POW/MIA Affairs

Pursuant to a congressional request, GAO reviewed the adequacy of the management controls used to eliminate the risk of improper or unscientific identifications of human remains at the Army’s Central Identification Laboratory in Hawaii (CILHI). GAO found that: (1) CILHI uses scientific identification techniques and methodologies that are consistent with or exceed those employed in other modern forensic science laboratories; (2) CILHI hired an internationally recognized forensic anthropologist as its director; (3) CILHI has added several qualified scientists and casualty data analysts to its staff; (4) CILHI has incorporated extensive review processes and procedures that make the misidentification of human remains extremely unlikely; (5) the role of the Army consultants who review CILHI-recommended identifications is unclear, in that the Army has not provided them standard guidelines that specify the types of information each consultant should review in analyzing individual cases; (6) Army consultants do not review cases involving identifications from the Korean War or from World War II; (7) CILHI has had difficulty in maintaining adequate administrative control over files; (8) CILHI does not have essential data in many of the antemortem records of personnel listed as missing; (9) there were instances in which the services’ absence of physical control over remains had caused either a loss of some remains or unacceptable risks of loss; and (10) physical accountability of remains located at CILHI may be a problem.