In December, I went to the King County Medical Examiner’s Office in Seattle and photographed five more cases from around the state. As always, each had their individual challenges and interesting details.
The first case was a female found recently off Highway 18 in King County. My fantastic forensic anthropologist, Dr. Kathy Taylor, advised this subject was a mixed race female possibly in her early twenties. Examining the skull, I saw her facial features appeared mostly typically European-derived with the exception of her nasal sill, which was slightly guttered, indicating African-derived. Dr. Taylor pointed out the length of the cranium when viewed in profile is that resembling an African-derived skull. Dr. Taylor thought this female might self-identify as black although her features may appear more typically white. She asked that I draw two versions of the victim, one as a white female and one as a light-skinned black female. This victim also had a maxillary central incisor that had been missing long enough for the bone to have healed over, so I showed her with an open mouth to show that missing tooth.
