Missouri Allocates Funds for DNA Testing of Unclaimed Bodies

Legislators in Missouri have set aside funds to conduct tests on human remains that have not been identified in the hopes of providing families from all across the region with a sense of closure.

A significant portion of the reason why the remains of more than one hundred individuals have never been identified is because there is insufficient money for DNA testing. However, legislators argue that they are now one step closer to bringing about that change.

“Each human body that has not been identified is a potential missing person for somebody.” Wentzville’s state representative, Tricia Byrnes, expressed her dismay at the situation, saying, “And it’s just really heartbreaking.”

Byrnes left a meeting that was taking place in Jefferson City to have a conversation with First Alert 4 about what she referred to as a vital need. As of right now, the national database known as NAMUS reveals that dozens of remains, including a sizeable number of children, have never been recognized. ”

One of the most alarming cases that I have come across is that there was a mother who was discovered in the river in a suitcase, and her child who was discovered further down the river in a suitcase; somebody is looking for that mother and child,” said Byrnes.

According to Byrnes, the real number of body parts that have not been identified could be far greater because not all law enforcement agencies in the state make use of NAMUS. However, the Missouri House of Representatives has recently approved a budget that will provide the Missouri Highway Patrol with $1.5 million to hire a laboratory that will begin testing the remains of the deceased. There will only be one allocation made.

Even though the budget must be approved by the Senate, Representative Byrnes is hopeful that the funding will be preserved.

In addition to Missouri, the state of Illinois has 203 unidentified individuals registered in the NAMUS database. Missouri is not the only state coping with a substantial backlog of unexplained bodies. It is estimated that there are close to 15,000 unidentified remains across the country.