Naming the dead:
social, ethical and legal issues of disaster victim identification by DNA
Expert international workshop
04-07 December 2012
Brocher Foundation, Geneva, Switzerland
The authoritative identification of bodies and human remains in mass fatalities following catastrophic events such as earthquakes, air disasters, terrorist attacks or genocidal warfare, typically involves a variety of forensic science disciplines deployed within complex – usually international - organizational arrangements. Since its first introduction in 1987, THE scientific reliability of DNA profiling has meant that disaster victim identification (DVI) by DNA has become routine, used alongside more traditional means of identification, and its scientific and operational practices increasingly standardized. However, many social, ethical and legal aspects of its use remain underexplored. This workshop brings together a range of international experts to identify and map the ethical, philosophical, social, legal, cultural and political issues involved when relevant authorities undertake DVI by DNA.
Confirmed participants
Jay Aronson, Carnegie Mellon University, USA
Caroline Bennett, University of Kent
Roger Brownsword, King’s College London
Nurit Bublil, National Center for Forensic Identification, Israel
Margaret Cox, Scientific Advisor to the Commonwealth War Graves Commission
Pamela Dix, Executive Director, Disaster Action
Martin Evison, Northumbria University
Duncan Alexander-McGarry, National Police Family Liaison Advisor
Michael Green, former Home Office pathologist, Sheffield
Erica Haimes, Newcastle University
Andreas Kleiser, International Commission on Missing Persons, Sarajevo
Chris Maguire, Northumbria University
Malin Masterton, Centre for Research Ethics & Bioethics, Uppsala University, Sweden
Jackie Leach Scully, Newcastle University
Victor Toom, Northumbria University
Morris Tidball-Binz, International Committee of the Red Cross, Geneva
Robin Williams, Northumbria University
Simon Woods, Newcastle University
For more information
The workshop brings together invited expert practitioners and academics from fields including sociology, philosophy and history. A small number of additional self-funded participants may also be accommodated. For more information about attending, or to register your interest in the outcomes of the workshop, please contact Jackie Leach Scully jackie.scully@ncl.ac.uk
The workshop is funded by a Brocher Foundation workshop award to Professor Jackie Leach Scully (Policy, Ethics and Life Sciences Research Centre, Newcastle University), Professor Robin Williams (Northumbria University Centre for Forensic Science) and Andreas Kleiser (International Commission on Missing Persons, Sarajevo).
