The Police Officer Said, "this Guy Knows What He's Talking About, He's A Taxidermist."

A couple years ago on Veterans Day I came upon a human skull while hiking in the woods. Here is what I shared that day on facebook. This crowd will appreciate the the account on multiple levels.

"I've found many animal bones over the years, but today I found a human skull in the woods. [Lower jaw was missing.] When I showed it to the responding officer, he didn't believe it was real. It was next to a collapsed tent and a mess of cloths, pans, toiletries all which looked like they belonged to a homeless person. Among the many belongings strewn about was spooky bat Halloween sign. The officer was convinced the skull was a plastic Halloween decoration...in the middle of the woods. I pointed to a metal filling in one of the molars, joints separating across the cranial bones, the intricate bones in the nose and sinuses. He still wasn't convinced. Frustrated with the response, I told him I'm an amateur taxidermist and I know what real bones look like. The officer asked if I would feel comfortable picking up the skull to see if was the right weight.

I asked him if he wanted to photograph the scene first. He said "meh, i forgot my camera in the cruise." [I don't know why he didn't use a smart phone but we've already established this cop had little interest in doing his job.] If that's what it was going to take for the officer to believe me, it was worth it. He handed me a glove. I carefully picked up the skill and he stopped me. He pointed at the ground. He was standing on soggy blanket. The blanket was covered in moss and nearly invisible but a bone was protruding. He lifted the blanket exposing a complete and collapsed skeleton. Unmistakably human. Calling the homicide detective the responding officer said, "this guy knows what he's talking about, he's a taxidermist."

After all the paperwork, I asked if they would bury the remains or offer some some dignity to the deceased. He didn't know how remains are dealt with after autopsies. I hope this person had loved ones who cared about him/her. Maybe this will bring them some closure."
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Update: About six months later I called to follow up. The detective told me they positively ID the remains as belonging to an older homeless lady (not through DNA but through investigation). They could not find any next of kin to notify. No foul play was suspected.

The bones were a bit dirty from the elements but had no flesh or sinew or odor. I was in the exact spot two years prior and no remains were present.

Everyone i've shared this story with asked how traumatizing the event must have been. As most of you would have guessed, it wasn't. It was just sad. I worked in a police department in college and obviously enjoy taxidermy. I was the right person to come upon the scene.