Routine Practice in Forensic Anthropology in Europe: Attempting to Achieve a State of the Art
Résumé
Learning Overview: The goal of this presentation is to present the reality of practicing forensic anthropology in Europe, 15 years after the creation of the first scientific association dedicated to this discipline, the Forensic Anthropology Society of Europe (FASE).
Impact on the Forensic Science Community: This presentation will impact the forensic science community by presenting the reality of practicing forensic anthropology in countries such as Portugal, Spain, Italy, France, Greece, Hungary, Denmark, Belgium, Hungary, and The Netherlands. This presentation will assess whether these practitioners are ready to face the new challenges of the current global society.
Hypothesis: It is hypothesized that despite the different backgrounds of the practitioners, from medicine to anthropology to biology, it is expected that the same guidelines are being followed by the experts on this field. This is due to the efforts of the FASE, namely through the realization of annual workshops and/or courses and certification processes.
Statement of Methods: Each European country will be detailed in terms of educational background, number of employed forensic anthropologists or number of forensic practitioners who employ forensic anthropology methods, and approximate number and context of cases. Throughout the presentation of some practical cases from different European countries, highlighting the methods, the complementary exams regularly made, and the reports, this presentation seeks to demonstrate the reality of this discipline and how it interacts with other medico and forensic areas.
Statement of Results: Many forensic anthropologists in Europe have a medical background and often specialize in forensic medicine. Research is undertaken by many diverse scientists with backgrounds ranging from archaeology and osteoarchaeology to anatomy, biology, physical anthropology, dentistry, and medicine. Research outputs have noted an impressive increase over the past two decades, and most European countries have acquired population-specific data for forensic application at some level. The three main contexts in which forensic anthropology is practiced in most of the European countries is the forensic investigation of heavily decomposed human remains, the positive identification of unidentified human remains, and the age estimation of living individuals. Accreditation is possible at a European level through the FASE examination process.
Conclusion: It is evident that the different legislation in European countries has an impact on the routine practice of forensic anthropology and its role in the courtroom. FASE’s continuous efforts in continuous professional education and dissemination of good practice is hopefully a positive contribution toward achieving a normalization of forensic anthropology practice throughout Europe.