Unidentified decedent

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Example of a poster detailing information about unidentified victims, all of whom have been identified as of December 2021: Tammy Alexander, Tammy Terrell, Sherri Jarvis, and Marcia King.

Unidentified decedent or unidentified person (also abbreviated as UID or UP) is a term in American English used to describe a corpse of a person whose identity cannot be established by police and medical examiners. In many cases, it is several years before the identities of some UIDs are found, while in some cases, they are never identified.[1] A UID may remain unidentified due to lack of evidence as well as absence of personal identification such as a driver's license. Where the remains have deteriorated or been mutilated to the point that the body is not easily recognized, a UID's face may be reconstructed to show what they had looked like before death.[2] UIDs are often referred to by the placeholder names "John Doe" or "Jane Doe".[3]

Causes[]

There were approximately 40,000 UIDs in the United States as of 2006,[4][5][6] and numerous others elsewhere.[7] A body may go unidentified due to death in a state where the person was unrecorded, an advanced state of decomposition or major facial injuries.[8] In many cases in the United States, teenagers with a history of running away would be removed from missing person files when they would turn 18, thus eliminating potential matches with existing unidentified person listings.[9]

Location[]

Some UIDs die outside their native state. The Sumter County Does, murdered in South Carolina, were thought to have been Canadian.[10] Both were eventually identified as individuals from Pennsylvania and Minnesota.[11] Barbara Hess Precht died in Ohio in 2006 but was not identified until 2014. She had been living as a transient with her husband in California for decades but returned to her native state of Ohio, where she died of unknown circumstances.[12] In both of these cases, the UIDs were found in a recognizable state and had their fingerprints and dental records taken with ease. It is unknown if the Sumter County Does' DNA was later recovered, since their bodies would require exhumation to recover DNA.[10] In Lourdes, France, a corpse believed to have been native to a different country was discovered.[13] Many undocumented immigrants who die in the United States after crossing the border from Mexico remain unidentified.[14]

Decomposition[]

Many UIDs are found long after they die and have decomposed severely. This significantly changes their facial features and may prevent identification through fingerprints. Environmental conditions often are a major factor in decomposition, as some UIDs are found months after death with little decomposition if their bodies are placed in cold areas. Some are found in warm areas shortly after death, but hot temperatures and scavenging animals deteriorated the features.[8][15][16] In some cases, warm temperatures mummify the corpse, which also distorts its features, though the tissues have survived initial decomposition. One example is the "Persian Princess", who died in the 1990s but, in an act of archaeological forgery, was untruthfully stated in Pakistan to have been over 2,000 years old.[17] A man found in Idar-Oberstein, Germany, in 1994 had died months before his body was found, yet in some places, his skin had not deteriorated and tattoos were found, which are also used to identify the dead.[18]

Putrefaction[]

Putrefaction often occurs when bacteria decompose the remains and generate gasses inside, causing the corpse to swell and become discolored.[8] In cases such as the Rogers family, who were murdered in 1989 by Oba Chandler, the bodies were deposited in water but surfaced after gasses in their remains caused them to float to the surface. They were deceased a short period of time but were already severely decomposed and unrecognizable, due to putrefaction that occurred while underwater and high temperatures. It was not until a week later that dental records revealed their identities.[19]

Skeletonization[]

Skeletonization occurs when the UID has decayed to the point that bones and possibly some tissues are all that is found, usually when death occurred a significant amount of time before discovery. If a skeletonized body is found, fingerprints and toeprints are impossible to recover, unless they have survived the initial decomposition of the remains. Fingerprints are often used to identify the dead and were used widely before DNA comparison was possible.[8] In some cases, partial remains limit the available information; for example, a woman's skull found in Frankfurt, Germany, was insufficient to estimate her height and weight.[20]

Skeletonized UIDs are often forensically reconstructed if searching dental records and DNA databases is unsuccessful.

Traumatic injuries[]

Some UIDs experience trauma that significantly alters their appearance, especially those who die in vehicular accidents or were murdered in a violent manner. A facial expression often represents the pain, which shifts the face into a position that would not commonly be seen by the public, including those who have seen the person when they were alive. A body found decapitated would also prove to be unrecognizable.[21] Many UIDs whose heads were not recovered remain unidentified, like in the Whitehall Mystery, which occurred in the United Kingdom.[22]

Burning[]

Often, someone who tries to conceal a body attempts to destroy it or render it unrecognizable.[23] The currently unidentified Yermo John Doe was killed approximately one hour before he was found, but was completely unrecognizable.[24] When Lynn Breeden, a Canadian model, was murdered and set ablaze in a dumpster, her body was so severely damaged that DNA processing and fingerprint analysis were impossible. She was identified sometime later after her unique dentition matched her dental records, and DNA extracted from her blood at a different scene was matched.[25] Linda Agostini's body was found burned near Albury, Australia in 1934. Her remains were identified ten years later through dental comparison.[26]

Identification process[]

Usually, bodies are identified by comparing their usually unique DNA, fingerprints and dental characteristics.[27] DNA is considered the most accurate, but was not widely used until the 1990s. It is often obtained through hair follicles, blood, tissue and other biological material.[28] Bodies can also be identified with other physical information, such as illnesses, evidence of surgery, breaks and fractures, and height and weight information.[29] A medical examiner will often be involved with identifying a body.[30][31]

Mortuary photographs[]

Reconstructions are considered to be more accurate with representing the unidentified decedents when they were alive, especially with violent deaths, like Los Angeles County Jane Doe

Many police departments and medical examiners have made efforts to identify the deceased by placing mortuary photographs of the UID's face online. In some instances, the mortuary photographs would be retouched of wounds if they are to be released to the public.[32] Dismembered corpses may also be digitally altered to appear attached to the body.[21] This is not considered to be the most effective method, as the nature of death often distorts the UID's face.[33] An example of this is that of "Grateful Doe," who was killed in a vehicular crash in 1995. He sustained extreme trauma that disfigured his face.[34]

A in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, had died months earlier, but was preserved by the cold temperatures. Her morgue photographs were displayed publicly on a medical examiner's website, but her face had been distorted by swelling after absorbing water, with additional decomposition.[35]

Death masks have also been used to assist with identification, which have been stated to be more accurate, as they are required to display "relaxed expressions," which often do not illustrate the faces of the UIDs as they were found, such as that of L'Inconnue de la Seine, a French suicide victim found in the late 1800s.[36] However, a death mask will still depict sunken eyes or other characteristics of a long-term illness, which do not often show how they would have looked in life.[8]

Reconstructions[]

Main article: Forensic facial reconstruction

When a body is found in an advanced state of decomposition or has died violently, reconstructions are sometimes required to receive assistance from the public, when releasing images of a corpse is considered taboo.[37] Often, those in a recognizable state will often be reconstructed due to the same reason.

Faces can be reconstructed with a three-dimensional model or by 2D, which includes sketches or digital reconstructions, similar to facial composites.[38][39]

Sketches have been used in a variety of cases. Forensic artist Karen T. Taylor created her own method during the 1980s, which involved much more precise techniques, such as estimating locations and sizes of the features of a skull. This method has been shown to be fairly successful.[40]

The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children has developed methods to estimate the likenesses of the faces of UIDs whose remains were too deteriorated to create a two-dimensional sketch or reconstruction due to the lack of tissue on the bones. A skull would be placed through a CT scanner and the image would then be manipulated with a software that was intended for architecture design, to add digital layers of tissue based on the UID's age, sex and race.[41]

Examples[]

The following gallery depicts various ways UIDs have been reconstructed. None of those shown have been identified.

  • Forensic sketch (Broward County John Doe (1979))

  • Reconstruction created with compiled photographs of facial features, a method known as IdentiKit (New Haven County Jane Doe)

  • Death mask (L'inconnue de la Seine)

  • Three-dimensional clay reconstruction ()

  • Facial composite ()

  • Reconstruction created through a CT scan ()

Problems[]

In some cases, such as that of Colleen Orsborn, the true identity of the unidentified person is excluded from the case. In Orsborn's case, she had fractured one of the bones in her leg, but a medical examiner who performed the autopsy on her remains was not able to discover evidence of the injury and subsequently excluded her from the case. It was not until 2011 when DNA confirmed Orsborn was the victim found in 1984.[42][43] In cases such as the Racine County Jane Doe, a rule out has also been subjected to criticism. Aundria Bowman, a teen who disappeared in 1989 who bore a strong resemblance to a body found in 1999, was excluded, according to the National Missing and Unidentified Persons System.[44] On an online forum, known as Websleuths, users have disagreed with this ruling.[45] In the case of Lavender Doe, a mother of a missing girl also disagreed with the exclusion of her missing daughter through DNA, as she claimed the reconstruction of the victim looked very similar to her daughter.[46]

Notable cases[]

Unidentified[]

Further information: List of unidentified murder victims in the United States
The Tamam Shud case involves a man who was found in 1948 in Adelaide, South Australia.

Formerly unidentified[]

Main article: List of formerly unidentified decedents
  • Linda Agostini, murdered in 1934 in Australia and identified in 1944. She was previously known as "Pyjama Girl."[53]
  • Barbara Ann Hackmann Taylor, murdered in 1968 and identified in 1998; she was previously nicknamed "Tent Girl."[54]
  • Amber Creek, Creek's frozen body was discovered on February 6, 1997 in Racine County, Wisconsin. She was known as "Racine County Jane Doe" and was identified in June 1998.
  • Erica Green, formerly known as "Precious Doe," murdered in 2001 and identified in 2005.[55]
  • George Robert Johnston, formerly known as the "Ballarat Bandit," a Canadian man who committed suicide in California in 2004 and identified in 2006.[56]
  • Riley Ann Sawyers, nicknamed "Baby Grace," murdered in 2007 and identified later that year.[57]
  • Atcel Olmedo, formerly known as "DuPage Johnny Doe", murdered in 2005 and identified in 2011.[58]
  • Anjelica Castillo, formerly "Baby Hope," murdered in 1991 and identified in 2013.[59]
  • Kori Lamaster, as known nicknamed "Pogonip Jane" and "Kori Bowman", found in Pogonip Park, California in 1994 and identified in 2013.
  • Barbara Precht, nicknamed "Pearl Lady", found in the Ohio River in 2006 and identified in 2014.[60]
  • Tammy Alexander, found murdered in 1979 and identified in 2015. She was formerly known as the "Caledonia Jane Doe" and "Cali Doe."[61]
  • Brenda Gerow, found on April 8, 1981 Tucson, Arizona and previously known "Pima County Jane Doe", Brenda's was identified in 2015.
  • Jason Callahan, known prior to identification as "Grateful Doe," died in a 1995 car accident and identified in 2015.[62]
  • Marcia King, previously known as "Buckskin Girl," found murdered in 1981 and identified in 2018.[63]
  • Debra Jackson, found murdered in 1979 and identified in 2019. She was previously nicknamed "Orange Socks" for the only clothing remaining on her body upon discovery.[64]
  • Joseph Henry Loveless, whose partial remains were located in 1979 and identified in 2019. Loveless' was estimated to have been murdered in 1916, marking the oldest identification using forensic genealogy thus far.[65]
  • Alisha Heinrich, found murdered in 1982 and identified in 2020. She was previously known as "Delta Dawn."[66]
  • James Freund and Pamela Buckley, found murdered in 1976 and publicly identified on January 21, 2021; formerly known as the "Sumter County Does."[11]
  • Evelyn Colon, United States, found murdered in 1976 and known as "Beth Doe" until her identification in 2021.[67]
  • John Gregory, found in 1859 and identified in 2021, the engineer (warrant officer) of HMS Erebus, a ship that attempted to traverse the then-undocumented Canadian Arctic and find the Northwest Passage. His identification is currently the oldest being made by DNA comparison.
  • Gordon Sanderson, Canada, found in 1977 and was known as "Septic Tank Sam" until his identification in 2021.[68]
  • Margaret Fetterolf, found in 1976 in Woodlawn, Maryland and was known as the "Woodlawn Jane Doe" until her identification in September 2021.[69]
  • Sherri Jarvis, previously known as "Walker County Jane Doe", was found murdered in 1980 and identified in 2021.
  • Amy Yeary, Amy's was known as "Fond du Lac County Jane Doe", and body found on November 23, 2008, in Fond du Lac County, Wisconsin and identified in 2021.
  • Tammy Terrell, previously known as "Arroyo Grande Jane Doe", found on October 5, 1980, in Henderson, Nevada and found murdered in 1980 and identified in 2021.
  • Sharon Lee Gallegos, formerly known as "Little Miss Nobody", the body was discovered on July 31, 1960, in Congress, Arizona but 62 years later, with the help of DNA data, it was identified in March 2022.

See also[]

References[]

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