If you have never heard of NamUs before, you have a good reason: It’s fairly new. NamUs is an organization that combines civilian input with that of medical examiners and law enforcement officers all across the country. The objective:To help identify the thousands and thousands of Jane and John Does who are unidentified, recovered human remains. 

For years, medical examiners had no way to link the dead who ended up in their hands with the reported missing. Law enforcement and medical examiners worked independently of one another, and the families of the missing — the most important people involved in the entire equation — were completely shut out of the process. Now, with the refinement of DNA procedures and the use of odontology (forensic dentistry), it is possible to reconnect recovered remains to their identities and return them to their families for burial.

NamUs is an idea that is long overdue. Through NamUs, several cases have already been resolved. It’s reasonable to expect that as more discover NamUs, the volume of information will also increase. Please check them out at www.namus.gov. It’s an effort to connect the dots and allow the anonymous dead to finally come home again.