Examination of a corpse on a place of detection. An expert role of the doctor.

1. Examination of a corpse on a place of detection. An expert role of the doctor. Karaganda state medical UniversityDepartment pathological anatomy and forensic medicine Topic:

2. Thecircumstancesoftheaccident. Fromthedecisionontheappointmentofexpertknowledge: April 13, 2001. in 17chas. II Sokolov, beingdrunkinhisapartmentduringanargumentwithhiswife, NP Sokolova, struckherwith a knifeinhischest. Duringtransporttothehospitalshedied. Atthesceneinanapartmentfoundtwoknives: a tableknifewith a bluntendand a kitchenknifewith a pointedend. • 1) Determinethenatureoftheinjury.2) Thecauseofdeath (injury) andspecifyitsgenesis.3) Determinehow a toolorobjectcausedtheinjuriesfoundonthecorpse.4) Iftherearemultiplelesionsindicatethenumberofstrokes (impacts) and, ifpossible, toidentifythesequenceofinflictingtheseinjuries.5) Basedonthelocalizationofdamageandthedirectionofthewoundchannel, toindicatewhereandinwhatdirectiontostrike.6) Whatwasthepositionofthebodythevictimatthetimeofinjury.

3. Basic question of the lecture: • General questions of the examination of a victim • Following stages of the examination of a corpse at the place of incident • Properties of an inspection of a corpse under some kinds of a death • Role of the doctor-expert & necessary documentation

4. General questions of the examination of a victim at the place of an incident • Inspection survey of the place of the incident is executed by inspector, doctor expert (in the range of judicial medicine) & two witnesses of this action (in accordance with Criminal-remedial code of RK)

5. General questions of the examination of a victim at the place of an incident • The doctor, participating in an examination of a cadaver at the place of its discovery, doesn’t give any conclusions, but give consultation for the inspector in the oral form

6. The equipping of a doctor-expert for an examination of a corpse • Medicaments: 1% solution of sulfate atropine or pylocarpine, solution of ammonia, tincture of valerian, corvalolum, camphor, caffeine, adrenalin, hydrogen peroxide, solution of iodine, ethyl alcohol;

7. The equipping of a doctor-expert for an examination of a corpse • Things for the constant use: medical uniform, towel, 2 scalpels, 2 forceps, scissors, neurological hammer, phonendoscope, tape-line, electric torch, dynamometer, thanatometer, syringe, electric stimulator etc.

8. Primary examination is effected immediately or in a nearest future after reception of the report about a fulfilment of a crime. Repeated examination is recommended after examination of a corpse at the morgue with the purpose of the comparison of all injures of a cadaver with damaging objects, which maybe present at the place of an incident. Types of a survey of a pace of an incident:

9. Stages of a survey of a pace of an incident: static & dynamic. • Static stage – participants inspect the place of an incident & all objects, but don’t touch anything, making photographs and scheme of the place. The most important duty of the doctor-expert is the verification of the fact of a death (cadaveric stains & rigor mortis) • dynamic stage – experts take objects, can move and examine from all sides

10. The order of the examination of a corpse at the place of an incident • The position and the pose of a cadaver • The clothes and objects directly contacting with a cadaver • General data about a corpse • Degree of cadaveric changes and specific reactions (of pupil, muscles) • Properties and damages of different parts of a corpse • Cadaveric bed

11. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under damages by blunt & sharp objects • To draw investigator's attention to character of body injures and their accordance with damages of clothes • To advance an opinion about type of the implement of damages • Taking into account the localization & peculiarities of wounds, to suppose about the possibility of a presence of blood and pieces or cells of a tissue on damaging object and offender • To examine peculiarities of traces of the blood

12. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under falls from a height • It is necessarily to measure the distance from a cadaver to the base of object, from which the fall taken place • To draw attention to prominences of building (because the body maybe damaged by them) • To examine the peculiarities of the surface were a corpse was found • To draw attention to injures of other character (stab, incised, firearm wounds etc.), signs of a fight on body & clothes • To examine the place from which a victim has been fall down (window, roof, balcony) with the purpose of a discovery of the biological material

13. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under firearm damages To pay attention to: • amount of damages of clothes & body (to point out the distance from plantar surface of the foot to damages and conformity of damages to each other) • Signs of entrance & exit injures • Present of signs of contact, close, and distant range gunshot wounds & marks from muzzle • Present of "tattooing“ marks (soot) on hands & face

14. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under the strangulation • It is necessary to mark the position of the corpse • To measure the distance from the floor (or ground) to feet & to place of the attachment of the free end of the loop • To describe the character of the knot of the loop & groove of the strangulation (if the loop is absent) • To describe signs of a fight on body & clothes • To describe the localization of cadaveric stains and their conformity with the position of the corpse

15. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under the drowning • To pay attention to signs of the sojourn (stay) in the water: • The color of the cadaveric stains • The pallor of the skin • The presence of the goose-flesh (skin) • The maceration of the skin • The presence of the foam with small bubbles near openings of mouth and nose

16. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under the influence of the height temperature It is necessary to describe: • the pose of the corpse (boxer’s pose) • the localizations, diffusion and depth of burns • Presence of burns and a soot in the oral cavity and on the face • Presence of damages

17. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under the influence of the low temperature To draw attention to: • The pose of the cadaver (the pose of freezing man) • The color of cadaveric stains • The presence of hoar-frost or icicles near oral & nasal orifices, at eye-lashes • The presence of the goose-flesh (skin) • The presence of the injure of the skin by frost-bite & their degree • The position of testis in male

18. Properties of an inspection of a corpse under the criminal abortion It is necessary to describe: • The pose of a corpse & condition of clothes • The presence of signs of the pregnancy • The presence of injures, traces of blood at the region of genitals and perineum • The presence of foreign bodies at the vagina It is necessary to advise to investigator to make the survey of surrounding places (to see fetus or its parts, or placenta)

19. Properties of an inspection under the infanticide • To determine the size of a newborn’s body • To determine the condition of the umbilical cord (length, moisture, is it joined or not with the placenta, peculiarities of its free end, is it tied up or not)

20. Properties of an inspection under the infanticide • To determine the presence of mucous greasing, traces of blood & meconium on the skin • To determine the degree of development & localization of downy hairs

21. Properties of an inspection under the infanticide • To pay attention to labour swelling of the head, fontanels, degree of development & length of hairs, elasticity of cartilages of nose & auricles • To describe damages of the newborn corpse (abrasions, braises, wounds, groove of strangulation, etc.)

22. Properties of an inspection under the infanticide • To determine the degree of development of external genital organs • To check the condition of bones of limbs and length of nails of fingers (on hands & feet) • If the placenta is present, it is necessary to describe its sizes and integrity

23. The role of the doctor-expert in range of judicial medicine consists in the active help for investigator in the following: • To examine the victim or cadaver • To find out, to fix, to withdraw & to pack material proofs • To conduct an investigatory experiment

24. The protocolof the survey of the place of an incident is thenecessary documentation. It maybe handwriting of printed during (or just after) the investigatory action. It consists of prologue, descriptive part & closing parts.

25. The prologue contains following information: • The establishment for effecting survey • The time of a reception of the report about an incident &from whom it has arrived • Place & date of a survey, post & surname of persons making the protocol • Full name of each participant of a survey • An information about the explanation of rights & duties for experts

26. The descriptive partreflects the contents of an investigation & the means and instruments using for the survey • The closing partcontains the list of withdrawing objects (with the description where they are directed, by whom they are transmitted & how they are packed; where the corpse is directed for the autopsy)

27. It is necessary to apply an appendix to the protocol containing plans, schemes, photographs & other materials. The protocol is subscribed by specialists taking participation in the survey.

28. The second copy of the protocol & decision of an inspector about the purpose of the medico-legal examination are referred together with a corpse at the bureau of the medico-legal examination.