Religion and Disaster Victim Identification

Disaster Victim Identification (DVI) is a triangle, the components of which are secular law, religious law and custom and professional methods. In cases of single non-criminal deaths, identification often rests with a hospital or a medical authority. When dealing with criminal or mass death incidents, the law, in many jurisdictions, assigns identification to the coroner/medical examiner, who typically uses professional methods and only answers the religious requirements of the deceased's next-of-kin according to his personal judgment. This article discusses religious considerations regarding scientific methods and their limitations, as well as the ethical issues involved in the government coroner/medical examiner's becoming involved in clarifying and answering the next-of-kin's religious requirements.