diff --git a/src/process/ProcessOwnershipObservation.ts b/src/process/ProcessOwnershipObservation.ts
index a0beeae736..4f9a1ca624 100644
--- a/src/process/ProcessOwnershipObservation.ts
+++ b/src/process/ProcessOwnershipObservation.ts
@@ -82,7 +82,6 @@ export const observeOwnedProcessGroups = async (
       host,
       signal,
     );
-    const uncertainGroups = new Set<number>();
     const candidateProcesses = observationRows.filter((process) => {
       if (retainedPids.has(process.pid)) return true;
       const identity = firstIdentities.get(process.pid);
@@ -93,15 +92,8 @@ export const observeOwnedProcessGroups = async (
           groupIds.includes(identity.relation.processGroupId)
         )
           return true;
-        if (
-          groupIds.includes(process.processGroupId) &&
-          identity.relation?.state !== "observed"
-        )
-          uncertainGroups.add(process.processGroupId);
         return groupIds.includes(process.processGroupId);
       }
-      if (groupIds.includes(process.processGroupId))
-        uncertainGroups.add(process.processGroupId);
       return groupIds.includes(process.processGroupId);
     });
     const facts = await readProcessOwnershipFacts(
@@ -119,24 +111,26 @@ export const observeOwnedProcessGroups = async (
       scopeFacts: facts,
     });
     const observations = new Map<number, ProcessGroupObservation>(
-      groupIds.map((groupId) => [
-        groupId,
-        uncertainGroups.has(groupId)
-          ? {
-              state: "unverifiable",
-              reason: "native process-group membership could not be verified",
-            }
-          : { state: "empty" },
-      ]),
+      groupIds.map((groupId) => [groupId, { state: "empty" }]),
     );
     for (const fact of facts) {
-      if (fact.identityAfter.state === "absent") continue;
+      if (processIdentityHasExited(fact.identityAfter)) continue;
+      // An initial unreadable membership remains uncertain only while the
+      // final native fact does not establish that this candidate has exited.
+      if (
+        groupIds.includes(fact.process.processGroupId) &&
+        (fact.identityBefore.state !== "readable" ||
+          fact.identityBefore.relation?.state !== "observed")
+      )
+        observations.set(fact.process.processGroupId, {
+          state: "unverifiable",
+          reason: "native process-group membership could not be verified",
+        });
       const nativeGroupId =
         fact.identityAfter.state === "readable" &&
         fact.identityAfter.relation?.state === "observed"
           ? fact.identityAfter.relation.processGroupId
           : undefined;
-      if (processIdentityHasExited(fact.identityAfter)) continue;
       const candidateGroups = groupIds.filter(
         (groupId) =>
           nativeGroupId === groupId ||
diff --git a/src/process/capture/ProcessCaptureOwnershipEvidence.test.ts b/src/process/capture/ProcessCaptureOwnershipEvidence.test.ts
index 27ee931952..cf2528a0f5 100644
--- a/src/process/capture/ProcessCaptureOwnershipEvidence.test.ts
+++ b/src/process/capture/ProcessCaptureOwnershipEvidence.test.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { spawn } from "node:child_process";
 import { describe, expect, it, vi } from "vitest";
 import type {
   ProcessIdentityObservation,
@@ -151,3 +152,94 @@ describe("capture ownership evidence lifetime", () => {
     );
   });
 });
+
+it.each([
+  "absent",
+  "absent-after-unavailable",
+  "zombie",
+  "unavailable",
+] as const)(
+  "classifies completed inert-child settlement with native %s facts",
+  async (native) => {
+    const child = spawn(process.execPath, ["-e", "process.exit(0)"], {
+      detached: process.platform !== "win32",
+      stdio: "ignore",
+    });
+    await new Promise<void>((resolve, reject) => {
+      child.once("error", reject);
+      child.once("exit", (code) =>
+        code === 0
+          ? resolve()
+          : reject(new Error(`Inert child exit ${String(code)}`)),
+      );
+    });
+    if (child.pid === undefined) throw new Error("Missing inert child PID");
+    // The child exited for real; the host supplies a stale table row and
+    // controlled native facts. This qualifies settlement, not the native reader.
+    const row = {
+      pid: child.pid,
+      parentPid: process.pid,
+      processGroupId: child.pid,
+      state: "S",
+      command: "inert fixture",
+    };
+    const observation: ProcessIdentityObservation =
+      native === "absent" || native === "absent-after-unavailable"
+        ? { state: "absent", reason: "not-in-snapshot" }
+        : native === "zombie"
+          ? {
+              state: "readable",
+              identity: "fixture-start",
+              lifecycle: { state: "observed", lifecycle: "zombie" },
+              relation: {
+                state: "observed",
+                parentPid: process.pid,
+                processGroupId: child.pid,
+              },
+            }
+          : { state: "unavailable", reason: "native identity unavailable" };
+    let identityReads = 0;
+    const signalGroup = vi.fn();
+    const host: ProcessOwnershipHost = {
+      listProcesses: async () => [row],
+      processIdentities: async (rows) => {
+        identityReads += 1;
+        return new Map(
+          rows.map(({ pid }) => [
+            pid,
+            native === "absent-after-unavailable" && identityReads === 1
+              ? {
+                  state: "unavailable" as const,
+                  reason: "initial native read unavailable",
+                }
+              : observation,
+          ]),
+        );
+      },
+      runTokens: async (rows) =>
+        new Map(
+          rows.map(({ pid }) => [
+            pid,
+            {
+              state: "unavailable" as const,
+              reason: "completed child has no token",
+            },
+          ]),
+        ),
+      environment: async () => ({}),
+      signalGroup,
+    };
+    const settled = await observeSettlement({
+      runId: "inert-run",
+      processGroupIds: [child.pid],
+      ownershipEvidence: new ProcessOwnershipEvidenceOwner(),
+      settleMs: 100,
+      platform: "darwin",
+      ownershipHost: host,
+    });
+    expect(settled.state).toBe(
+      native === "unavailable" ? "unverifiable" : "quiesced",
+    );
+    expect(signalGroup).not.toHaveBeenCalled();
+  },
+);