TECHNIQUES FOR LOCATING BURIALS, WITH EMPHASIS ON THE PROBE

The for buried remains frequently includes visual assessment of surfac e features, trained dogs, and sophisticated geophysical remote sensing techniques. Nonintrusive, electronic survey equipment, such as the pr oton magnetometer, ground penetrating radar, and electrical resistivit y, have yielded good results. However, under certain field conditions a simple, less expensive, relatively noninvasive tool-the probe-is eff ective. The probe, when used by an experienced investigator, provides a variety of information in a short amount of time, facilitates excava tion, and minimizes damage to a burial. This paper offers examples of the application of a probe in forensic cases in urban and rural settin gs and in the detection of historic burials. Examples include the loca tion of four individuals killed during the raid on the Branch Davidian Compound in Mount Carmel, Texas, and the search for burials in cemete ries that had been desecrated.