Unearthing the Truth: Exhumation of a Catholic priest to establish paternity

Summary

This is an abstract from the "Forensic Archaeology: Research & Practice" session, at the 84th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

A niche is opening for Forensic Archaeologists to assist in establishing paternity to Catholic priests through exhumation. In June 2018, I was contacted by Jim Graham who for 25 years has tried to prove that he is the son of a deceased Catholic priest after being presented with an obituary and told the man could be his biological father. Although his quest may appear unique, Graham is one of thousands of people who claim they were fathered by Catholic priests. Despite compilation of extensive records indicating this priest was his father, the church refused to give confirmation. Early 2018, Graham obtained permission to exhume and extract the DNA samples to establish paternity. This is the first case of its kind and will set a precedence. FAR, Forensic Archaeology Recovery, was able to provide assistance. Families cannot conduct this type of testing or submit samples without being a lawyer or doctor to jury the case from the field to the laboratory. Following best practice for extraction and submission of DNA samples, we were successful in establishing paternity in this case. This case will provide an opportunity for Forensic Archaeologists to provide technical assistance and provide quality assurance for families.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Forensic Archaeology: Research & Practice   •
• Society for American Archaeology 84th Annual Meeting, Albuquerque, NM (2019)

Keywords

Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 25925