Chapter 9 Flashcards
This is the most important factor in determining the postmortem interval?
The environment
Estimating time of death; Individual observation include: (5)
1) body temperature
2) rigor mortis
3) livor mortis
4) decompositional changes
5) stomach contents
The SURVIVAL INTERVAL ( the time from injury or onset of the terminal illness or death) is best established by evaluating:
The types, severity and number of injuries present and the deceased’ response to them, taking into account pre-existing natural disease.
Factors that will affect the rate of cooling include:
1) the size of the body
2) clothing and coverings
3) movement and humidity of the air
4) immersion in water
In ocular change, the cornea becomes cloudy with two hours or less if the deceased dies with eyes open. If eyes are close, it will be:
12 to 24 hours
NOTE: On the third postmortem day, the cornea becomes opaque.
After death, the body cools from its normal internal temperature of
98.6 F to the surrounding environmental temperature. This is called:
Algor mortis
Within how many hours of death do muscles become increasingly rigid and the joints freeze - a condition called rigor mortis (or postmortem rigidity or rigor)
1 to 3 hours
Rigor mortis is affected by: (2)
1) body temperature
2) metabolic rate
A body is said to be in complete rigor when __________, ___________, and ____________ are immovable.
1) the jaw
2) the elbow
3) knee joints
A body remains rigid for ____________ hours before the muscles begin to relax, apparently in the same order they stiffened.
24 to 36 hours
Livor mortis is usually with ___________ after death.
30 minutes to 2 hours
Livor mortis develops gradually, usually reaching its maximum coloration at:
8-12 hours
Livor mortis is extremely important for three reasons:
1) estimate time of death
2) it may indicate that the body has been moved after death
3) the actual coloration of the skin may indicate the cause of death
Color of the lividity is not purplish but a cherry color in cases of: (3)
1) carbon monoxide poisoning
2) certain forms of cyanide poisoning
3) extreme cold
This is commonly called a “death grip”
Cadaveric spasm
The different rate and types of decomposition a body undergoes depend on this:
The environment
There are two ways to use insects to determine time since death. What are they?
1) dipteran blow fly larval developmental
2) insect succession over time
The five most important types of wounds encountered by police officers in injury and death investigations are: (5
1) firearm wounds
2) incised wounds
3) stab wounds
4) puncture wounds
5) lacerations
The slower the speed of the bullet, the _________ the entry opening in the body.
Smaller
In a close shot, the distance of the muzzle is less than how many inches from the body.
18 inches
Close shots with black powder show marks of burning up to a distance of _____________ and a distinct deposit of powder smoke up to 10 to 12 inches.
4 to 6 inches
The size of the shot pattern on the body depends primarily on:
The choke of the gun
This wound - more commonly referred to as a “cutting wound” -is inflicted with a sharp-edged instrument such as a knife or razor.
Incised wound
The weapon typically employed in inflicting both incised and stab wounds is:
A pocketknife (although kitchen knives are also common)
Cutting wounds are often found on the: (3)
1) arm
2) face
3) legs
The severity of most incised wounds is directly related to: (3)
1) the shape and sharpness of the weapon
2) the part of the body being cut
3) the amount of force used in striking the victim
This wound is typically narrow at the edges and gaping at the center, with considerable bleeding.
Incised wound
When used in an assault, clubs, pipes, pistols, or other such blunt objects can produce open, irregularly shaped wounds termed:
Laceration
The severity and appearance of injuries due to blunt trauma depend
on: (5)
1) the amount of force delivered to the body
2) the amount of time over which the force is delivered
3) the region struck
4) the amount (extent) of body surface over which the force is delivered
5) the nature of the weapon
Nine methods that are most commonly employed in suicides:
1) shooting
2) hanging
3) ingesting sleeping pills and other pharmaceuticals
4) drowning
5) cutting and piercing
6) ingesting of poisons
7) inhaling gases
8) jumping from high places
9) intentionally crashing an automobile
Drowning: External signs to indicate that the victim was alive and conscious when entering the water include: (4)
1) objects clutched in the hand
2) fingernail marks on the palm of the hands
3) white, pink, or red foam extruding from the nose and open mouth
4) Livor mortis most marked in the head and neck
One of the common characteristics of suicides inflicted by cutting and piercing instruments is the presence of these:
Hesitation marks
This accounts for the largest portion of drug related hospital admissions:
Alcohol (followed by opiates)
What is the most common characteristic of an opiate overdose?
A “foam cone”, tinged orange or red with blood, around the nostrils and mouth.
Many heroin users inject the drug into the body with the needle, a practice known as:
Mainstreaming
NOTE: Chronic users often damage the blood vessels in their arms to such a degree that they resort to injecting heroin into their,legs, eyelids, or between their toes.
The gas most frequently involved in medico-legal investigation is:
Carbon monoxide
When death occurs from carbon monoxide poisoning, the victim’s skin:
Takes on an abnormally bright cherry-red skin
The suicide note: The note writers used ____________, ____________, and __________ more often as means of death than non-note writers.
1) poisons
2) firearms
3) hanging more often
Suicide: Women prefer ____________ and _____________; if women do use a firearm, the fatal wound is frequently in the body rather than the head.
Barbiturates and Poisons
Degrees of Burning:
These burns are superficial and limited to the outer layers of skin.
First Degree Burns
Degrees of Burning
These burns involve blistering and the destruction of the upper layers of the skin.
Second Degree Burns
Degrees of Burning
With these burns the entire thickness of the skin ( epidermis and dermis) is destroyed. In living victims with these burns, pain is usually absent as nerve endings are destroyed.
Third Degree Burns
These burns completely destroy (char) the skin and underlying tissue.
Fourth Degree Burns
Burn Deaths: The six means that follow should be considered in sequence, from the “best” identification tools to the “worst”:
1) fingerprints
2) dentition
3) DNA printing
4) scars, marks, or tattoos on the exterior of the body
5) Anatomical abnormalities or artificial appliances (I.e., hips or knees) inside the body.
6) identification, jewelry, and clothing on the body
This is a natural result of the dehydrating effect caused by the heat of the fire and is not related to the cause or manner of death.
Pugilistic Attitude
If two or more murders are committed be an offender or offenders at one time without a cooling-off period, this is typically referred to as:
a “spree murder”
All serial murders are not sexually based. There are many other motivations for serial murders including:
1) anger
2) thrill
3) financial gain
4) attention seeking
The few serial killers who do travel interstate to kill fall into a few categories including:
1) Itinerant individuals who move from place to place
2) Homeless individuals who are transients
3) Individuals whose employment lends itself to interstate or transnational travel
It is generally agreed that there is no single identifiable cause or factor that leads to the development of a serial killer. Rather, there are a multitude of factors that contribute to such development. The most significant factor is:
The serial killers personal decision in choosing to pursue his/her crimes.
The following observations have been made by social scientists who study this particular type of criminal (serial killer) :
1) Predisposition to serial killing, muck like other violent offenses, is biological, social, and psychological in nature and is not limited to any specific characters or trait
2) Development of a serial killer involves a combination of factors
3) There are no specific combinations or traits or characteristics shown to differentiate serial killers from other violent offenders.
4) There is no genetic template for a serial killer
5) Serial killers are driven by their own unique motives and reasons
6) Serial killers are not limited to any specific demographic
7) For the majority of serial killers who are sexually motivated by erotized violence during their development, violence, and sexual gratification are inexplicably intertwined
8) More research is needed to identify specific pathways of development
