Tuesday, Dec. 28, 1999

The future of Kennewick Man is as uncertain as his past

By Mike Lee Herald staff writer

Time is running short. The federal government has less than three months to determine if it will allow eight scientists to study the ancient human remains found in Kennewick three years ago. Even more important, a federal judge will be examining the reasons the government cites for its decision.

Those reasons likely will play a big part in whether the judge grants the scientists' request.

Things aren't moving quickly - at least not publicly.

Since September, when U.S. Magistrate Judge John Jelderks gave the Interior Department six months to figure out what to do with Kennewick Man, small pieces of the ancient bones have been sent to three radiocarbon laboratories around the country.

Answers about Kennewick Man's age were expected more than a month ago.

The University of California at Riverside, which dated two bone samples, and Beta Analytical in Florida already have submitted their results. But the government is not releasing them because it wants to see all the dates together to "make the most accurate interpretation of the effect" of the low protein levels.

The initial radiocarbon test - the one that sparked the intense interest in the remains - put Kennewick Man at about 9,200 years old. More dates are needed to verify the first one.

The government must give the court an update on its progress by Jan. 3.

"I don't know how they are going to explain this," said Alan Schneider, lawyer for the scientists who have sued the government for the right to study the bones. "I don't know how you can put a spin on the fact that you may have needlessly destroyed a (part) of the skeleton and not gotten anything useful. It's real hard to make that a positive."

"Remarkably little has been achieved during the three years during which defendants have had custody of the skeleton, and the (agencies) appear to be little closer to obtaining answers to the critical questions raised by this litigation," Jelderks said.

With that in mind, the judge told the government to find answers by spring - and he suggested any decision it reaches without DNA testing of the ancient remains would "probably be challenged as arbitrary and capricious."

Though the Interior Department has not publicly ruled out DNA tests - which would be used to try to link the ancient bones to modern people - the complications with radiocarbon dating mean such work probably could not be done by the court-imposed deadline.

Also, tribal leaders deem DNA and radiocarbon tests highly offensive because they destroy bone. DNA testing likely would require more bone samples be taken, a tedious and lengthy process itself, not to mention selecting laboratories for the work and analyzing results.

While DNA questions potentially loom in the future, all eyes now are on the radiocarbon tests, which, the scientists who sued to study the bones have grumbled long and loud, are being bungled.

Months before the government acknowledged the bones it chose to date weren't well suited to the purpose, the scientists complained to the court that the government did not chemically analyze the bones to see how much was needed.

The government has defended its bone selection and said low protein levels are not "unusual" for ancient remains.

So, after more than three years, Kennewick Man still is headed into an uncertain future haunted by unanswered questions about his past.