ANZSOC would like to congratulate Victoria Berezowski on her outstanding scholarship on geographic profiling which earned her the 2023 PhD paper award at our annual conference. The below is a reflection provided by Tori about her research, and future hopes for the use of these techniques in Criminology and Forensic Science.
As the 2023 winner of the PhD candidate award, I am thrilled to be able to share a little bit about my research (and about me!). The article (link) looked at using geographic profiling to locate clandestine graves. Traditionally, geographic profiling has been used to locate an anchor point (home, workplace, etc…) of a serial offender, however, this article explores how the concepts can also be used to locate the burial sites of those who have been murdered. Using this technique involves looking at the spatial, temporal, environmental, and geographic elements of a case, as well as the behavioural and psychological information pertaining to the offender and the victim(s) to narrow down on potential gravesites. This type of research, being able to find those who are missing and buried, is really important because the body is the most important piece of forensic evidence and without it, it can be difficult to get a successful prosecution. It is also really important for the families because we can reconnect them with their loved ones and give them the answers that they deserve.
The use of geographic profiling for missing persons cases and searches for clandestine graves is becoming increasingly popular and I think it is a wonderful addition to the existing toolkit of search methods, including traditional methods, such as pedestrian searches and cadaver dogs, and higher tech methods, such as ground monitoring or drone-base imaging techniques. Over the last four years, diving deep into the realm of clandestine graves and how we can better help law enforcement when searching for them, I have found that no one technique is better than the other – they all have their strengths and limitations, and it is really guided by the scene and case characteristics when deciding which one to use. The other thing I learned is that, whenever possible, it is always best to use a multi-disciplinary approach – combining the knowledge of different research areas, not only fosters cross-discipline collaboration, but also increases our chances of finding those who are murdered and missing.
After having my PhD conferred in early 2024, I was successful in obtaining a contract lecturer position at Deakin University in Forensic Science. In this role, I look forward to teaching the next generation of forensic scientists, as well as continuing to research different technologies and techniques that can help us to find clandestine graves.