Luminol and the postmortem interval estimation - influence of taphonomic factors.

The estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI) is one of the key challenges for forensic anthropologists. Although there are several methods referenced for this purpose, none is sufficiently effective. One of the main reasons justifying the complexity of this task is the influence of several taphonomic factors.The study of the Luminol technique has stood out as a promising method for estimating PMI, complementing the existing methods, since it is an economic, easy and reproducible method that operates as a presumptive test. However, it is not known which taphonomic factors can influence the results obtained by this technique.The aim of this study is to test the influence of taphonomic factors, such as temperature, humidity, soil type and pH, on the estimation of the PMI by the Luminol technique.In order to test the influence of the referred factors, a sample consisting of 30 clavicles, with known and similar PMI, collected from autopsies, was distributed as evenly as possible by six vases and buried with different decomposition conditions for a period of 12 months. After the exhumation and sample preparation, the Luminol technique was applied.It was possible to clearly observe differences in the results. Thus, according to our research, it is possible to conclude that the results obtained by the application of Luminol are influenced by taphonomic factors. Therefore, the context in which a body is found should always be considered for applying this technique.

Erosional exhumation of carbonate rock facilitates dispersal-mediated allopatric speciation in freshwater fishes.

A fundamental goal of evolutionary biology is to understand the mechanisms that generate and maintain biodiversity. Discovery and delimitation of species represent essential prerequisites for such investigations. We investigate a freshwater fish species complex comprising Etheostoma bellator and the endangered E. chermocki, which is endemic to the Black Warrior River system in Alabama, USA, a global hotspot of temperate freshwater biodiversity. Phylogenomic analyses delimit five geographically disjunct species masquerading as E. bellator. Three of these new species exhibit microendemic distributions comparable to that of E. chermocki raising the possibility that they also require protection. The species of the complex are found in streams flowing over carbonate rock and they are separated by waterways flowing over siliciclastic rock, a geographic pattern dictated by the underlying stratigraphy and structural geology. Over time, rivers have eroded downward through layers of siliciclastic rocks in the basin, gradually exposing underlying carbonate rock, the substrate of suitable habitat today. Our results suggest that episodic dispersal to patches of suitable habitat set the stage for allopatric speciation in the species complex. Our study suggests that the presence of heterogeneous rock can facilitate dispersal-mediated allopatric speciation in freshwater organisms in the absence of external tectonic or climatic perturbations.

A fatal suicidal sodium nitrite ingestion determined six days after death.

Sodium nitrite (SN) is an inorganic salt that appears as a slightly yellowish crystalline solid, odorless, and highly soluble in water at room temperature. It is highly toxic to humans at specific doses because it can oxidize hemoglobin to methemoglobin, causing severe tissue hypoxia. A 20-year-old woman was unconscious in her bedroom and died shortly after that. Two days later, following the discovery of a jar of SN and a paper in which were written instructions on how to take it (and the website from which the procedure was learned) in the same room were death occurred, the Judicial Authority ordered the execution of the autopsy on the exhumed body of the young woman. The autopsy procedure was performed ∼ 2h after exhumation. It showed greyish-purple hypostasis, labial cyanosis, stomach distension and greenish color but empty, subpleural petechiae, brownish fluid in the pleural cavities (∼300 ml), congested and edematous lungs and diffuse visceral congestion. At autopsy, foamy liquid was observed at the lung section and subsequent squeezing. In addition, the autopsy showed edema and hemorrhagic petechiae of the laryngeal, glottal, and tracheal submucosa and green-brownish foamy liquid in the tracheal lumen. The cause of death was attributed tocardiac arrest induced by anoxia resulting from acute methemoglobinemia caused by sodium nitrite poisoning, intensified by severe malnutrition. Manner of death was suicidal.

A monument to not exhume: Silence, speech, and issues surrounding the mass grave of communist fighters at the Battle of Florina (1949), Northern Greece.

The paper opens by establishing a fact through fieldwork: a 70-year-old mass grave containing the remains of several hundred communist fighters who died in the battle of Florina (12 February 1949) was recently marked by a monument commemorating the fallen combatants. The erection of the monument (inaugurated in 2016) bypassed other sequences typically present in similar cases. None of the steps conventionally encouraged by post-conflict peacebuilding initiatives: exhuming the human remains in order to identify them, dignify them, move them (or return them to their families), and finally reinter them-was undertaken. A central piece of the memorial site built around the (quite large) spot of the mass grave, the monument de facto seals the human remains underground. In order to understand the ethnographical facts, we follow several trends of explanation. After looking at the conflict (the Greek Civil war), we show the intricacies of local panorama in which political struggle was underpinned by long-standing ethnic conflict. The nexus of memory-and-history is analyzed under two angles, the hidden memory of the defeated and the various claim on the "historical truth" laid by historical and new political formations. The struggles over "historical truth," in relation with the extremely sensitive issue of the unity of the nation (and the blame laid on some populations for "national treason") are viewed as one of the reasons for the lack of any demand for, or the practice of, transitional justice. Political agendas, along with the continuing marginalization of the most directly concerned group, are in fact obstacles to exhumation: if not feared, the identification after the removal of the dead from the mass grave was not supported by any social force or group. Other elements: specific ritual treatment of the dead in Greek culture, issues of land property and land use-are brought in line to suggest that, instead of exhuming the dead bodies, the field containing them could be more easily transformed into burial ground. The local response, as well as the initiatives taken by political actors, did all meet in one point: transforming the mass grave into a funerary site by granting it the legal status of a "green space." It is this consensus that explains why a monument to the dead was erected-so as not to have to exhume them.

The stories bones tell. Collaboration between forensic teams and victims' relatives in the interpretation and ritual accompaniment of human remains in Guatemala.

This article focuses on the collaborative practices between forensic experts and victims' relatives through the exhumation process in Guatemala. In a context where there is still no real recognition of the victims by the state, and no national common narrative about the violence of the armed conflict, exhumations have been developed in the framework of transitional justice, as a tool for victim recognition as well as historical clarification. In a post-political violence context, the exhumation process produces knowledge and narratives about the past, through the scientific analysis of human remains as material evidence, the collection of testimony, and shared stories. Based on extensive ethnographic work conducted with civil society actors involved in exhumations, this article focuses on the dynamics of production and coexistence of scientific and subjective forms of interpretation of the remains, as well as scientific and ceremonial practices of treatment of the remains. We will question how different regimes of truth coexist around the interpretation of the bones, and how forensics scientists and victims' relatives collaborate to produce them.

A re-evaluation of the peak P-T conditions of eclogite-facies metamorphism of the Paleozoic Acatlán Complex (Mexico) reveals deeper subduction.

Eclogites in the Acatlán Complex, southern Mexico, record the subduction history of the complex. Previous studies indicate that the proto-Acatlán Complex reached < 50 km depth during subduction. Yet, a recent study reported higher pressures for a single eclogite, questioning the maximum depth reached by the complex during subduction. In this work, I re-calculate eclogite pressure and temperature (P-T) conditions using thermobarometric methods applicable to eclogite-facies mafic rocks to a set of eclogites cropping out throughout the high-pressure belt of the Acatlán Complex-the Piaxtla Suite. I find that Acatlán eclogites record substantially-and systematically-greater pressures than previously reported. Calculations show that eclogites from the central part of the Piaxtla Suite (in the Piaxtla area) record consistent pressures of ~ 2.0 GPa and temperatures ranging between 460 and 675 °C. Eclogites from the northern part of the Piaxtla Suite (Mimilulco and Santa Cruz Organal areas) lack phengite, thus pressures were not calculated; temperatures calculated for these rocks at a fixed pressure (2.0 GPa) yield contrasting temperatures (511 °C and 870 °C, respectively). Mimilulco eclogite likely records similar pressures (~ 2.0 GPa) to other Piaxtla eclogites, whereas the pressures of Santa Cruz Organal eclogites might have been different, and likely experiencing a different thermal history compared to the rest of the eclogites from the Piaxtla Suite. Overall, these results indicate that the Acatlán Complex subducted to greater depths than previously thought implying a faster burial-exhumation cycle of the proto-Acatlán Complex.

3D geodynamic-geomorphologic modelling of deformation and exhumation at curved plate boundaries: Implications for the southern Alaskan plate corner.

Plate corners with extreme exhumation rates are important because they offer a perspective for understanding the interactions between tectonics and surface processes. The southern Alaskan margin with its curved convergent plate boundary and associated zones of localized uplift is a prime location to study active orogeny. Here, we present the results of fully-coupled thermo-mechanical (geodynamic) and geomorphologic numerical modelling, the design of which captures the key features of the studied area: subduction of oceanic lithosphere (Pacific plate) is adjacent to a pronounced asymmetric indenter dipping at a shallow angle (Yakutat microplate), which in turn is bounded to the east by a dextral strike-slip shear zone (Fairweather fault). The resulting first-order deformation/rock uplift patterns show strong similarities with observations. In particular, relatively young thermochronological ages are reproduced along the plate-bounding (Fairweather) transform fault and in the area of its transition to convergence (the St. Elias syntaxis). The focused exhumation of the Chugach Core also finds its equivalent in model predicted zones of high rock uplift rates in an isolated region above the indenter. From these results, we suggest that the general exhumation patterns observed in southern Alaska are controlled by mutually reinforcing effects of tectonic deformation and surface erosion processes.

Comparative analysis of fetal pig decomposition processes in burials of variable depths and wrapping.

This research examined the effects that the variables of burial depth and presence of plastic wrapping had on the decomposition rate of fetal pig (Sus scrofa) remains in a New England environment. The decomposition of 56 fetal pigs was observed in four independent variable groups: 20 cm depth unwrapped, 20 cm wrapped, 60 cm unwrapped, and 60 cm wrapped, with exhumation at months 1, 2, 3, 6, 9, 12, and 18. The authors hypothesized that the rate of decay would be slower for wrapped remains and/or for remains at a greater burial depth. Analysis of these remains consisted of preburial and postburial mass, adipocere coverage, skeletal exposure, and decomposition quantified as Total Body Score (TBS). The difference between preburial and postburial mass was reported as a loss percentage to account for varying preburial masses. Wrapping was a significant influencer of mass loss percentage, with p = 0.0298 but not for the TBS, with p = 0.17565. Burial depth did not have a significant effect on either mass loss percentage or TBS, with p = 0.1956 and 0.08969, respectively. This study suggests that wrapping has a greater influence on decomposition patterns than burial depth in this environment, particularly the mass loss percentage. It is suggested that there are limitations with the use of TBS in Postmortem Interval (PMI) estimation, such as variable burial conditions and body characteristics.

Recommendations for large-scale exhumations of Potter's Fields: Cases in the US.

Increased commitment to humanitarian identification and advances in DNA technology contribute to growing interest in large scale identification operations for unidentified, interred remains. However, scant literature discusses the practical challenges in conducting cemetery exhumations en masse for the purposes of DNA sampling and reinterment. This paper draws on a case study of cemetery exhumations conducted in the US as part of a multi-agency, multi-year endeavor, Operation UNITED. Challenges and strategies for managing logistics and manpower, locating human remains in active cemeteries, and overcoming containment and preservation issues of adult and juvenile remains are presented. This paper evidences the potential for investigation into cemetery exhumation strategies to assist in effective humanitarian identification.

Cemetery Relocations in Hidroituango: An Interdisciplinary Study.

This study realized the exhumation and transfer of human remains buried in the cemeteries at Orobajo, Barbacoas and La Fortuna (Municipality of Sabanalarga, Peque and Buriticá respectively) within the framework of "Social Management" of the Ituango Hydroelectric Project and the program Integral Restitution of Living Conditions for communities. Methods and techniques from bioanthropology, forensic sciences, archeology and Soil Sciences were used. Cemeteries were characterized by unconventional burials; moreover, documentation of tombs and burial practices were not generalized, nor did they show patterns. In the field assessment, 2,883 pit tests and soil probes using a penetrometer were carried out over a total area of 2,288 square meters. A total of 349 skeletonized human remains were exhumed, almost double of what was expected; of these, 180 were from Orabajo, 151 from Barbacoas, and 18 from La Fortuna. Though the remains showed a great deal of deterioration, age at death was determined for 59% of cases, and sex identified in 49%. Personal artifacts and clothing items were recovered along with the bones in many cases. Remains from Barbacoas and La Fortuna were given over to communities, and final dispositions were made in sites previously agreed upon (cemeteries in Peque, Buriticá and Sabanalarga respectively).

Geophysical investigation for detecting buried human remains after eight years of burial in Owo, Southwestern Nigeria.

A geophysical investigation for buried human remains after 8 years of burial involving the use of Electrical Resistivity Tomography (ERT) was carried out at Owo, Ondo State, Southwestern Nigeria. This study was aimed at identifying the burial location of a corpse buried in a coffin about 8 years ago for exhumation and reburial in another location consequent upon litigations and controversies surrounding the land of the burial. The results obtained were used to generate 2D model and different resistivity maps which were able to identify suspected zone. Excavation of the suspected zone was carried out for the exhumed and relocation of the buried human remains. Electrical Resistivity has therefore been found useful in search for detecting human remains buried in a coffin with the key indicator being lower electrical resistivity relative to the surrounding area.

Hands-on training on exhumation - an approach to train forensic medicine residents in South Asia.

Forensic anthropology utilises the knowledge gained from the examination of human remains. It is a requirement for forensic medicine residents to have knowledge of forensic anthropology and exhumation. Most of the forensic medicine residents in the Indian sub-continent graduate only with a theoretical knowledge and without a proper practical training of the process involved. We demonstrate how hands-on training would be beneficial.

Drug detection in decomposed cadavers confirms testimonial evidence in a case of serial homicides.

Toxicology investigation on human's buried dead bodies is a rare and challenging task in the forensic field. As requested by the Judicial Authority, this work aimed to verify testimonial evidence that emerged during a criminal investigation involving multiple murder cases. The statements indicated an improper medical administration of one or more alleged drugs (propofol, morphine, diazepam, and midazolam) which presumably caused the deaths. Since the supposed crimes took place several years before, the task of the present work was to obtain results to support the charges. The analyses involved 18 biological samples taken from four exhumed bodies, three of which were female and one male, each buried in a different date and mode. Each sample was treated with specific purification and extraction techniques (LLE - SPE) after the addition of the deuterated analogs of the searched analytes (propofol-d17, morphine-d3, diazepam-d5, midazolam-d4) as internal standards. Afterwards, the extracts were subjected to qualitative analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry-Electron Impact (GC/MS - EI), both in full scan and SIM mode. Propofol, morphine, and diazepam were identified in the corpses. It supports testimonials that were administered just before the deaths occurred.

Detection and infectivity of SARS-CoV-2 in exhumated corpses.

Postmortem detection of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus type 2 (SARS-CoV-2) after the exhumation of a corpse can become important, e.g. in the case of subsequent medical malpractice allegations. To date, data on possible detection periods [e.g. by reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)] or on the potential infectivity of the virus after an exhumation are rare. In the present study, these parameters were examined in two cases with a time span of approximately 4 months between day of death and exhumation. Using SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR on swabs of both lungs and the oropharynx detection was possible with cycle threshold (Ct) values of about 30 despite signs of beginning decay. RT-PCR testing of perioral and perinasal swabs and swabs collected from the inside of the body bag, taken to estimate the risk of infection of those involved in the exhumation, was negative. Cell culture-based infectivity testing was negative for both, lung and oropharyngeal swabs. In one case, RT-PCR testing at the day of death of an oropharyngeal swab showed almost identical Ct values as postmortem testing of an oropharyngeal swab, impressively demonstrating the stability of viral RNA in the intact corpse. However, favorable climatic conditions in the grave have to be taken into account, as it was wintertime with constant low temperatures. Nevertheless, it was possible to demonstrate successful postmortem detection of SARS-CoV-2 infection following exhumation even after months in an earth grave.

Determination of drugs in exhumed liver and brain tissue after over 9 years of burial by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry-Part 2: Benzodiazepines, opioids, and further drugs.

In this publication, benzodiazepines, opioids, and further drugs were analyzed in exhumed brain and liver tissue samples in 116 cases (total) after 9.5-16.5 years of burial. Solid phase extraction followed by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry was applied. Data from literature is listed summarizing the detectability of the presented analytes after a certain time of burial. In our study, 60% of the analyzed benzodiazepines, 100% of the opioids, and 82% of further drugs were detectable. Only the benzodiazepines lorazepam, nitrazepam, flunitrazepam, and its metabolite norflunitrazepam, and the drugs butylscopolamine, metronidazole, and omeprazole were not detectable at all. Percentage of positive findings (total, and separately for brain and liver tissue) and postmortem period are listed for each analyte. Correlation of detectability depending on postmortem period and condition of tissue are presented exemplarily for midazolam. No substantial correlation was observed. Despite a long time of burial, most benzodiazepines, opioids, and further drugs were detectable in the examined tissue samples. Our results may be a good support for future exhumations in which toxicological analyses are relevant.

Frequency of biological non-skeletal materials in dry bone scenarios.

In forensic anthropology, many small biological non-osseous materials may be found associated to skeletonized remains and can provide crucial information to the biological profile. Indeed, their careful recovery and correct identification can add information related to age-at-death, sex, ancestry, health, diet, migration and habits, and may be used in specific analysis such as DNA typing. However, and despite their potential, little is known about these non-osteological materials. Indeed, how frequent are they in dry bone cases? To answer this question, 100 skeletal remains with postmortem intervals ranging from 23 to 76 years from the CAL Milano Cemetery Skeletal Collection were meticulously examined for the presence of non-skeletal materials and in particular ossified cartilage, vascular calcifications, hair and nails. As a result, non-skeletal materials were found in 81 skeletal remains and showed high frequencies of recovery, despite the less-than-optimal conditions of exhumation of the skeletons. The high frequencies of non-skeletal materials obtained demonstrate the need for additional training and research given their informative power in forensic cases.

Forensic Anthropology in Investigations of Crimes Against Humanity: Global Dimensions and the Mid-19th-Century Ajnala (India) Massacre.

Heinous crimes and brutalities have decimated humanity throughout human history. In modern times, forensic anthropologists have helped to reconstruct the nature and mechanism, intent and purpose, manner, and circumstances of various inhumane instances of genocides and violent crimes. Anthropologists endeavor to bring closure and comfort to bereaved families by disseminating information about the location, exhumation, and identification of the remains of victims. The methodological armamentarium and scope of forensic anthropology have developed much beyond the realms of the traditional biological profiling casework to the scenarios of humanitarian concerns. Humanitarian forensics focuses on the excavation and identification of the remains of victims and facilitates the dignified burial of the deceased. This review article highlights and exemplifies the significant contributions of forensic anthropological expertise in revealing various crimes against humanity and human rights violations committed in the recent past as well as in some contemporary cases reported from around the globe. It includes cases such as Guatemalan, Cambodian, and Bosnian genocides, as well as other mass killings that illustrate the efficacy of anthropological evidence in reconstructing the nature, mechanism, and circumstances related to these incidences. Special emphasis is given to the Ajnala (India) skeletal remains excavated from an abandoned well - remains reportedly belonging to 282 Indian soldiers killed in 1857 whose corpses were dumped into the said disused well by sanitary workers - indicating the importance of forensic anthropology in authenticating the occurrence of events as mentioned in historical records. Analysis of different case histories reveals that forensic anthropologists have played a significant role in recovery and identification of the victims of the many war crimes, genocides, racial conflicts, and violent cruelties committed against mankind in modern history.

An integrated multidisciplinary approach to resolve long-standing unidentified human skeletal remains in Cyprus.

The Committee on Missing Persons in Cyprus (CMP) is a bicommunal committee established in 1981, tasked to determine the fate of 2002 individuals who went missing during the intercommunal fighting of 1963-64 and the events of 1974. The CMP operates strictly within a humanitarian framework, using a multidisciplinary approach to conclude individual identifications of remains exhumed throughout the island, where all information obtained from different phases of the CMP Project is integrated and assessed in a comprehensive manner. By 2017, although over 1000 sets of remains were recovered and either identified or resolved by the CMP, 137 challenging cases remained unidentified at the CMP Anthropological Laboratory. To resolve these cases, different strategies were adopted where the investigatory component was enhanced through the implementation of new data mining approaches, and the genetic-related data were revised and updated through the adoption of new DNA technologies and the improvement of the Family Reference Samples Database. These new approaches resulted in a dramatic reduction of the number of unidentified cases (by over 70 %) as well as the timeframe required for future identifications. These approaches could serve as an example in other humanitarian contexts facing similar challenges as they can have a profound impact on the families of missing persons.

Spanish Civil War: The recovery and identification of combatants.

In the context of exhumations of individuals who died during the Spanish Civil War (1936-1939), since the year 2000, over 780 mass graves have been excavated using archaeological methodology and following forensic protocols. Most of the recovered more than 9600 bodies have tended to be from the Republican civil population, the majority having been executed extrajudicially. However, a number of exhumations relate to the remains of soldiers who died in combat. In fact, approximately 100 individual or mass graves have been investigated and exhumed, containing the remains of combatants. These burials tend to be in the same location where they fell, usually in the front line, or close to the field hospitals where they went after being wounded initially. During the recovery of the human remains, a number of artefacts related to the uniform as well as personal effects have been found. An interdisciplinary approach from archaeology, anthropology, genetics, history and other disciplines has enabled the identification of some of these combatants. The aim of this paper is to present the data obtained from these combatants and highlight the work undertaken in Spain, and the efforts by scientists to exhume, identify and return the remains to relatives where possible.

Investigation of WWII/postwar mass burials in Croatia-The implementation of the Croatian model of searching for the imprisoned and missing persons.

The search for victims of World War Two (WWII) and the immediate aftermath period (postwar) in Croatia started together with the search for Homeland War victims in 1991. It continued through years, most often sporadically and in a non-homogenous way. It was just with the adoption of the Law on Research, Arrangement and Maintenance of Military Cemeteries, Cemeteries of Victims of WWII and Postwar Period in 2013 that the search became more structured and gained a formal governmental body responsible for the organization and supervision of the activities related to it. It was then that the well-established model of searching for Homeland War victims, based on many years of field work and research, started to be implemented in the search and analysis of WWII/postwar victims. The model represents a continuously growing and developing project which encompasses a wide variety of steps and procedures, from the investigation of alleged burial locations to the analysis and reburial of recovered mortal remains. From its implementation in 2016, it allowed the successful investigation of 1300 alleged burial locations, 484 field surveys, 42 exhumations and the recovery of remains of more than 1600 individuals. Besides, care for military cemeteries, marking of mass burial sites and arranging of international treaties are conducted in order to guarantee proper handling, relocation and repatriation of all those that perished during WWII and the postwar period.