Othram - General Discussion - #3

[dotr]

The Pinal County Medical Examiner’s Office, working BIA Missing and Murdered Unit and Othram, used advanced forensic DNA testing to identify Glenn Thomas Tate Jr., missing since July 2020.

Sacaton John Doe (2024) is Now Identified

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AZ Thread 'AZ- Pinal County, desert area, Sacaton John Doe, #UP117598, skeletal remains, Feb., 2024, DNA- Glenn Thomas Tate, Jr., 35, 2025.'

Jan 12, 2026

Sacaton John Doe (2024) is Now Identified

Pinal County Medical Examiner's Office and Bureau of Indian Affairs Missing and Murdered Unit Team with Othram to Identify a 2024 John Doe

dnasolves.com

"In February of 2024, the partial skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were found in a desert area in Sacaton, a small town in Pinal County, Arizona. The Gila River Police Department and the Pinal County Medical Examiner's Office responded and began investigating and collecting evidence. Investigators determined that the remains belonged to an adult man between the ages of 18 to 70 years old whose ancestry could not be definitively determined. Investigators believe the man...

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• Forum: Identified!

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[othram]

The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office and King County Medical Examiner, working with Othram, have identified a 2006 John Doe as Clarence Edwin “Ed” Asher. We thank Governor Ferguson, Attorney General Nick Brown, and the Washington State Legislature for funding this case.

Grays Harbor County John Doe (2006) is Identified

 

[The4TierBridge]

Othram was also involved in solving #UP13642 found in Ocean Shores WA - identified as Bruce Joel Andrews, who disappeared while fishing in 1974.

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[othram]

The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office and the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, with Othram, have identified 1995 Ocean Shores John Doe as Bruce Joel Andrews. We thank Governor Ferguson, Attorney General Nick Brown, and the Washington State Legislature for funding this case.

After 30 Years, Ocean Shores John Doe (1995) is Identified

 

[dotr]

The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office and King County Medical Examiner, working with Othram, have identified a 2006 John Doe as Clarence Edwin “Ed” Asher. We thank Governor Ferguson, Attorney General Nick Brown, and the Washington State Legislature for funding this case.

Grays Harbor County John Doe (2006) is Identified

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WA Thread 'WA- Quinault Indian Reservation, on a beach, Grays Harbor County John Doe#UP139985, skeletal, Nov.,2006, DNA- Clarence Edwin "Ed" Asher, 72, 2026.'

Jan 13, 2026

Grays Harbor County John Doe (2006) is Identified

Grays Harbor County Coroner's Office and the King County Medical Examiner's Office Team with Othram to Identify a 2006 John Doe

dnasolves.com

''In November 2006, the skeletal remains of an unidentified individual were found on a beach in Taholah, an unincorporated village on the Quinault Indian Reservation, in Grays Harbor County, Washington. Grays Harbor County is on the Pacific coast of Washington near Seattle. The Grays Harbor Sheriff's Office and the Grays Harbor County Coroner's Office responded and began collecting evidence and investigating. They determined the remains were an adult man, likely aged 20 to 60 years old or older. The man was...

• dotr

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[dotr]

The Grays Harbor County Coroner’s Office and the King County Medical Examiner’s Office, with Othram, have identified 1995 Ocean Shores John Doe as Bruce Joel Andrews. We thank Governor Ferguson, Attorney General Nick Brown, and the Washington State Legislature for funding this case.

After 30 Years, Ocean Shores John Doe (1995) is Identified

D

WA Thread 'WA-Grays Harbor County, on a beach, Damon Point, Ocean Shores John Doe#UP13642, jaw bone, May, 2095, DNA- Bruce Joel Andrews, 25, 2026.'

Jan 13, 2026

After 30 Years, Ocean Shores John Doe (1995) is Identified

Grays Harbor County Coroner's Office and the King County Medical Examiner Team with Othram to Identify a 1995 John Doe

dnasolves.com

"In May 1995, a human jaw bone was found on the beach at Damon Point in Ocean Shores, Washington. Ocean Shores is a city in Grays Harbor County, located west of Seattle. The Ocean Shores Police Department and the Grays Harbor County Coroner's Office responded to collect evidence and investigate. It was determined that the jaw bone had washed ashore and there was no way to identify the person, whose sex and ancestry were unknown.

Despite a lengthy investigation, the case went cold and the person became known as...

• dotr

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[othram]

Genetic genealogists use the term “genetic match” all the time, but in forensics, “match” has a very specific meaning. This new article from the Othram research team explains why that matters and what language is more accurate. #dnasolves

Why “Genetic Match” Is a Misleading Term in Forensic Genetic Genealogy | Othram Research

Forensic genetic genealogy database search results are not ‘matches’ in the traditional forensic sense, but probabilistic associations to genetic relatives that support identity inference rather than direct source identification.

othram.com

 

[dotr]

Jan 16, 2026 NORTHEAST OHIO
Hidden homicides: DNA lab research reveals several hundred more unidentified cases may be murders

Hidden homicides: DNA lab research reveals several hundred more unidentified cases may be murders

Several hundred more cold case homicides could be out there not being investigated, leaving families without answers and criminals walking free.

www.cleveland19.com

By Sara Goldenberg Jan. 16, 2026 lengthy article.
''CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Several hundred more cold case homicides could be out there not being investigated, leaving families without answers and criminals walking free.
Clearing the backlog of John and Jane Doe cases could reveal those homicides, according to a powerful DNA lab that works to identify them.''

“It’s been described as a silent mass disaster,” said Colby Lasyone, chief of staff at Othram, a DNA lab in the Houston area.
Othram is solving John and Jane Doe cases at a rapid pace with investigative genetic genealogy.
“And it’s our belief that the resolution of these John and Jane Doe cases are important for social and humanitarian efforts as well as to bring justice and to provide answers for families, victims, and law enforcement,” he said.
Lasyone said systemic issues need to change to fix the problem.
“What we say here at Othram is that unsolved crime is a choice,” he said. “Unsolved John and Jane Doe victims are a choice. Every case can be resolved if there’s DNA,” Lasyone said.''

 

[othram]

Jan 16, 2026 NORTHEAST OHIO
Hidden homicides: DNA lab research reveals several hundred more unidentified cases may be murders

Hidden homicides: DNA lab research reveals several hundred more unidentified cases may be murders

Several hundred more cold case homicides could be out there not being investigated, leaving families without answers and criminals walking free.

www.cleveland19.com

By Sara Goldenberg Jan. 16, 2026 lengthy article.
''CLEVELAND, Ohio (WOIO) - Several hundred more cold case homicides could be out there not being investigated, leaving families without answers and criminals walking free.
Clearing the backlog of John and Jane Doe cases could reveal those homicides, according to a powerful DNA lab that works to identify them.''

“It’s been described as a silent mass disaster,” said Colby Lasyone, chief of staff at Othram, a DNA lab in the Houston area.
Othram is solving John and Jane Doe cases at a rapid pace with investigative genetic genealogy.
“And it’s our belief that the resolution of these John and Jane Doe cases are important for social and humanitarian efforts as well as to bring justice and to provide answers for families, victims, and law enforcement,” he said.
Lasyone said systemic issues need to change to fix the problem.
“What we say here at Othram is that unsolved crime is a choice,” he said. “Unsolved John and Jane Doe victims are a choice. Every case can be resolved if there’s DNA,” Lasyone said.''

Mind blogging that we have not prioritized more of these human remains cases.

 

[othram]

Our research site documents the scientific and technical foundations of our identity inference infrastructure: how uncertainty is handled, how inference is constrained, and how conclusions about identity remain defensible under scrutiny. If you care about how identity is established (not just that it was), you should subscribe. You will get new research as it is published, direct to your inbox!

Othram Research

Building a better infrastructure for justice.

research.othram.com

 

[othram]

Super proud of the Othram team for building and scaling identity inference inside the scientific, regulatory, and legal system. Technology earns trust by respecting constraints.

Othram Achieves ISO/IEC 17025:2017 Accreditation Scope Expansion to Include Profile Comparisons Used in KinSNP® Rapid Relationship Testing

The expanded accreditation strengthens Othram’s ability to perform validated SNP profile comparisons that support rapid, privacy-preserving assessments of genetic relationships.

othram.com

 

[othram]

In partnership with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, Othram’s technology helped solve the 1983 Dorothy Tate case, enabling investigators to identify suspects more than four decades after the crime.

After 42 Years, Dorothy Tate's Murder is Now Solved

 

[dotr]

After 42 Years, Dorothy Tate's Murder is Now Solved

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office Leverages Othram's Identity Inference Platform to Identify a 1983 Homicide Suspect

dnasolves.com

''In November 1983, Dorothy “Toby” Tate was found dead in her van about three miles north of Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. The 41-year-old woman from Estes Park, Colorado, had been shot in the head. Investigators with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office searched the van extensively and collected blood samples believed to be from the killer. Detectives also noted that a camera was stolen from Tate’s van, which was traced to a pawn shop a few years later. However, by that time, the camera had changed hands multiple times and none of the transactions led to an arrest.

Investigators with the Sheriff’s Office submitted several items of evidence for traditional forensic DNA testing. A male DNA profile was successfully developed from the evidence, but the individual's DNA profile did not match any known offenders in any DNA database, including CODIS. Despite exhaustive efforts by investigators, the case went cold. With no suspects in Toby Tate's murder, the case remained unsolved for many years and was eventually reopened by San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Cold Case/Unsolved Homicide Detectives.

In 2023, the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office teamed with Othram to determine if advanced forensic DNA testing could help establish the identity of Tate's killer. The Sheriff's Office submitted forensic evidence to Othram in The Woodlands, Texas so that a DNA profile could be developed from the forensic evidence. Othram scientists were provided with a DNA extract that was developed from the original crime scene evidence. From this, a comprehensive DNA profile for the unknown individual was built using Forensic-Grade Genome Sequencing®. After successfully completing the process, local law enforcement coordinated a forensic genetic genealogy search, which generated new investigative leads in the case.

Throughout the investigation, investigators determined that two men were responsible for Toby Tate's murder. Fingerprints recovered from a soda can initially found at the scene placed a man named Charley Sneed there. Using forensic genetic genealogy, which was powered by Othram's forensic DNA sequencing platform, investigators identified Steven Richard Hardy as the second man responsible for Dorothy Tate’s murder.

“Both Hardy and Sneed were residents of Texas at the time and are now deceased. No evidence suggests the involvement of any additional suspects,” the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office announced. “The evidence indicates the crime was likely committed during a burglary or theft, as property belonging to the victim was later pawned in California."

 

[dotr]

In partnership with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office, Othram’s technology helped solve the 1983 Dorothy Tate case, enabling investigators to identify suspects more than four decades after the crime.

After 42 Years, Dorothy Tate's Murder is Now Solved

D

Post in thread 'Othram - General Discussion - #3'

Today at 1:53 PM

After 42 Years, Dorothy Tate's Murder is Now Solved

San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office Leverages Othram's Identity Inference Platform to Identify a 1983 Homicide Suspect

dnasolves.com

''In November 1983, Dorothy “Toby” Tate was found dead in her van about three miles north of Hearst Castle in San Simeon, California. The 41-year-old woman from Estes Park, Colorado, had been shot in the head. Investigators with the San Luis Obispo County Sheriff’s Office searched the van extensively and collected blood samples believed to be from the killer. Detectives also noted that a camera was stolen from Tate’s van, which was traced to a pawn shop a few years later. However, by that time, the camera had...

• dotr

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