Steven A. Symes, Ph.D., DABFA
Dr. Steve Symes, Forensic Anthropologist, received his B.A. degree in Anthropology in 1976. He received an M.A. and Ph.D. in Physical Anthropology from the University of Tennessee in 1992, and was one of the original students to conduct research at the university’s “Body Farm,” the first outdoor anthropological research facility of its kind. Dr. Symes is best known for his expertise in interpreting trauma to bone, and is a leading authority on saw and knife mark analysis. He has lectured, consulted, or testified on trauma cases and high-profile human rights cases all over the world.
Dr. Symes has served as the state’s senior forensic anthropologist since 2016. He is actively involved in case work that includes trauma analysis, skeletal recoveries, and identifications. His research interests include the analysis and interpretation of skeletal traumatic injury in infants and juveniles, burned and healing trauma in bone, and fracture biomechanics interpretation.
Anastasia Holobinko, Ph.D.
Dr. Anastasia Holobinko, Forensic Anthropologist, received her undergraduate degree from Ohio University before earning a Master of Science in Zoology from Southern Illinois University Carbondale (SIUC). Dr. Holobinko completed her Ph.D. in Physical Anthropology at SIUC with a specialization in the stable isotope profiling of human tooth enamel and bone, and has conducted research on modern and archaeological samples from North American and European populations. She has lectured at universities in the United States and Canada, and has authored and edited publications covering topics in stable isotope analysis, anthropology, and animal behavior.
Originally from northeast Ohio, Dr. Holobinko joined the State Medical Examiner’s Office in 2016, and is working toward board certification with the American Board of Forensic Anthropology. In addition to anthropology casework, she is the agency liaison for National Missing and Unidentified Persons System (NamUs) cases, and develops and manages projects in operations and administration, public relations, and training and education.