Mar 22 2024

This Week in Forensic Science

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!

Remains of Decorated WWII Veteran Finally Identified and to be Laid to Rest in Chillicothe (The Scioto Post – 3/14/2024)

• • In 1996 human remains were found on a sand bar in the Scioto River behind Chillicothe Correctional Institute by CCI workers. Every investigative tool of the time was used but the individual was not identified.

    In early 2022 the case was reopened, and the remains were sent for DNA testing. The DNA identified the individual as a male, confirming what was discovered in 1996, but unfortunately no DNA match was identified.

    With the help of the DNA Doe Project and a new modern investigative tool called Investigative Genetic Genealogy, the individual was positively identified as Ward Raymond Thomas, born in Muskingum County on September 5, 1918. The identity was confirmed by using family comparison mitochondrial DNA.

     

     

     

Metropolitan Nashville Police Department and Othram Team to Identify 2016 John Doe (DNASolves – 3/15/2024)

• • In October 2016, the skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were discovered in Nashville, Tennessee. A volunteer crew made the initial discovery while working to clean up debris in a creek at Church Street Park. The Metropolitan Nashville Police Department responded to the scene and located the remains scattered throughout Browns Creek.

    It was determined that the remains were that of a white male who was between the ages of 40 and 66 years at the time of his death. No other identifying characteristics could be determined, and despite investigator’s efforts, the case went cold. The man became known as Browns Creek John Doe.

    In May 2022, the Metropolitan Nashville Police Department teamed with Othram to determine if advanced DNA testing and forensic genetic genealogy could help identify the man. Forensic evidence was submitted to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the forensic evidence, and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive genealogical profile for the unknown man. Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team then used this profile to conduct extensive forensic genetic genealogy research, ultimately providing new investigative leads to law enforcement.

    A follow-up investigation led investigators to relatives of the unknown man. DNA reference testing was performed, confirming the identity of the man as Kinloch Wilkinson, Jr., born December 13, 1959. Kinloch was very loved and missed by his family, who had not heard from him in over a decade.

     

Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner Teams with Othram to Identify 1977 John Doe (DNASolves – 3/15/2024)

• • In 1977, the remains of an unidentified man were discovered on the side of Enders Road in Granby, Connecticut. The man had long brown/black hair with blonde roots. His hair was pulled back into a ponytail. He had a mustache and goatee with hair that was long enough to be braided. The man was estimated to be 5’7” tall and 140 pounds in weight and he had brown eyes. The man was between 18 and 30 years of age at his time of death. Investigators estimated that only a few days had passed between the man’s time of death and time of discovery.

    In 2023, as part of an ongoing collaboration aimed at solving the backlog of cold cases in Connecticut, the Connecticut Office of the Chief Medical Examiner partnered with Othram to determine if advanced DNA testing could help to finally identify the remains of the John Doe. Forensic evidence was sent to Othram’s laboratory in The Woodlands, Texas where Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract 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 the profile in a genetic genealogy search to develop new investigative leads that were returned to investigators.

    Using these new leads, a follow-up investigation was conducted. This led investigators to Florida where possible relatives of the unidentified man reside. A reference DNA sample was collected and compared to the unknown man’s DNA profile to confirm his identity as Patrick Andrew Nopper, who was born January 26, 1955. Nopper was twenty-two years at the time of his death.

     

Anne Arundel County PD & FBI Leverage Othram’s Genetic Testing Platform to Identify a 1970 Murder Suspect (DNASolves – 3/18/2024)

• • In October 1970, 16-year-old Pamela Lynn Conyers was reported missing to the Anne Arundel County Police Department by her family when she did not return home after running an errand at the Harundale Mall. Several days after she was reported missing, the automobile that she was driving at the time of her disappearance was located in a wooded area near Mountain Road and Route 100, which was under construction at the time.

    On Tuesday, October 20, Conyer’s body was discovered a short distance from the vehicle. The manner of death was determined to be homicide. Evidence was collected at the scene, however, modern DNA testing was not available at the time. Despite exhaustive efforts from investigators, attempts to solve the murder of Pamela Conyers stalled. Last year, the FBI lead a team that produced a break in the case and finally identfiied a suspect in the murder of Conyer, Forrest Clyde Williams III. Williams, who was from Virginia, died before his identification in 2023. In addition to Williams, investigators believed there was a second suspect because a second unknown male profile was developed from crime scene evidence. The Anne Arundel County Police Department, working with the FBI, sought the assistance of Othram to determine if advanced DNA testing could help to identify the second suspect.

    In March 2023, the Anne Arundel County Police Department submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram scientists successfully developed a comprehensive DNA profile using Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing®. After successfully building the profile, the profile was then delivered to investigators who worked with the FBI’s forensic genetic genealogy team to generate new leads in the case.

    With these new investigative leads in hand, a follow-up investigation ensued. Investigators were eventually able to identify the second person responsible for the murder of Pamela Conyers as Donald Willard, formerly from Montgomery County, Maryland. Unfortunately, Willard died prior to being identified.

     

Oregon Man Found Guilty After DNA from Chewing Gum Links Him to 1980 Murder of College Student (CBS News – 3/19/2024)

• • A man living in the suburbs of Portland, Oregon, has been found guilty in the 1980 cold case murder of a 19-year-old college student after DNA from a piece of chewing gum linked him to the crime.

    In 2021, a genealogist with Parabon Nanolabs using DNA technology identified Plympton as likely linked to the DNA in the case. Detectives with the Gresham Police Department who found Plympton living in Troutdale, began conducting surveillance and collected a piece of chewing gum he had spit onto the ground, according to prosecutors.

    Police arrested Plympton after the Oregon State Police Crime Lab determined the DNA profile developed from the gum matched the DNA profile developed from swabs taken from Tucker’s body, which had been preserved.

Ouray County Sheriff’s Office and Othram Team to Identify a 1987 John Doe (DNASolves – 3/19/2024)

• In November 1987, the skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were discovered in Ouray County, Colorado. It was determined that the partial skeletal remains were that of a male. The remains were transported to the University of North Texas for further testing where anthropologists estimated that the man stood 6’1” in height and was between twenty-five and fifty years of age at the time of his death. However, investigators were unable to make other determinations about the man, including his ancestry, weight, eye color, hair color, or cause of death.

  Since the discovery of the unknown man’s remains, law enforcement investigators have diligently pursued various leads about the unknown man’s identity. Following the discovery of the remains in November 1987, the case was entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as case number #UP60579. Despite the exhaustive efforts of law enforcement, the man’s identity has remained a mystery. With few leads for investigators to pursue, the case went cold.

  In 2023, the Ouray County Sheriff’s Office teamed with Othram to determine if advanced forensic DNA testing could help establish an identity for the man or a close relative. Anyone with information that could aid in this investigation is encouraged to contact the Ouray County Sheriff’s Office by calling  970-325-7272 and referencing agency case 19OR-2780 or NamUs ID #UP60579.

   

NJIT’s Undergrad Forensics Program Awarded National Accreditation, a First in NJ (Yahoo! – 3/20/2024)

• • NJIT’s undergraduate forensic science program has been awarded full accreditation from the Forensic Science Education Programs Accreditation Commission (FEPAC) of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences — a distinction held by less than 35 undergraduate forensics programs nationwide.

    FEPAC is regarded as the main accrediting body for college-level forensic science education in the U.S., recognized by the Council for Higher Education Accreditation.

    The news marks an important milestone for NJIT’s forensic science program, which became one of the first in the state when it launched in 2018 under the university’s College of Science and Liberal Arts (CSLA).

    Since then, the program has more than tripled its enrollment — boasting one of the highest percentages of female students of any STEM degree program at NJIT while also increasing the number of Newark-area residents pursuing STEM degrees on campus through its Forensic Science Initiative.

     

Barrington Hills Police Department Teams with Othram to Identify a 1979 Homicide Victim (DNASolves – 3/20/2024)

• In August 1979, a horseback rider discovered the remains of an unidentified individual in a grassy area off Old Dundee Road in Barrington Hills, a suburban village located about 40 miles northwest of Chicago, Illinois. The Barrington Hills Police Department responded to the scene and located the partially charred torso of a white male victim. The man’s legs had been severed and his head and arms were never located. It was estimated that the man was approximately 5’7″ to 5’8″ tall and less than 50 years old at the time of his death. The man’s manner of death was homicide that took place at a location different than where the victim was found.

  With no identifying characteristics available, the identity of the man could not be determined. Despite the efforts of law enforcement, the case went cold. Details of the case were entered into the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) as UP112246.

  In 2023, the Barrington Hills Police Department partnered with Othram to determine if advanced forensic DNA testing could help to identify the murdered man. Forensic evidence was submitted to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas. Othram scientists successfully developed a DNA extract from the evidence and then used Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing® to build a comprehensive DNA profile for the man. Othram’s in-house forensic genetic genealogy team used the profile in a genetic genealogy search to develop new investigative leads that were returned to law enforcement. Using these new leads, Barrington Hills Police Department detectives conducted a follow-up investigation and made contact with a potential relative of the murdered man. Follow-up DNA testing confirmed the identity of the man as Joseph A. Caliva, who was 27 years old at the time of his murder.

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