The Adventures of a Top Smithsonian Forensic Scientists and the Legal Battle for America's Oldest Skeletons.
One of the best forensic anthropologists at work today, Doug Owsley has conclusively identified human remains from news-making crime scenes, decimated war zones, and politically contested archeological sites around the world. The Smithsonian Institution scientist is renowned for his work with pre-Columbian mummies and skeletons, but he is also frequently called in by the State Department, FBI, and other federal agencies when modern remains need identifying.
Mild-mannered and intellectually brilliant, Owsley never expected to become embroiled in what would become a precedent-changing legal wrangle that pitted him and his straight-arrow scientific principles against a formidable opponent - the US Department of Justice.
The controversy and ensuing lawsuit concerned the Kennewick Man, a 9,600-year-old skeleton that surfaced in a park in Washington State. As detailed in 'No Bone Unturned', this major prehistoric find suggested that accepted theories about the first human habitation of North America are wrong.
But before Owsley and his colleagues could study the remains to determine their origins, the Army Corps of Engineers seized the skeleton and indicated that it would be returned to Native American tribes in the Pacific Northwest for reburial.
Based on preliminary evidence, Owsley did not believe the Kennewick Man was a direct ancestor of a known Native American tribe, but without access to the skeleton, this major anthropological breakthrough would never be verified. With no other recourse, Owsley and seven fellow scientists filed a lawsuit against the US government.
'No Bone Unturned' is their amazing story.
