AG Ferguson: $500K will fund genetic genealogy testing for all unidentified remains in Washington

Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women Washington

OLYMPIA — Attorney General Bob Ferguson provided the following statement today after the Legislature approved his budget request for $500,000 to fund genetic genealogy and DNA testing for the entire backlog of unidentified remains in Washington.

Right now, 163 unidentified remains await further testing in Washington. The new funding will supplement existing state and federal DNA testing resources. As a result, families awaiting information about loved ones do not need to endure unnecessary delays and cases can be resolved more quickly.

The Attorney General’s Office and the Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and People Task Force advocated for the funding to clear the backlog. The task force, convened by the Attorney General in 2021, published a report in December 2023 urging the Legislature to dedicate the funding necessary to clear the backlog. DNA testing of individual remains and forensic genetic genealogy are proven strategies to identify missing Indigenous people and bring closure to families.

“Timely DNA testing can bring a measure of closure and help solve more cold cases,” Ferguson said. 

“Families should never have to endure unnecessary delays when seeking answers about their missing loved ones. I am thankful to our partners in the Legislature — Rep. Lekanoff, Rep. Stearns and Sen. Kauffman and many others — who continue to fight to ensure the missing and murdered Indigenous people crisis gets the attention and resources it deserves.”

In December 2023, the task force released its latest report and recommendations. The recommendation calling for funds to clear the backlog of unidentified remains stems from the experience of task force member Patricia Whitefoot, who waited 14 years for the partial remains of her sister, Daisy Mae Heath, to be tested and identified. Much of that delay was due to a lack of funding. Ultimately, the Attorney General’s Office worked with the Yakima County Coroner to provide the necessary funding.

“I’m pleased the Washington State Attorney General’s Office heard the voices of families in our pursuit to know the status of unidentified remains,” Whitefoot said. 

“I was reminded of these remains whenever our family received an inquiry about unidentified remains, since my sister, Daisy Heath, had been missing over 30 years. 

"Because of our sister, I found myself motivated and compelled to promote needed resolution about the remains with the task force. Our family wondered about the status of our sister for far too long.”

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