture interpretation and likelihood ratio generation software for profiles generated using Next Generation Sequencing.In combination with STRmix™, FaSTR™ DNA and DBLR™ complete the full workflow from analysis to interpretation and database matching, while STRmix™ NGS broadens the range of profile types that can be interpreted.
Seminole County Sheriff’s Office and Georgia Bureau of Investigation Leverage Othram’s Identity Inference Platform to Identify a 1976 John Doe (DNASolves – 3/17/2026)
In December 1976, the skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were found in the woods near the Chattahoochee River in Donalsonville, Georgia. The Seminole County Sheriff’s Office responded and began collecting evidence and investigating. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation Medical Examiner’s Office determined the remains belonged to a Black man who was likely 50 years old or older who had died approximately six months prior. The man was found wearing size 32 pants, white boxer-style underwear, a white handkerchief, and one black or dark blue sock.
Despite a lengthy investigation, the man could not be identified and became known as Seminole County John Doe (1976). Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP2127.
In 2024, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation Cold Case Unit submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas to determine if advanced DNA testing could help identify the man. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the provided evidence and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile suitable for forensic genetic genealogy. Upon completion of the process, this profile was returned to law enforcement, enabling the Georgia Bureau of Investigation’s Cold Case Unit to conduct a genealogical search to generate new investigative leads. These leads powered a follow-up investigation, allowing investigators to narrow in on the man’s possible identity.
A reference DNA sample was collected from a potential relative and compared to the DNA profile of the unknown man using Othram’s KinSNP® Rapid Relationship Testing. This investigation led to the positive identification of the man, who is now known to be Curtis Lee Jones, whose cause of death is listed as undetermined.
Team Develops New Method for Simultaneous Analysis of DNA and Fingerprints (Forensic – 3/18/2026)
A research team in Poland has developed a new forensic method that allows more information to be obtained from a single sample by taking an interdisciplinary approach.
Research lead Aneta Lewkowicz from the University of Gdansk says the new method combines fingerprint analysis with DNA analysis as well as analysis of biomolecules present in sweat and sebum. This allows a single procedure to obtain more information from a single trace.
“Combining these two approaches into a single coherent protocol can significantly increase the evidential value of the material obtained. It can also streamline the work of the investigating authorities and those working directly with the traces,” said Lewkowicz.
N.C. College Adds Forensic Science Specialization (Forensic – 3/18/2026)
Beginning Fall 2026, students in the college’s Criminal Justice and Biology programs will have a new specialization to add to their majors. Forensic Science is a cross-disciplinary specialization that will expand the potential career paths of students in both fields and create new opportunities for experiential learning.
Assistant Dean of Education and Social Sciences Jerry Turbyfill is piloting the specialization’s first course, Forensics (CRI 270), this semester, providing students with a crash course on the many facets of the discipline. The course includes learning to file search warrants and create crime scene sketches, collecting fingerprints, DNA, and hair and fiber evidence, analyzing blood splatter, understanding computer and cell phone evidence, and more.
“This course is the most experiential one that I teach,” Turbyfill said. “It should be a pretty fascinating course. There’s so much material here that it could be 10 courses, but we have to just touch on each one.”
In addition to the course requirements for the Criminal Justice and Biology majors, students earning the Forensic Science specialization take Turbyfill’s course, along with Human Anatomy and Physiology (BIO 271), Forensic Genetics (BIO 250), and General Chemistry I (CHM 111). Each of these three courses also require students to take an associated lab.
How a Forensic Anthropologist Thinks About Human Remains Research — and What It Means for Our Humanity (NIST – 3/18/2026)
As a person who studies how bodies decompose, I think a lot about something most people probably prefer not to think about — death.
I’m a forensic anthropologist by training, a type of scientist who offers expertise in the decomposition of human bodies to legal investigations. Forensic anthropologists help law enforcement and medical examiners learn as much as they can about human remains, such as age, sex and time of death. And our research helps practitioners solve crimes and give families closure in mysterious death cases.
Forensic anthropologists couldn’t do what they do without the donated human remains used in our research. When I was conducting research in this area, I treated those remains with the utmost respect and care — as most in our forensic anthropology community do.
Human remains research is not governed by the same regulations and ethical principles as research involving living people. While many organizations may have their own procedures for the respectful treatment of human remains in research and teaching, including gaining family consent, there remain inconsistencies in approaches. Recently discovered lapses in these practices show the need for standard guidance that organizations can adopt. This is something I’ve worked on here at NIST.