The Lost and the Found

http://z13.invisionfree.com/Ms_Missing_and_UID/ar/t249.htm

USM student scans skull, attempting to solve 30-year-old cold case

Published: Wednesday, March 30, 2011, 8:45 AM
By Michael Dumas, Press-Register The Mississippi Press

PASCAGOULA, Mississippi -- More than 30 years ago, a woman was found murdered near Wiggins, and not only was her killer never found -- neither was her identity.

But Ocean Springs resident Jessica Carzoli hopes to change that as part of a project she's working on through the University of Southern Mississippi.

Carzoli, 29, wasn't even born when the woman -- known to scientists in the school's anthropology department simply as "Ms. Wiggins" -- was killed. But through her course of study in anthropology and forensics, she has come to know quite a bit about her.

"They found brown hair with her, which said she was a Caucasian," said Carzoli, as she stood next to a plain cardboard box containing Ms. Wiggins' skull at Singing River Hospital on Tuesday.

Through examination of the entire skeleton, Carzoli said it was known that the victim had been between the ages of 35 and 45 at the time of death, and that she was somewhere between 5-foot-3 and 5-foot-6 inches tall.

Investigators at the time also believed she had been dead approximately six months before she was discovered with her hands and feet bound in September 1980.

Through a partnership program between the hospital and USM, Carzoli, a senior, was invited to have the skull put through a CT scan to produce a 3D image that would help her created a facial reconstruction of the woman to help with identity.

She said she would also produce a computer-generated reconstruction of the woman's face; all of which will be forwarded to Stone County law enforcement for their cold-case file.

The process is called "forensic artistry," according to Carzoli.

She said she picked Wiggins' remains out of 10 or 12 other cold cases the anthropology department keeps, mainly due to "amount of information that we had on her."

"Some we only have a skull," she said, adding that Wiggins' entire body was recovered at the scene.

Thanks to professional courtesy and curiosity between USM professor of anthropology Dr. Marie Danforth and orthopedic surgeon Dr. Chris Wiggins, Singing River donated the use of its CT scanner for Carzoli's project.

"Education is a big part of the medical profession," Dr. Wiggins said. "We're glad to help out anyone that is furthering their education.

"It's a win-win situation. Singing River Hospital's donated their time and equipment, it helps Jessica get her degree and it may help solve a cold case that's been around for 30 years."

http://blog.gulflive.com/mississippi-press...usm_studen.html