Mountain, Desert & Coastal Forensic Anthropologists

05/29/2026

MD&C 2026 💀

05/20/2026

Updated schedule:


Wednesday May 27

9:00 – Introductions by Tim Gocha
9:30 – Unmingling an Under-Documented Skeletal Collection with Commingled Forensic, Anatomical, and Historical Remains by Krista Latham & Amandine Eriksen
9:50 – Fluvial Transport of Human Remains: Examining Submerged versus Surface Transport Velocity within the Sacramento River by Jazmin Borrayo
10:10 – Externalized Ethics: A Linguistic Assessment of Agency in Anthropology Codes of Ethics by Kaitlyn Glavee

10:30 – BREAK

10:50 – Rising Risks in a Receding Lake: Spatiotemporal Patterns of Decedent Recovery in the Lake Mead Recreation Area by Rachel Bondi & Derek Boyd
11:10 – Revising rASUDAS2 based on mixed results from mixed populations by G. Richard Scott, Arielle J Pastore & Lillian Antonelli
11:30 –The Application of Machine Learning to Trauma Research: Testing the Abilities of a Decision Tree Model to Classify Adult Cranial Blunt Force Trauma Impact Mechanisms by Natalie Tezsla

11:50 – Group Photo & LUNCH

2:00 – Forensic anthropology casework at the Washoe County Regional Medical Examiner's Office, Reno, NV, 2015-2020 by Sara Gafken & Marin Pilloud
2:20 – Evaluating 10 Years of Trends and Training at the University of Indianapolis Human Identification Center by Chastidy Gilbert, Izzy Melhado & Layken McGuire
2:40 – Preliminary Analysis of Domestic Violence Homicides in Southern Nevada by Jenny Byrnes & Anna Stolz
3:00

3:20 – BREAK

3:40 – Morphological Variation of the Crista Galli Utilizing Postmortem Computer Tomography (PMCT) by Chastidy Gilbert, Stephen Nawrocki & Krista Latham
4:00 – How to Build Outreach Programs in Wildfire Response and Recovery by Colleen Milligan, Eric Bartelink, Ashley Kendell, Amber Plemons & P. Willey
4:20 - Sheilagh’s important contributions to forensic anthropology by Judy Suchey

4:40 – BREAK

5:00 - Bone Quiz

Thursday May 28

7:00 – The Un-Naturalist Walk lead by Eric Bartelink

10:00 – Announcements by Tim Gocha
10:05 – Spring Showers may bring Flowers, but do they also bring Casework?- an Examination of the Seasonality of Casework with the CSU Chico Human Identification Laboratory by Rachel Watts, Ava Anthes, Autumn Cromartie, Brook Howard, Audrey Lauerhass, Eva Pesta & Gabbee Webb
10:25 – A Pilot Study on the Ontogeny of Skeletal Trauma by Lillian S. Antonelli & Kyra E. Stull
10:45 – Long-Term Unidentified Remains at the Tarrant County Medical Examiner's Office by Erica R. Christensen

11:05 – BREAK

11:20 - Determining Medicolegal Significance Using Stable Isotope Analysis and Radiocarbon Dating by Eric Bartelink, Lilli Antonelli & Alina Tichinin
11:40 - Temporal Analysis of Jobs in Forensic Anthropology (2014-2026) by Derek Boyd & Hayden McKee-Zech

12:00 – LUNCH

2:00 – Applied Osteology in Active Medicolegal Investigations: Field Recovery Challenges and Adaptations by Ella Uren & Krista Latham
2:20 – Atomic Success for Genealogy and Isotopic Reports in Cold Cases- the Vital Role of Forensic Anthropologists by Ava Anthes, Jazmin Borrayo, Autumn Cromartie, Brook Howard, Audrey Lauerhass, Eva Pesta, Samantha Robinson, Natalie Tezsla, Rachel Watts, Gabbee Webb, Eric Bartelink & Colleen Milligan
2:40 – Radiographic Identification Using Computed Tomography (CT) by Tim Gocha, Angela Berg, Carlos Zambrano & Sara Getz
3:00 – Evaluation of population affinity through tooth crown and root morphology by G. Richard Scott, Arielle J Pastore & Lillian Antonelli

4:00 – BREAK

4:15 – Business Meeting (Everyone is encouraged to attend!)

6:30 - Demented Views, Buffalo Chip Dinner, Raffle & Aloha Shirt Contest

05/05/2026

Wednesday May 27

9:00 – Introductions by Tim Gocha
9:30 – MD&C years 11-15 by Russell Nelson
9:50 – Unmingling an Under-Documented Skeletal Collection with Commingled Forensic, Anatomical, and Historical Remains by Krista Latham & Amandine Eriksen
10:10 – Fluvial Transport of Human Remains: Examining Submerged versus Surface Transport Velocity within the Sacramento River by Jazmin Borrayo

10:30 – BREAK

11:00 – Rising Risks in a Receding Lake: Spatiotemporal Patterns of Decedent Recovery in the Lake Mead Recreation Area by Rachel Bondi & Derek Boyd
11:20 – Revising rASUDAS2 based on mixed results from mixed populations by G. Richard Scott, Arielle J Pastore & Lillian Antonelli
11:40 –The Application of Machine Learning to Trauma Research: Testing the Abilities of a Decision Tree Model to Classify Adult Cranial Blunt Force Trauma Impact Mechanisms by Natalie Tezsla

12:00 – LUNCH

2:00 – Forensic anthropology casework at the Washoe County Regional Medical Examiner's Office, Reno, NV, 2015-2020 by Sara Gafken & Marin Pilloud
2:20 – Evaluating 10 Years of Trends and Training at the University of Indianapolis Human Identification Center by Chastidy Gilbert, Izzy Melhado & Layken McGuire
2:40 – Preliminary Analysis of Domestic Violence Homicides in Southern Nevada by Jenny Byrnes & Anna Stolz

3:00 – BREAK

3:20 – Morphological Variation of the Crista Galli Utilizing Postmortem Computer Tomography (PMCT) by Chastidy Gilbert, Stephen Nawrocki & Krista Latham
3:40 – How to Build Outreach Programs in Wildfire Response and Recovery by Colleen Milligan, Eric Bartelink, Ashley Kendell, Amber Plemons & P. Willey
4:00 - Sheilagh’s important contributions to forensic anthropology by Judy Suchey

4:20 – BREAK

4:40 - Bone Quiz
Thursday May 28

7:00 – The Un-Naturalist Walk lead by Eric Bartelink

10:00 – Announcements by Tim Gocha
10:10 – Spring Showers may bring Flowers, but do they also bring Casework?- an Examination of the Seasonality of Casework with the CSU Chico Human Identification Laboratory by Rachel Watts, Ava Anthes, Autumn Cromartie, Brook Howard, Audrey Lauerhass, Eva Pesta & Gabbee Webb
10:30 – A Pilot Study on the Ontogeny of Skeletal Trauma by Lillian S. Antonelli & Kyra E. Stull
10:50 – Temporal Analysis of Jobs in Forensic Anthropology (2014-2026) by Derek Boyd & Hayden McKee-Zech
11:10 – A Bayesian Analysis of Long-term Unidentified Remains in Southern Nevada by Liam Johnson, Jenny Byrnes & Derek Boyd
11:30 – Determining Medicolegal Significance Using Stable Isotope Analysis and Radiocarbon Dating by Eric Bartelink, Lilli Antonelli & Alina Tichinin

12:00 – LUNCH

2:00 – Applied Osteology in Active Medicolegal Investigations: Field Recovery Challenges and Adaptations by Ella Uren & Krista Latham
2:20 – Atomic Success for Genealogy and Isotopic Reports in Cold Cases- the Vital Role of Forensic Anthropologists by Ava Anthes, Jazmin Borrayo, Autumn Cromartie, Brook Howard, Audrey Lauerhass, Eva Pesta, Samantha Robinson, Natalie Tezsla, Rachel Watts, Gabbee Webb, Eric Bartelink & Colleen Milligan
2:40 – Radiographic Identification Using Computed Tomography (CT) by Tim Gocha, Angela Berg, Carlos Zambrano & Sara Getz
3:00 – Evaluation of population affinity through tooth crown and root morphology by G. Richard Scott, Arielle J Pastore & Lillian Antonelli

4:00 – BREAK

4:15 – Business Meeting (Everyone is encouraged to attend!)

6:30 - Demented Views, Buffalo Chip Dinner, Raffle & Aloha Shirt Contest

04/29/2026

The 2026 raffle grand prize is being donated by Bone Clones! Be sure to bring some cash to buy your raffle tickets! All proceeds benefit our student grants!

A blunt force trauma set comprising six skull fragments from six individuals. The fragments show various types of depressed fractures at various stages of healing (from no evidence of healing to well-healed fractures).

04/24/2026

Hello everyone! It’s that time of year again. Yep, time to start planning for the 2026 Mountain, Desert & Coastal Forensic Anthropologists meeting. This year we will meet May 26 – 28 in Boulder City, NV.

Meeting Venue:
The meeting will be in the same venue as last year, the Boulder City Parks & Recreation's Multi Use Building (1204 6th St. Boulder City, NV 89005). The Multi Use Building allows us to keep MD&C affordable while we continue our traditions of a laid-back meeting style in a private facility to safely discuss casework, all while toasting to 44 years of beer for breakfast.

Hotel:
Recommended lodging will be at the Best Western Hoover Dam Hotel (704 Nevada Highway Boulder City, NV 89005). The hotel is only 0.4 miles from the Multi Use Building, a ~2-minute drive or an ~8-minute walk.
We have a block of 20 double queen rooms for checking in on Tuesday, May 26th and checking out on Friday, May 29th at a rate of $109/night (plus taxes/fees). To get this discounted rate in the MD&C hotel room block you must book the hotel by May 5, 2026. You can book a room by visiting the link below, or call the hotel directly at 702-826-4300
https://www.bestwestern.com/en_US/book/hotel-rooms.29089.html?groupId=6X0LD5J4
The hotel has free wifi, a complimentary breakfast, an indoor pool and hot tub, outdoor grill and firepit area, and a restaurant/cocktail bar on-site. Once you've booked a room (or rooms) please email Tim ([email protected]) so we can keep track of who will be attending.

Presentations: We welcome forensic anthropology and student presentations for the schedule. Please send the titles of your presentations and co-author information to Krista Latham ([email protected]). Remember that there are student research presentation awards in which you can win a cash prize for your presentation, so students are highly encouraged to participate. Krista will be sending that information soon in a separate email.
Bone Quiz: The success of the bone quiz depends on you! Please bring bits of osteological wonderfulness to test your peers. If you can contribute to this year’s bone quiz please let Krista ([email protected]) know!

Raffle Prizes: If you can donate any skeletal trinkets, old books or anything that an anthropologist would dig, please let me know! Please bring a few extra bucks for raffle tickets, t-shirts and MD&C swag. These fund-raising opportunities fund student research and travel grants. The grand prize for the raffle this year will likely be something from Bone Clones or France Casting!

Breakfast: Room cost at the Best Western includes a complimentary breakfast for up to 2 persons in the room. If there are more than 2 persons in a room, breakfast will be an additional $10 per person.
Lunch: Plan on a sandwich lunch in the meeting room for a modest cost (as per tradition).

We will be collecting food money Wednesday morning (estimated $40 CASH per person for food & venue rental fees). Lunches will be available in the meeting room as long as there are several volunteers for setup/layout of the food and the cleanup afterwards.

Dinner: Dinner on Wednesday night will be on your own, with many great food options within walking distance of the hotel. Thursday night we will be continuing the tradition of the Buffalo Chip dinner. We’ll be grilling hot dogs and burgers and have a multitude of sides. The Buffalo Chip is included in the food money collected Wednesday morning. Help with grilling and getting food set up is always appreciated!

Beverages: We are welcome to bring our own beverages into the Multi Use Building, including your beer of choice. Keep in mind that walking back to your hotel room won’t be as easy as it was in years past, so bringing a small cooler for beer and a reusable water bottle isn’t a bad idea! Because so few people have made use of the Keurig the past couple of years, we will no longer be offering coffee in the meeting room, though you’re welcome to bring your own coffee from the hotel or local coffee shop.

Pool Hours: Pool & hot tub are open until 10pm!!

General Information: Plan to arrive at the hotel Tuesday (May 27th) for the informal meet and drink that evening. We may be soliciting help in setting up the tables in the meeting room on Tuesday night. If you are new to MD&C, you will soon see that its success is truly a group effort! We will begin Wednesday morning at 9am toasting 43 years of beer for breakfast and continue the day with fantastic presentations. Thursday morning we will continue the unnatural walk tradition, followed by another day of fantastic presentations. Thursday night will be the annual Demented Views Show, Buffalo Chip Dinner and raffle. Wear your favorite/most outrageous Aloha shirt to the Buffalo Chip dinner because we are continuing the tradition of the annual Aloha shirt contest. We will also have the business meeting on Thursday evening, that way those who need to hit the road early on Friday can still participate. Please, please, please plan on attending the business meeting! We really need your help in keeping this meeting going from year to year and are looking for volunteers to help with planning for 2026.

Please contact me with any information & questions.
See you soon,
Tim Gocha, Krista Latham & Jenny Byrnes
[email protected] [email protected] [email protected]

Book your stay at the Best Western Hoover Dam in Boulder City NV. Enjoy spacious guest rooms, free Wi-Fi and free breakfast. Low Rate Guarantee

09/04/2025

MD&C Friends - It's with great sadness that we share the passing of long time MD&C member Elliot Moore II.

Elliot was a kind soul, cared deeply for our field and will be missed.

07/09/2025

We are asking for assistance to help keep the J. Stanley Rhine Student Presentation Award financially afloat and viable for years to come. To that end, and with the approval of Stan's widow, we have started a Go Fund Me where you can donate to honor Stan's memory and help provide travel funds for students who will be presenting at MD&C. Any amount is appreciated! Thank you!

MD&C is seeking donations to support one of our student awards. The… Krista Latham needs your support for MD&C Forensic Anthropology Student Grant Fundraiser

05/29/2025

MD&C Forensic Anthropologists meeting 2025 💀❤️💀

05/27/2025

05/22/2025

Wednesday May 28

9:00 – Introductions
9:30 – MD&C Lifetime Achievements by Krista Latham
9:40 – MD&C years 6-10 by Bruce Anderson (MD&C Historian)
10:00 – The Process of Memorializing and Demonstrating Respect Toward Skeletal Collections Without Provenance by Kaitlyn Glavee, Krista Latham & Amandine Eriksen

10:20 – BREAK

11:00 - An Examination of Taxonomic Diversity in Nonhuman Skeletal Remains Submitted to the California State University, Chico Human Identification Laboratory by Jazmin Borrayo, Sam Robinson, Rachel Watts, Kendall Gehring, Keilani Adams, Amber Plemons, Eric Bartelink, Ashley Kendell & Colleen Milligan
11:20 – An Exploration of Acetabular Variation by Claire Eichen, Krista Latham & Stephen Nawrocki
11:40 – Exploring Lower Extremity Fracture Patterning in Fatal Motor Vehicle Collisions by Lilli Antonelli, Jered Cornelison & Christine Pink

12:00 – LUNCH

2:00 – Reassessing Forensic Significance through Radiocarbon Dating: A Cautionary Tale from the Oklahoma Office of the Chief Medical Examiner by Tim Gocha, Sara Getz, Carlos Zambrano & Angela Berg
2:20 – Beyond the Bones: Gross Anatomy’s Role in Forensic Skeletal Analysis by Chastidy Gilbert, Amandine Eriksen & Krista Latham
2:40 – Ultraviolet Bone Autofluorescence Following Exposure to Acidic Corrosive Materials by Kendall Gehring
3:00 - The 5th Annual Richard C. Froede Memorial Forensic Pathology Lecture by Dr. Bruce Parks (Pima County Office of the Medical Examiner, retired)

3:30 – BREAK

4:00 - Bone Quiz

Thursday May 39

7:00 – The Un-Naturalist Walk lead by Eric Bartelink

10:00 – Announcements
10:10 – Back to Basics: An Exploration of How Skeletal Element and Environment Alter DNA Yield by Shelby Saut
10:30 – Hay is for Horses, and R is for Anthropologists by Lilli Antonelli, Briana New, Casey Varabkanich-Payne, Ari Pastore, Leah Auchter & Kyra Stull
10:50 – A Cold Case Reanalysis Demonstrates the Importance of Forensic Osteology Training in the Analysis of Trauma to the Skeleton by Ella Uren & Krista Latham

11:10 – BREAK

11:20 – Sample Demographics, Injury Patterns, and the Influence of Ocean Currents on the Movement of Victims’ Bodies in Suicidal Jumping Cases from the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco by Samantha Robinson, Jazmin Borrayo & Eric Bartelink
11:40 – Evaluating non-metric pelvic traits using a 3D printed model from a transgender woman by Taylor Flaherty and Jennifer Byrnes

12:00 – LUNCH

2:00 – Power of Presence: The Missing in Nevada Day Initiative by Liam Johnson
2:20 – Language at the Border: Why Changing Our Language Changes Our Perspectives by Makenna Mizell, Chastidy Gilbert, Lillian Bucher, Frankey Leggio, Amandine Eriksen & Krista Latham
2:40 – Radiographic Identification Using Computed Tomography (CT) by Tim Gocha, Angela Berg, Carlos Zambrano & Sara Getz

3:20 – BREAK

4:00 – Business Meeting (Everyone is encouraged to attend!)

6:30 - Demented Views, Buffalo Chip Dinner, Raffle & Hawaiian Shirt Contest