2023 Breakfast Speaker Series: Cold Case Success Stories feat. Knox Co. Regional Forensic Center

The chamber's Breakfast Speaker Series events provide an opportunity for businesses and the public to hear from speakers on specific topics or issues that are of importance to them, their business, and our community. Members receive discounted pricing as a benefit of membership. Attendees from the community are always welcome. 

Discovered in 1998, near a creek in Campbell County, her remains proved she had been a victim of violent crime but they told investigators nothing else about WHO she was. After no further evidence could be gathered, she was buried as an indigent with a tombstone marked as "Unidentified Person." Nearly 25 years later, thanks to advanced technologies and the persistence of the Knox Co. Regional Forensics team, she has a name. Her family has closure.

Solving "cold case" investigations is critical to a community for a multitude of reasons. When a case goes unsolved, the victim is victimized again through lack of justice. The offender is also obviously free to offend again, creating added public safety issues and jeopardizing public trust in local law enforcement. 

Join us for a fascinating dual-speaker program with the Knox Co. Regional Forensic Center, and learn more about the recent and coming advancements in local technology that have allowed this team to solve decades long cold cases in our area, bringing long-awaited justice to the victims and their families. 

Featuring:

• Dr. Darinka Mileusnic, Chief Medical Examiner: Dr. Mileusnic is a graduate of the University of Rijeka Medical School in Croatia, as well as of Loyola University's Neuroscience Graduate Program in Chicago. In addition to providing testimony in several nationally profiled criminal trials, she speaks at  local and national levels. Her main interests are in forensic toxicology and pediatric forensic pathology. 
• Chris Thomas, Chief Administrative Officer: A retired U.S. Army veteran, Thomas oversees daily operations for the center, focusing on media relations and public dissemination of case info. He also serves on several governmental and community taskforces regarding drug related and motor vehicle deaths.