Forensic Archeology.ppt

8/14/2019 Forensic Archeology.ppt

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Forensic Archeology from

Mass Graves

Much material obtained from a

webpage written by Dr. StefanSchmitt, a forensic anthropologist


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The Antemortem Phase

The recollection of antemortem data, in whichthe survivors are interviewed in order toproportion information that can aid in theidentification of the skeletal remains.

This is especially important in countries likeGuatemala with no medical records available inthese poor populations.

The antemortem phase is usually carried outprior or during the second phase, thearchaeological phase.


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The Archeological Phase

The archeological phase is comprised the

complete photographic and sketched

documentation of the exhumation process

itself.

All methods and techniques such as used

in the excavation of historical sites are

employed to document the point in timewhen these graves were made.


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The Laboratory Phase

After the remains have been exhumed

they are cleaned and numbered and

analyzed with methods employed in

physical and forensic anthropology.

This is done to determine cause and

manner of death and identity of the

individual remains.


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Special Issues for Mass Graves

Co-mingled skeletal remains can be

confusing.

Which bones go with which skeleton?

What is the minimum number of individuals

found?


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MASSACRE AT TUNAJA,

GUATEMALA

http://www.acsu.buffalo.edu/~dber

tuca/Massacres.html


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The Incident

Tunaja is a small village in the Highlands ofGuatemala with a population of not more than200. It suffered under the military'scounterinsurgency campaign begun during thelatter part of the 1970's and the beginning of the1980's.

In November of 1992, the Guatemalan ForensicAnthropology Team was asked by one of theIndigenous Human Rights Groups of Guatemalato exhume the remains of several people, whohad been selected out and assassinated by themilitary and its Civil Patrol Unit.


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A total of eight human skeletons were

exhumed, four of which were located in a

mass grave.

Using forensic archeology, the team was

able to piece together the last moments of

one man's life.

His name, according to witnesses, was

Rosalo Chingo, although he couldnt be

positively identified.


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His skeletal remains were found partially buried

in the bed of a creek at the bottom of a deep

ravine. From the tool marks in the wall beside

where he was found, it was suggested that it hadbeen caved in, in order to cover up his body.

Some of this material had been washed away

and it wasnt possible to recover all of the

remains. Some bones, such as the ulna(underarm bone) was located approximately 50

yards downstream.


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What Was Learned and Why?

How do we know he was a male?

How old was he?

What was the cause of death? What was the mechanism of death?


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The Skull


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How do we know he was a male?

Skull Characteristics: (supraorbital ridge

marked, forward projecting maxilla, fairly

robust)

Possibly clothes or artifacts (buttons,

jewelry, cigarette lighter) found with the

body.


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Skeletal Indications of Cause

of Death


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The skull showed

sharp force trauma to

the left cheek, awound that would be

consistent with a blow

from a machete - a

common agriculturaltool and weapon in

Guatemala.

This wound wouldprobably not have

caused his death.


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Further trauma was found

in the one of the occipital

condyles (where the skullarticulates with the

vertebras of the neck).

A small fracture of this

articulation suggestedthat this individual also

had received trauma to

the neck.

Unfortunately, they didn'trecover the cervical

vertebrae.


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A bullet was lodged inthe head of the leftfemur.

Judging by its sizeand characteristics, itwas a high velocitybullet, such as used

in assault rifles. The trajectory of thebullet grazed his leftinnominate bone ofhis pelvis, suggestingthat the victim wasshot from behind,possibly whilerunning.


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Finally, the right

tibias articulate

surface was fracturedwhere the shin bone

meets the foot.


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A reconstruction of what may have

happened based on the injuries. Rosalo was first attacked with a machete, upon

which he may have decided to run down the hilltowards the ravine.

At this point his assailants shot him in the back,

lodging the bullet in his right femur. He must have managed to jump down the

ravine, where he landed on his feet, causing thefracture in the tibia and possibly breaking his

neck. Somebody then went down in the ravine andcaved the wall in over his body.


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Massacre at Ro Negro


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Background

Ro Negro is a small Ach Indian village. It islocated in the highlands, 250 kilometers north ofGuatemala city in the County of Rabinal,Department of Baja Verapaz.

Due to the construction of the hydroelectric damin Chixoy an entire fertile valley flooded. Tocompensate the inhabitants of this valley, asmall colony, given the name of Pacux, was builtfor a small portion of the Chixoy valleypopulation on the outskirts of Rabinal.

Help was provided to build new houses in RoNegro, but these were later destroyed.


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Antemortem Phase

According to testimony, in the early part of 1982over 70 men, accused of guerilla activities, fromRo Negro were murdered.

They perished in the hands of the Civil Patrols

(PAC - "Patrullas de Autodefensa Civil" -paramilitary organizations that are subordinateto the army) from the neighboring village ofXococ.

Due to this incident the rest of the men fled thevillage in fear that something similar wouldhappen to them.

They left their women and children behind,assuming nothing would happen to them.


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Antemortem Phase

On March 13, 1982 some 80 women and100 children were led by the military andCivil Patroller to the top of the mountain,

where they were brutally killed. Their bodies were thrown into a ravine,

which drains the rain water during therainy season (from May to August).

The exhumation was initiated in October of1993 and lasted up to December 1993.


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The Mass Grave Excavation


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Laboratory Phase

During the investigation conducted in the lab fromDecember 1993 to April 1994, the lab analysisdetermined that the victims were exclusivelywomen and children.

Most of the skeletal remains were founddisarticulated due to years of erosion andscavenging.

Therefore, the calculation of the minimum number

of individuals, which is 143, differs from thenumbers obtained from testimony, whichestimated over 180 people were executed.

It was particularly difficult to analyze the many

child and infant remains.


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Skeletal remains of

one of the infants.

Infant skeletons arevery prone to rapid

decay.

The bones havent

completely calcified orfused. The cartilage

is more easily

degraded in the soil

than fully calcified

bones.


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Skeletal Evidence

The most frequent causes of death were:

Blows to the neck

Blows to the cranium

Gunshot wounds

Stab wounds from knives and machetes.


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Additional Evidence

Hardly any of the remains showedevidence of the typical Indian 'Corte' - along piece of elaborately woven fabric

wrapped around the hips which is veryvaluable. Absence of this materialindicates the possibility of rape.

Pregnancy was documented in threecases where fetal remains were found inthe pelvic area.


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Why Excavate These Graves?

A clandestine cemetery is not so much

hidden as it is officially non-existent.

There is no possibility to perform the

rituals associated with death, as it is done

in any society. The mere existence of

such mass clandestine graves without

being able to acknowledge them in aknown way, terrorizes and oppresses the

communities who have to live with them.


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Why Excavate These Graves?

The official exhumation of the victims is

the first step towards peace for these

communities.

It is then, that the survivors and victims of

this mechanism of terror finally become

activists for their rights.

The evidence of the crime can be used tobring the perpetrators to justice.


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The Rwandan Genocide


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Some Background

In 1994 the Rwandan Hutu government

launched a systematic genocide of their

minority Tutsi citizens.

In four months, government forces and

militia likely murdered 750,000-1,000,000,

Tutsi and Hutu reluctant to join in the

slaughter.


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A team of forensic scientists from

Physicians for Human Rights was brought

together to exhume and analyze the

remains of victims that had beenmassacred in April of 1995 in the small

town of Kibuye in Rwanda.


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This project was carried out on theinitiative of the International CriminalTribunal for Rwanda in its investigation

and in preparation for the trial of some ofthe perpetrators of this massacre.

This was carried out on the initiative of theInternational Criminal Tribunal for Rwandain its investigation and in preparation forthe trial of some of the perpetrators of thismassacre.


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The Site

Kibuye is a small town located on the

eastern shore of Lake Kivu.

Rwanda is a hilly country, from which it

gets its description as the country of the

thousand hills.

The Catholic Church which was the site of

the massacre was located on the top ofone of the hills.


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Antemortem Phase

When the excavations started behind the KibuyeChurch, it was not clear how many individualshad been buried there.

Testimonies recollected varied anywhere

between several hundred and 2,000. Prior to moving the bodies to the mass grave,

they had lain for several days in the open and inthe church.

It was six months since the bodies had beenburied, and bulldozers were used to move themin some cases. The workers did not know whatthe stage of decomposition would be.


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As the excavations progressed it became clear

that most of the bodies were decomposed to the

point that on lifting them out of the grave into a

body bag, they would lose their articulation (i.e.limbs would come off) and many cases were

partially skeletonized.

Children and especially infants were badly

decomposed - to the point that it was difficult torecognize the bodies.


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From the way the grave appeared to have

been prepared, it became apparent that a

bulldozer had been used to fill the grave

up and top it off with soil.

This also added to the mangling and

disarticulation of the bodies.


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The Laboratory Phase

For the purpose of establishing a minimumnumber of individuals which wererecovered from the grave, the cranium

was designated as a marker for thepresence of an individual.

Altogether 460 skulls were counted in themass grave behind the Kibuye Church,indicating that at least 460 individuals hadbeen buried there.


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F" stands for female, "M" for male and "C" for children of undetermined sex.


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Conclusions

The largest group of the recovered bodies

consisted of children under the age of 15 - 44%.

Since the remains of children and infants were

difficult to identify as such due to disarticulationof the remains, the number of children under the

age of 15 might have been even greater.

The great majority were beaten to death - Blunt

Force Trauma: 65%.


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Cause of Death of an Individual

One man was found buried underneath a

banana tree. He was in his 60s when he

was killed. Since all his teeth were intact

he was a very healthy person.


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Left leg, ankle height


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Hands with Defense Cuts

Left Hand Right Hand


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At some point he

gave up and turned

face down.

He received

several wounds to

his back, one ofwhich severed his

right shoulder

blade in twoplaces.

Th bl t hi k ll


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The blow to his skull

was determined as the

one that eventually led

to his death.

A blow with a machete

to the back of his

head, fractured his

skull.

The red arrow to the

right of it points to an

area where themachete glanced of

his head, shaving a

piece of bone off.


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Saddam Hussein Trial

Dr Sonny Trimble Army Corps


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Dr. Sonny Trimble, Army Corps

of Engineers Archeologist http://www.riverfronttimes.com/2006-09-

13/news/csi-iraq/


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Clothing Preservation


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Preparing sketches


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Field X-ray unit


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Backhoe to move Overburden

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