Research Description

Particulate Size in Post-Cremation Taphonomy

As the number of cremations in the US increases, forensic anthropologists and other specialists have been increasingly called upon to aid in the investigation of cremated remains in litigation processes involving funeral home malpractice. As these and other related cases become more common there is a need for new data concerning the state of human remains post-cremation in order to help set parameters useful for consideration in these cases. In particular, new rotary-blade processors are making it difficult for forensic analysis to be done on cremated remains because of how efficient these processors are in reducing recognizable skeletal fragments to microscopic particles.

The reduction of human cremated remains by a time-dependent rotary-blade processor should produce cremain weights that correspond with published values for the sex and general skeletal robusticity of the decedent. Beyond these expectations, however, ratio patterns in regards to the size of the particles produced by these processors are not well understood. An examination of a number of specific cases processed by the same crematorium will produce a set of data that should further validate current assumptions and provide a useful set of parameters that could be employed by forensic anthropologists in further research as well as in litigation proceedings.

Specifically, this study involves the examination, weighing and recording of information regarding human remains that have been cremated and processed in a rotary-blade processor for the manufacturer-recommended 30 seconds. The processed remains are sifted using standard 0.4, 0.2, and 0.1mm sieves. Each grouping is then weighed to determine the approximate percentages of each found in one whole sample. This process will be repeated for at least 30 cases in an effort to gain figures displaying an expected range of normalcy. These data should help to form opinions on the potential impact of a time-dependent processor on the size and utility of the particulates available for analysis and also assist in determining the ratios expected in a standard cremation procedure.