Native UM student works to create missing persons database
Haley Omeasoo, a doctorate student in forensic and molecular anthropology at UM, works to create the first DNA database of Blackfeet Nation members. (UM Photos by Ryan Brennecke)
MISSOULA – Haley Omeasoo was already studying forensic science at the University of Montana when she saw the poster that redefined her life.
The 2017 poster announced that her former high school classmate, Ashley Loring HeavyRunner, had gone missing on the Blackfeet Reservation in northern Montana. Just 20 at the time, HeavyRunner has never been found in the seven years since.
HeavyRunner’s plight, and the cases of other missing and murdered indigenous persons (MMIP), gave Omeasoo a new mission: to use her skills to help families searching for lost loved ones, and use DNA analysis to return the remains of Native Americans to their families and tribal groups.
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