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<p>This paper presents the ongoing development of forensic anthropology in Sweden. We discuss the background of the discipline, its application, as well as its current and potential development in Swedish forensic practice. Collaboration with osteoarchaeologists in skeletal forensic cases has a long tradition in Sweden. Analyses of skeletal remains are performed ad-hoc, in contrast to analyses of fleshed human remains. While several law enforcement employees are educated in forensic anthropology and/or osteoarchaeology, they are not employed in these fields, and regional variations are evident. Internationally, forensic anthropology has become an autonomous forensic discipline over the past decades, requiring skills beyond mere skeletal analysis. To keep on a par with international standards, it may be time to revisit the concept of forensic anthropology in Sweden. Despite the limited presence of supporting organisational structures and systems, forensic anthropological and hard-tissue-reliant physico-chemical analyses have proven valuable in Swedish forensic practice, especially in cases of personal identification, trauma analysis and search efforts. We argue that Sweden could benefit from making qualified forensic anthropology expertise available in all law enforcement regions, starting to implement and promote forensic anthropology in routine forensic casework and formalising the role of forensic anthropology practitioners.</p>
</abstract>

This paper presents the ongoing development of forensic anthropology in Sweden. We discuss the background of the discipline, its application, as well as its current and potential development in Swedish forensic practice. Collaboration with osteoarchaeologists in skeletal forensic cases has a long tradition in Sweden. Analyses of skeletal remains are performed ad-hoc, in contrast to analyses of fleshed human remains. While several law enforcement employees are educated in forensic anthropology and/or osteoarchaeology, they are not employed in these fields, and regional variations are evident. Internationally, forensic anthropology has become an autonomous forensic discipline over the past decades, requiring skills beyond mere skeletal analysis. To keep on a par with international standards, it may be time to revisit the concept of forensic anthropology in Sweden. Despite the limited presence of supporting organisational structures and systems, forensic anthropological and hard-tissue-reliant physico-chemical analyses have proven valuable in Swedish forensic practice, especially in cases of personal identification, trauma analysis and search efforts. We argue that Sweden could benefit from making qualified forensic anthropology expertise available in all law enforcement regions, starting to implement and promote forensic anthropology in routine forensic casework and formalising the role of forensic anthropology practitioners.

Development and implementation of forensic anthropology in Swedish forensic practice

Department of Community Medicine and Rehabilitation/Forensic Medicine

Scandinavian Journal of Forensic Science

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

This paper presents the ongoing development of forensic anthropology in Sweden. We discuss the background of the discipline, its application, as well as its...

Development and implementation of forensic anthropology in Swedish forensic practice

Publié en ligne: 21 déc. 2022

Pages: 10 - 19

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjfs-2022-0015

Mots clés
forensic anthropology, forensic medicine, forensic chemistry, crime scene investigation, human osteology

© 2022 Alfsdotter Clara et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Development and implementation of forensic anthropology in Swedish forensic practice

Publié en ligne: 21 déc. 2022

Pages: 10 - 19

DOI: https://doi.org/10.2478/sjfs-2022-0015

Mots clésforensic anthropology, forensic medicine, forensic chemistry, crime scene investigation, human osteology

© 2022 Alfsdotter Clara et al., published by Sciendo

This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 3.0 License.

Mots clés
forensic anthropology, forensic medicine, forensic chemistry, crime scene investigation, human osteology