Though the famed “Bone Lady” is retiring, she hopes to dig out new ground for her career as a fiction writer.
Mary Manhein, director of the FACES Laboratory at the University, is retiring April 30. She authored “Floating Souls: The Canal Murders,” the first of a fiction series set in New Orleans and is working on the second book in the series.
According to a news release, Manhein also serves as director of the Louisiana Repository for Unidentified and Missing Persons Information Program, and she has assisted law enforcement agencies for more than 30 years.
Manhein consulted on hundreds of forensic cases dealing with human remains throughout her career. She has dealt with mass disaster sites, explosions and serial killers.
The longtime faculty member is a Fellow in the American Academy of Forensic Sciences, a former deputy coroner and former member of the Louisiana Sentencing Commission. Manhein is also a member of the national disaster recovery team and aided with the Columbia space shuttle crash.
“We’ve worked on some very high-profile forensic cases,” Manhein said. “We’ve worked I don’t know how many hurricanes.”
Manhein helped develop a 2006 bill creating a database for unidentified and missing persons in Louisiana. Hers is the most comprehensive state database in the U.S.
She credits the success of her database to DNA assistance from Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory.
“That’s my baby,” Manhein said. “Because of the funding from the state, we have a comprehensive database of unidentified and missing from the entire country. It’s pretty impressive.”
Though Manhein spent several hours in the lab working, she still thinks about her job off the clock when writing about her field of expertise.
Manhein has written three works of non-fiction: “The Bone Lady,” “Trail of Bones” and “Bone Remains.”
“The forensic scientist is the protagonist,” Manhein said. “She’s a young version of myself, but she gets in a lot more trouble than I did. It’s fun.”
After retirement, Manhein plans to write, travel and visit family while she contemplates a new career.
“I’m going to be travelling all over Europe this summer,” Manhein said. “Once I get that travel out of me, I’m going to settle back down and work on my writing a lot. There’s a lot of things I want to do.”
Manhein said it’s time for a new generation to take over.
“It has been the greatest ride,” Manhein said. “It’s time to get off the trolley, and I’ll pick up another bus somewhere.”