Disaster Victim Identification in the 21st Century: A US Perspective (Forensic Science in Focus)

As the frequency of both natural and man-made mass fatality disasters increases worldwide, the establishment of clear standards and best practices within the field of Disaster Victim identification (DVI) is of vital importance. Whereas most countries assign jurisdiction to law enforcement agencies following Interpol guidelines, DVI is the responsibility of the medical examiner and coroner in the United States.

Disaster Victim Identification in the 21st Century is the first book of its kind to directly address the needs of DVI practitioners in the United States, covering the full spectrum of DVI from traditional methods such as fingerprints, odontology, and anthropology to advanced DNA identification technology. Approaching DVI from three perspectives—academic, government, and private industry—this comprehensive volume examines the history and current state of the discipline, the ongoing formation of national standards, the various methods of human identification, and the key challenges and future of DVI. In-depth chapters are written by leaders in the field with personal experience in human identification and mass fatality events.

• Provides practitioners with practical guidance on planning and taking part in DVI based on current national standards and best practices
• Discusses continued improvement in both traditional and emerging DVI methods
• Includes non-region-specific case studies and recommendations that can be easily adapted for international use
• Examines ethical and legal considerations in DVI, including suggestions for standardizing the victim identification process
• Describes the critical role of the Victim Information Center (VIC) in providing the comparative information required to go beyond presumptive identifications

Part of the American Association for Forensic Sciences (AAFS) series, Disaster Victim Identification in the 21st Century: A US Perspective is an indispensable resource for forensic scientists, disaster planners, policymakers, medical examiners and coroners, law enforcement and emergency personnel, and upper-level undergraduate and graduate students in forensic sciences and emergency management.

Edited by

John A Williams is Emeritus Professor, Department of Anthropology and Sociology, Western Carolina University. He is a board-certified (D-ABFA retired) forensic anthropologist with more than four decades of experience working with medical examiners, the FBI, and law enforcement agencies across the United States. As a member since 1995 of the Federal agency, DMORT, he has assisted in the identification of mass fatality victims including two airline crashes and the 9/11 terrorist attack. He has served as an instructor at DMORT national trainings. Dr Williams currently chairs the AAFS ASB DVI Consensus Body.

Victor W Weedn is a forensic pathologist and attorney and the Chief Medical Examiner for the State of Maryland. He is a past President of the AAFS and is on the Board of Directors of the National Association of Medical Examiners (NAME). He founded the US military’s DNA identification program and directed the Armed Forces Identification Laboratory (AFDIL). In this capacity, he was very involved in identifying service members who died in recent and past conflicts, as well as in the identification efforts of several major civilian aircraft mishaps and of the Branch Davidian conflagration victims. Dr Weedn serves on the NIST OSAC MDI Committee’s DVI Task Force and on the ASB DVI Consensus Body.