Over 50 years ago, a baby was found in a black trash bag inside a Columbus County landfill. For decades, the baby went by “Baby Doe” and remained unidentified.
That all changed this week when advanced DNA technology was able to identify the infant’s remains, and the mother was arrested by the Columbus County Sheriff’s Office. Cathy McKee is charged with felony concealment of the birth of a child. She bonded out of jail on Wednesday.
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Two years ago, the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) worked with the Sheriff’s Office and reopened the ‘Baby Doe’ case. They sent tissue samples to Othram, a Texas-based forensic organization that specializes in unsolved murders. The company can use trace amounts of DNA to identify victims through genome sequencing, familial relationship testing and utilization of a genetic database.
Since 2018, they have sold nearly 350 cases.
“We’re particularly well-known for our work, and working on evidence that is challenging, and may have failed elsewhere,” said Othram’s Chief of Staff, Colby Lasyone.
He said many of the unidentified persons are decades-old cold cases. Othram extracted DNA from Baby Doe’s tissue sample and created a comprehensive profile. This was sent back to investigators in Columbus County, and they linked the DNA to McKee.
This is a costly process. Othram charges approximately $10,000 per DNA profile case. Law enforcement agencies often cover this cost themselves.
