Chapter 8 : Death Investigations Flashcards
What are the 4 types of death?
Homicide, natural, suicide, and accidental
What is homicide?
Homicide is the killing of one person by another.
Name and explain the two different types of homicide: format: ( blank homicide - description)
Criminal Homicide - Murder and Manslaughter
Noncriminal Homicide - Excusable and Justifiable
What are the three types of murder?
1st degree, 2nd degree, and 3rd degree
Explain first degree murder:
requires premeditation and intent
explain second degree murder :
requires intent only
explain third degree murder:
No premeditation or intent - it is an act of imminent danger
What are the two types of manslaughter?
Voluntary and involuntary
Explain voluntary and involuntary manslaughter
Voluntary Manslaughter - the intentional causing of death, ‘in the heat of passion’
Involuntary Manslaughter - Accidental Homicide that results from negligence, an example would be leaving a gun around children
What are the two types of homicide?
Excusable and Justifiable homicide
Explain the two types of homicide
Excusable Homicide - Unintentional, a truly accidental killing of a person
Justifiable Homicide - Killing another person under authorization of the law –> aka self defense
What is equivocal death??
Deaths where investigations are open to interpretation- peculiar cases like staged scenes in a murder, suicide( reg and by police), and SUIDS ( sudden unexplained infant deaths)
Explain excited delirium
When a pre-existing condition affects someone when they are restrained
What needs to happen in order to go through with a death investigation?
There needs to be 3 ceased vital functions ( heartbeats ) or signs of complete death/ no longer breathing for forever
What are the main focuses of a homicide investigation?
Identify the victim, establish time of death, establish cause/method used, and develop a suspect
Explain Algor Mortis:
the postmortem cooling process of a body - body temperature drops 2-3 degrees after ONE hours and then drops 1-1.5 degrees every hour until a full 18 hours
Explain Rigor Mortis and Maximal Rigor Mortis:
‘stiffening of death’ ( occurs 10 min- 7 hours post mortem)
MRM: sets in after 12-24 hours, goes away after 36 hours
Explain postmortem lividity:
A postmortem
pooling of blood in the body, is a redish purplish tint
What is decompostion?
the postmortem breaking down of the body
What and how effects decomp?
Water - can slow or speed up decomp., wash away evidence, move the body,
Animals/bugs/birds - speed up decomp. and destroy evidence/body
Whats the higher/lower temperature rule for decomp?
higher - faster decomp
lower - slower decomp
What is suicide?
The taking of ones own life
- sometimes by police if they do not wish to pull the trigger themselves
What are the strangling identifiers?
Petechiae, bruising, bulging eyes, and bursting vessels
What is mass murder?
multiple victims being killed in one incident- can be in multiple places but on the same day
What is a serial killer?
Someone who kills others over an extended period of time with resting periods in between each person
What are lust murders?
sadistic actions by killing another - killers “get off on it”
