William M. Bass and the Development of Forensic Anthropology in Tennessee

• NCJ Number: 158060
• Journal: Journal of Forensic Sciences Volume: 40 Issue: 5 Dated: (September 1995) Pages: 741-750
• Author(s): M K Marks
• Date Published: 1995
• Length: 10 pages
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Survey
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This article surveys the results of 22 years of human identification services provided by William M. Bass.

Abstract

This article focuses on Bass's forensic anthropology experiences in Knoxville, Tennessee, where he contributed greatly to the development of the forensic anthropology program at the University of Tennessee and established the problem-oriented time- since-death research foundation on the relatively unknown processes of human decomposition. This research led to the exploration of the entomological perspective in estimating a postmortem interval. Much of the article is devoted to a discussion of the demographic characteristics of Bass's forensic anthropology caseload. 1 table, 14 figures, and 18 notes