chapter 5

Question 1

forensic pathologists

Answer 1

investigative personnel typically medical examiners or coroners, who investigate the cause, manner, and time of death of a victim in a crime

Question 2

autopsy

Answer 2

a surgical procedure performed by a pathologist on a dead body to ascertain the cause of death

Question 3

cause of death

Answer 3

identifies the injury or disease that led to the chain of events resulting in death

Question 4

petechiae

Answer 4

pinpoint hemorrhaging often observed in the white area of the victims eyes, often observed in strangulation cases

Question 5

manner of death

Answer 5

a determination made by a forensic pathologist of the cause of death. Five broad categories are homicide, suicide, accidental, natural, and undetermined

Question 6

algor mortis

Answer 6

a process that occurs after death in which body temperature continually cools until it reaches the ambient or room temperature

Question 7

livor mortis

Answer 7

a medical condition that occurs after death and results in the settling of blood in areas of the body closest to the ground

Question 8

rigor mortis

Answer 8

a medical condition that occurs after death and results in the stiffening of muscle mass. begins within 24 hours and disappears within 36 hours

Question 9

autolysis

Answer 9

self-digestion by cells own enzymes, varies from organ to organ depending on the mechanism of death

Question 10

putrefaction

Answer 10

decomposition carried out by microorganisms such as bacteria

Question 11

forensic anthropology

Answer 11

the use of anthropological knowledge of humans and skeletal structure to examine and identify human skeletal remains

Question 12

forensic entomology

Answer 12

the study of insect matter, growth patterns, and succession of arrival at a crime scene to determine the time since death

Question 13

postmortem interval (PMI)

Answer 13

the length of time that has elapsed since a person has died