'A mistake is so large': How identification efforts after Humboldt and Toronto were different

In the wake of mass casualties, coroners and medical examiners face the painstaking task of identifying victims.

Dr. Dirk Huyer, part of the team who identified victims after the van attack in Toronto last week, said there is a "balance" to strike between gathering information for investigators and identifying victims for families and the community, all while making absolutely sure the team gets the identities right.

'The significance of making a mistake is so large,' Huyer told the media.

The devastating consequences of misidentifying victims in a mass casualty situation were made clear after the Humboldt Broncos bus crash earlier this month. A family was led to believe their loved one had survived, only to find out later that he was one of the 16 people who had died.

There are two methods that can be used to identify bodies: visual and scientific.

Scientific identification was used in the Toronto van attack, despite anxious families and a mourning city wanting desperately to learn the identities of the 10 victims. It was four days before their names were officially released by Ontario's chief coroner. 

Visual identification was used for victims of the Humboldt crash. 

Which method investigators use — visual or scientific — depends on the case. Some provinces have guidelines in place for big incidents.

Saskatchewan does not have any such guidelines. Ontario has the Complex Fatality Plan, which states that in complicated cases like the Toronto attack, scientific identification will be used.

"[Scientific ID] is done because of the fact that the complexities mean that you don't actually have all of the same factors available that would be when it's an isolated death," said Huyer. 

The difference between methods

Visual: "When we look at what is termed 'visual identification', it is in fact visual confirmation. So usually, when we're asking a family member to view a deceased person, we're asking them to confirm that that's who they believe it is," Huyer said.

"Prior to that, there's multiple factors we've considered [like] the person comes from their own house, their own car, they have identification that's with them, they may have tattoos or marks or clothing.

"So we're almost completely sure that that's the person when we take somebody to meet with them," he said.

Scientific: Scientific identification involves things like fingerprints, dental records and DNA matching.

This method takes longer and Huyer acknowledges it can be difficult for families. He said it's important to be in constant communication with the families of the dead.

"We do tell the families we believe that their loved one has passed," he said.

"We tell them the steps that we're taking, we explain why and we then provide them with updates on how we're doing with the whole process."

What leads to misidentifying bodies?

Factors that can contribute to misidentification include multiple deaths from a single incident, extensive trauma to the bodies, victims with similar appearances, a lack of identification documents and the degree to which a person confirming the identity knew the deceased.

The Saskatchewan government wouldn't provide specific information on why the coroner's office used visual identification in the Humboldt case. It issued a statement to CBC News which read, in part:

"With bodies, the evidence may include identification carried on the body, visual identification using photographs (driver's licenses, passports, family photos) or personal characteristics such as scars, tattoos or piercings. Identification of the body by family, friends or other persons is additional evidence that typically provides confirmation. In most cases, visual identification provides a high degree of certainty and further testing is not justified."

The province is currently reviewing the rules for coroners to determine whether there are areas that need improvement, and how to prevent mistakes from happening again in the future.