Forensic Genetic Genealogy Project 15JUN2026

This research seeks to collect all publicly available information concerning cases that were successfully cleared through forensic investigative genetic genealogy (FIGG), going back as far as possible in time and ending on June 15, 2026. Cases were selected for inclusion in the dataset through internet searches, discussion boards, as well as press releases and blog posts from private companies and non-profit organizations known to perform FIGG, publications devoted to advances in forensic science, and published court records. Cases were chosen for inclusion in the sample only if a public authority had confirmed that FIGG was used to clear the investigation, and the investigation met the following definition of FIGG: 1. Investigative Body: The investigation was led by a public, and not a private, authority, such as a law enforcement agency or a coroner/medical examiner’s office. 2. Investigative Techniques: The investigation must use the techniques of genomics, computer database technologies, and traditional genealogy. Cases were included when family lineages were drawn out to at least three or more generations. The sample includes investigations that use Y-chromosome STR profiles and/or mitochondrial DNA profiles to trace the paternal and maternal lineages of persons of interest. Cases solved through familial searching of law enforcement databases were excluded from the sample, as this technique raises separate legal and ethical issues. 3. Investigative Purpose: The investigation must be for a forensic purpose, meaning that the evidence thus produced is relevant to an ongoing legal dispute. Most cases considered here are for the identification of perpetrators of criminal offences or the identification of decedents but can also include the identification of living does. Not included in this data are cases that are of purely historical interest, or the identification of unknown soldiers by military authorities. The term ‘forensic genetic genealogy’ has been chosen for this project in preference to the broader, and more generic term ‘investigative genetic genealogy’, which has also been used, to highlight the fact that these investigations are directed towards an ongoing legal dispute before the public legal system. 4. Causation: This database only includes cases that have been successfully cleared using FIGG. The resolution of any investigation – particularly very large and lengthy investigations as were many of the cases described in this data – has many causes. To be included here, the FIGG investigation must have played a significant causal role in the resolution of the case. More complete information about how the data was coded can be found in the Code Book, included in previous versions of this project. You may read a short digest of each case cleared, including references for all data collected, in the Case Digests below, separated into criminal (CRIM) and human remains investigations (HRI).本研究旨在收集所有通过法医调查遗传家谱学（forensic investigative genetic genealogy, FIGG）成功侦破的案件的公开信息，时间跨度尽可能回溯，截止至2026年6月15日。 本数据集的入选案件通过互联网搜索、论坛讨论、已知开展法医调查遗传家谱学服务的私营企业与非营利组织发布的新闻稿及博客文章、法医科学进展相关出版物，以及公开法庭记录筛选获得。 仅当公共权威机构确认使用法医调查遗传家谱学侦破案件，且案件符合以下法医调查遗传家谱学定义时，方可入选本样本： 1. 调查主体：调查由公共而非私营机构主导，例如执法机构、验尸官/法医办公室。 2. 调查技术：必须运用基因组学、计算机数据库技术与传统家谱学技术。入选案件需至少追溯至三代及以上的家族谱系；样本涵盖使用Y染色体短串联重复序列（STR）图谱和/或线粒体DNA（mitochondrial DNA）图谱追踪目标人员父系与母系谱系的调查。通过执法数据库家族检索侦破的案件不予入选，因该技术存在独立的法律与伦理争议。 3. 调查目的：必须服务于法医用途，即所获证据与正在进行的法律纠纷相关。本数据集收录的案件大多用于识别刑事犯罪行为人或死者身份，也可包括身份不明的在世人员。本项目选用“法医遗传家谱学（forensic genetic genealogy）”而非更宽泛通用的“调查遗传家谱学”一词，旨在强调此类调查针对的是公共法律体系中正在进行的法律纠纷。 4. 因果关联：本数据库仅收录通过法医调查遗传家谱学成功侦破的案件。任何案件的侦破——尤其是本数据中提及的诸多大型耗时案件——均受多重因素影响。入选本数据集的案件，其法医调查遗传家谱学调查必须在案件侦破中发挥了显著的因果作用。 关于数据编码的更完整说明，可参阅本项目此前版本中附带的《编码手册》（Code Book）。您可在下方的案件摘要中查阅每起侦破案件的简要概要，包括所有已收集数据的参考文献，该摘要分为刑事案件（CRIM）与人体遗骸调查（HRI）两类。