Not so simple: Understanding the complexities of establishing identity for cases of unidentified human remains in an Australian medico-legal system

Discussions regarding the importance and complexities associated with the identification of deceased persons have typically focused on disaster or humanitarian contexts where there has been large scale loss of life. In contrast, identification efforts for unidentified human remains (UHR) cases in routine domestic casework contexts have received relatively little attention. The aim of this paper was to present the si-tuation regarding the count of UHR cases in the state of Victoria, Australia, dating between 1960 and 2020, and to provide a constructively critical appraisal of the factors that have, and continue to, hinder their identification. Over the six decades a total of 132 coronial cases remained unidentified; an average of 2-3 cases per annum. For each case, the preservation of the remains, geographical location of where they were recovered from, primary (fingerprints, dental, DNA) and secondary identification methods that had been employed, potential for additional identification testing and current curation of the remains, were recorded. The difficulty with providing a total count of UHR cases is discussed, as well as the ways in which pre-servation, availability of identification methods, changes in policies and procedures, record management, changes in practice and advancements in technology, have impacted the identification process. This paper demonstrates the complexity of the investigation of UHR cases, and why individuals continue to remain unidentified in 2021. Crown Copyright (c) 2021 Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Automated summary

This paper examines the situation of unidentified human remains cases in the state of Victoria, Australia from 1960 to 2020, highlighting the challenges in identification efforts. Despite an average of 2-3 cases remaining unidentified per year, factors such as preservation, availability of identification methods, and advancements in technology continue to hinder the identification process.