4th Edition
Forensic Anthropology Training Manual
1. Introduction
2. Bone Biology
3. The Skull and Hyoid
4. The Shoulder Girdle and Thorax: Clavicle, Scapula, Ribs, and Sternum
5. The Vertebral Column
6. The Upper Limb: Humerus, Radius, and Ulna
7. The Hand: Carpals, Metacarpals, and Phalanges
8. The Pelvic Girdle: Ilium, Ischium, and Pubis
9. The Lower Limb: Femur, Tibia, Fibula, and Patella
10. The Foot: Tarsals, Metatarsals, and Phalanges
11. Odontology (Teeth)
12. Distinguishing Human and Nonhuman Bone
13. Field Methods
14. Forensic Taphonomy and Postmortem Interval
15. Laboratory Analysis I: Preparation and Inventory
16. Laboratory Analysis II: Biological Profile
17. Laboratory Analysis III: Trauma, Disease, and Individual Identification
18. Professional Results
19. Large-Scale Applications
Appendix A: Craniometry
Appendix B: Forms and Diagrams
Glossary
Bibliography
Biography
Dr Dawn Mulhern is a practicing biological anthropologist with expertise in forensic anthropology, skeletal biology, paleopathology, and bioarchaeology. She received her M.A. and Ph.D. in anthropology from the University of Colorado at Boulder. She is a professor at Fort Lewis College in Durango, Colorado where she has taught undergraduate students since 2005; she currently holds the position of Associate Provost. She served as the Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) Coordinator at FLC from 2005-2017. She regularly consults with local and state, and federal agencies in cases involving skeletal remains. Dr. Mulhern served on the editorial board of the Journal of Forensic Sciences from 2012-2022 and has served as chair of the education subcommittee for the Humanitarian and Human Rights Resource Center of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences since 2015.
Dr. Karen Ramey Burns was a renowned forensic anthropologist, educator, writer, and human rights advocate whose impactful career left a lasting legacy. She taught at the University of Georgia, as well the U.S. Department of Justice’s International Criminal Investigative Training Assistance Program (ICITAP). Throughout her career, she testified as an expert witness in numerous local, state, and international cases. Her career included extensive international work, where she provided expertise in the excavation and identification of human remains in Latin America, Haiti, the Middle East, and Africa. She documented war crimes in Iraq (1991) and testified in Haiti’s Raboteau Trial (2000). She authored the United Nations’ “Protocol for Disinterment and Analysis of Skeletal Remains” (1991), a significant contribution to human rights investigations. She worked with the National Disaster Medical System during emergencies, including Hurricane Katrina (2005) and the 9/11 attacks. She contributed to historic research, such as identifying Casimir Pulaski and investigating Amelia Earhart’s disappearance. At the time of her passing, she was Director of Field Investigations for EQUITAS, the Colombian Interdisciplinary Team for Forensic Work and Psychosocial Assistance, Bogotá, Colombia.
