One year ago, today... I wish there was more to say.
Bump for Ben Bilemy.
I continue to dig for any relevant information... and here are a few tidbits of info I found.
I heard the term 'anthropological autopsy' used and have been curious about Ben's. I had the opportunity to talk with someone who teaches criminal biology in Utah and has attended the Forensic Anthropology Research Facility at Texas State for continuing education courses. She had a lot of interesting things to say about Ben Bilemy. Here are the highlights in my own words.
Anthropological autopsies are helpful in identifying people and one current trend in the field is isotope analysis. In a nutshell, the elements on the periodic table occur in different forms called of isotopes. Human isotopes are kind of like rings on a tree or layers of a rock. They tell a story and kind of form a time line. For example, water in New York has a different Hydrogen isotope than water in London or Istanbul. So they look at these isotopes and try to figure out where a person spent their time. The first isotopes examined to determine the most recent location come from tartar on a person's teeth. It is her guess entirely that the tartar on his teeth indicates his most recent location of duration as New York, unless we saw another area of focus for possible identifucation in the news within the 6 months to one year range of being discovered.
Another thing she said is that due to the privacy laws in Florida and the inability to use DNA for a familial ID, our best hope for now is that the isotopes reveal something that helps identify his true origin. However, if he was ever found to have committed a crime, the way in which the privacy laws apply to him would change and DNA might actually be able to be used for identification after a legal process. So while I hope he isnt a criminal, if he was a criminal it sounds like less red tape for a DNA identification.
She also told me about how there are a number of disease processes that are often undetectable during autopsy where starvation becomes the final causative factor. Most of them were disorders that effect the brain or cardiovascular system... Lewy body disease, certain types of porphyria, certain types of seizure disorders another. She ran through a bunch but I cant remember them all.
Last, she said she might guess he never had a birth certificate or ID. There are a number of people in her state without birth certificates or state IDs and it has become harder for them to get by or maintain employment without one. She said they call them Lost Boys in Utah.
This last tidbit of info I was looking to see if anyone posted but have not found mention of it...Simon Jones who played Arthur Dent in Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy has been enlisted to help ID Ben Bilemy. Mr Jones has a rather large fan base since his role in Downton Abbey. Most of his fans appear to be older than Ben though, maybe his parents generation. Simon Jones lives in England.
That pic of Ben smiling has been here a long time. It's a good one.
