Dr. Jason Byrd — President
Jason Byrd  Dr. Byrd is a Board Certified Forensic Entomologist and Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Entomology.  He is past Chairman of the American Board of Forensic Entomology and currently serves as the Executive Secretary.  Dr. Byrd is a Bureau Chief for the Department of Plant Industry, Florida Division of Agriculture and Consumer Services. Additionally, he instructs courses in forensic science at the University of Florida’s nationally recognized Hume Honors College.  Outside of academics Dr. Byrd is an Administrative Officer within the National Disaster Medical System organized under the Department of Health and Human Services, National Disaster Medical System, and serves on the Disaster Portable Morgue Unit as Communications Unit Leader for the Florida Emergency Mortuary Operations Response System.  Dr. Byrd has combined his formal academic training in Entomology and Forensic Science to serve as a consultant and educator in both criminal and civil legal investigations throughout the United States and Internationally.  Dr. Byrd specializes in the education of law enforcement officials, medical examiners, coroners, attorneys, and other death investigators on the use and applicability of arthropods in legal investigations.  He has published numerous scientific articles on the subject of forensic entomology, and has completed two book publications on the use of insects in legal investigations.
nafea.president@gmail.com
 
 
 
Dr. Gail Anderson — President-Elect
GailAnderson
Dr. Anderson received her PhD (1992) and M.P.M. (1986) from Simon Fraser University, B.C. in entomology, and her BSc (Hon.)(1983) from Manchester University in England.
She is an Associate Professor in forensic entomology in the School of Criminology at Simon Fraser University, Associate Director of the School of Criminology, Co-Director of the Centre for Forensic Research, a forensic consultant to the RCMP and City Police across Canada (and other countries) and a regular instructor at Canadian Police College. She is a Board Certified Forensic Entomologist.  She has been analyzing forensic entomology cases since 1988, and has testified as an expert witness in court many times. She is a Fellow of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences and a Fellow of The Canadian Society of Forensic Sciences, the Past-President of the Entomological Society of BC, President- of the Canadian Society of Forensic Sciences, as well as a member of the International Association for Identification, the Canadian Identification Society, Entomological Society of America and Entomological Society of Canada. She was a recipient of Canada's Top 40 under 40 Award in 1999, received a YWCA Women of Distinction Award for Science and Technology in 1999, and the Simon Fraser University Alumni Association Outstanding Alumni Award for Academic Achievement in 1995. She was listed in TIME magazine as one of the top 5 innovators in the world, this century, in the field of Criminal Justice. Dr. Anderson was presented with the Derome Award in 2001. This is the most prestigious award the Canadian Society of Forensic Science bestows, for outstanding contributions to the field of forensic science.
ganderso@sfu.ca
 
 
 
Ms. Diana Johnson — Secretary
Diana Johnson NAFEA Secretary

Ms. Johnson is a forensic scientist with the New Jersey State Police – Office of Forensic Sciences.  She received a B.S. in Biology from The College of New Jersey (1998) and an M.S. in Entomology from Washington State University (2003).  She is currently a Ph.D. student, working with Dr. Dina Fonseca, in the Entomology Department at Rutgers University.  Diana is conducting a genetic study of the flesh flies indigenous to the Northeastern United States.

nafea.secretary@gmail.com
 
 
 
Dr. Linda-Lou O'Connor— Treasurer
Linda O'Connor
Dr. Linda O’Connor is a graduate of the University of Delaware in medical entomology.  Prior to receiving her education in the field of entomology, she was employed by the State of Delaware, Department of Probation/Parole.  As an officer and supervisor her duties included supervising violent career criminals, testifying in local and state courts, locating and arresting violent felons under a joint agency FBI task force, and firearms coach.  While pursuing a Masters Degree in entomology, she was contacted by local police agencies to consult on several homicide investigations, through these contacts a working relationship was formed with the State Medical Examiner’s Office (MEO).  Linda O’Connor has consulted as a forensic entomologist for the MEO since 2001 and completed an internship under their supervision.  Currently, she is a full member of the Vidocq Society, and has presented numerous lectures on forensic entomology at professional meetings, universities, forensic science communities, and local and state police departments.
nafea.treasurer@gmail.com
 
 
 
Dr. M. Eric Benbow — Editor (Newsletter and Website)

Dr. Eric Benbow is an Assistant Professor of Biology at the University of Dayton. His forensic entomology focus is on understanding the biological and ecological principles of carrion and human decomposition as it relates to applications in forensic science. Eric was a founding executive committee member for NAFEA, and has assisted on several forensic entomological cases with Dr. Rich Merritt and Ryan Kimbirauskas, both board certified forensic entomologists, and has been a co-author on several publications related to forensic entomology.

Most recently, Dr. Eric has collaborated with Dr. Rich Merritt (ABFE) on a recently won $2 million Emerging Infectious Disease grant from a joint NSF-NIH program through NIH Forgarty International Center.  This project is in collaboration with several faculty at Michigan State University, the University of Tennessee, Noguchi Memorial Medical Institute (Ghana, Africa), the Ghana Water Research Institute, and the World Health Organization.  Additional collaborations are being developed with Dr. John Wallace at Millersville University. The research addresses the role of human land use change on the ecology and distribution of a bacterial skin disease that is rapidly emerging in tropical regions of the world. 

nafea.editor@gmail.com
 

 
 
Dr. Mark Benecke — International Member Representative
mark benecke
Dr. Mark Benecke works internationally as a forensic biologist. He will gladly get international people in touch whenever they want. Just drop a note. 

Forensic Entomology: http://wiki.benecke.com/index.php?title=Forensic_Entomology
Trainings: http://wiki.benecke.com/index.php?title=Trainings
Cases: http://wiki.benecke.com/index.php?title=Cases

Phone & SMS text messages : +49 173 287 3136 (emergencies only)
FAX only: +49 221 660 2644
Home: http://benecke.com/

nafea.internationalrep@gmail.com



 
Mr. Jonathan Cammack — Associate Member Representative
J Cammack
Mr. Jonathan Cammack received his B.S. in Entomology with a minor in Anthropology from Texas A&M University in May, 2007.  He is currently working on a Master’s in Entomology at Clemson University with Dr. Peter H. Adler, where his research focus is blow fly pupation behavior.
nafea.associaterep@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

www.nafea.net