Investigative Genetic Genealogy Explained At Library Program

Genetic genealogy services like Ancestry and GED Match use DNA to help people build and enhance their family tree. But did you know that the same information can also resolve cases involving violent crime, unidentified human remains and wrongful convictions?

East Brunswick Public Library (2 Jean Walling Civic Center Drive) teams up with Ramapo College’s Investigative Genetic Genealogy Center for the online program What is Investigative Genetic Genealogy? (IGG) on Wednesday, March 18 at 7:00 pm.

IGG combines traditional genealogy and genetic genealogy to provide investigative leads in cases involving violent crime and unidentified human remains. IGG can be used to help exonerate the wrongfully convicted.

The IGG Certificate Program at Ramapo College teaches students how to conduct IGG proficiently and ethically, through live virtual meetings and intensive case studies. Established in 2018, the program and its students provide pro bono IGG work to investigating agencies on cases involving wrongful conviction, unidentified human remains and violent crime. Their partners include the Bergen County Prosecutor’s Office (NJ), The Innocence Project of Idaho and the Loyola Project for the Innocent.

In 2025, the program helped the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Department confirm the identity of the late Kenneth Robert McCarthy, who had gone missing in 2013 and remains were found in 2016.

The library’s What is Investigative Genetic Genealogy? presentation is free and open to the public. To register, go to https://www.ebpl.org/adults/events/what-investigative-genetic-genealogy-zoom/2026-03-18-230000-2026-03-19-003000.