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Month: July 2017

Basic Principles Of Forensic Knot Analysis: A Qualitative Study Of Tying Behaviour

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Abstract

The knot-tying behaviour of thousands of subjects was observed over a period of 25 years. A number of key principles applicable to forensic knot analysis emerged, most of which have been confirmed by other studies. Most notably, tying behaviour is consistent and reproducible. Basic knots like Overhand Knots, Half Hitches and Half Knots are chiral, and individual knot tiers produce one mirror-image version more so than the other. This tendency can be influenced by a number of factors, such as the number of available working ends, tying position, interference, the creation of slip loops, and wend switching. These principles can guide investigators in the forensic analysis of knotted evidence and point to future avenues of research.

Overview

Crime scene investigators have been examining knots and ligatures for at least a century, and the process of properly preserving knotted evidence and correctly identifying knots is generally understood. However, the fundamental principles of analysis – which assist in deriving informed and...

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Injury And Death Investigations

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The investigation of felonious injuries and criminal homicides can be the most important, yet diffi cult, responsibility assigned to a police investigator. First, these crimes are viewed as being among the most serious offenses committed in our society. The seriousness is reflected in all state statutes, which impose severe penalties for acts resulting in the grave bodily injury or death of a human being. Second, in the beginning stages of some homicide investigations, the inability to identify the decedent greatly complicates the investigative process and prevents it from moving forward. In all homicides, questions such as “Who were the victim’s enemies?” and “Who would benefit most from the victim’s death?” must be answered before any significant progress can be made in the investigation. Estimating the time of death also needs to be done early in the investigation. Third, criminal homicides, in particular, can generate a lot of media attention and public scrutiny for the department.

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Homicide in California, 2008

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Homicide in California, 2008 contains information about the crime of homicide and its victims, as well as demographic data on persons arrested for homicide. Information about the death penalty, the number of peace officers killed in the line of duty, and justifiable homicide is also included. This report provides data for 2008 and prior years. The California Department of Justice (DOJ) is responsible for reporting annual statistics on homicide as mandated by Penal Code section 13014. Information displayed in this report is extracted from several databases maintained by the DOJ. The primary source of information is the Homicide File, which captures willful and justifiable homicide crime data. Other databases capture information about persons arrested for homicide, death penalty sentences, and peace officers killed in the line of duty. The type of data collected, and the methods used to collect these data, differ for each data set. Unless otherwise indicated, all calculations are based on the number of known victims...

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Homicide and Suicide Investigative Techniques

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Abstract

Investigating a homicide is the ultimate challenge for law enforcement personnel. Actions taken from the outset of an investigation to the courtroom presentation will have a major influence on the successful outcome of the case. In order to identify the offender, prosecute and provide closure to the victim’s family we must ensure a quality investigation is conducted. The investigation of an alleged suicide can be just as complex as an alleged murder. A suicide may be influenced by psychological, biological or social factors as well as a combination of any of the three.
This course will assist the new death investigator by giving direction on conducting, organizing, and managing a homicide or alleged suicide investigation from start to finish. Topics covered during the course are:

  • First Responder Duties and Responsibilities
  • Pyramid Investigative Technique of Homicide Investigation Lead
  • Investigator Responsibilities and the Preliminary Investigation
  • Scene Analysis and Reconstruction
  • Crime Scene Considerations and Processing
  • Time of Death Indicators

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Fracture Of Hyoid Bone In Cases Of Asphyxial Deaths Resulting From Constricting Force Round The Neck

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ABSTRACT

When any case of hanging, strangulation or throttling comes to the Department of Forensic Medicine for Post-mortem examination, the hyoid bone becomes the most integral part of internal examination at the autopsy table. Many authors and workers in this field have seriously highlighted fracture of hyoid bone. Some have claimed hyoid bone fracture in about 20% cases of hanging. Some have claimed hyoid bone fracture in about 68% cases of hanging. They also claimed that hyoid bone fracture increases with age above 40 years due to calcification and immobilization of joints. Some also claimed that hyoid bone fracture increases with using hard ligature for hanging and strangulation. Fracture of hyoid bone has been ascribed to many factors like manners of constriction, level of application of ligature or force of constriction, long drop or short drop suspension, age of victim, sex of victim etc. Besides getting hyoid bone fracture at autopsy table, it is also very important to check whether it is ante-mortem...

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Ligature Mark On Neck: How Informative?

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ABSTRACT

Many a times, a ligature mark may be the only evidence available in cases of asphyxial deaths due either to hanging or strangulation. A through examination of the ligature mark and analysis of the information provided by it, is therefore, a must to arrive at the most probable cause of death and differentiate between hanging and the ligature strangulation. A retrospective study was conducted at the Department of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology, Government Medical College & Hospital, Chandigarh, between 1997 to 2004 to assess the information provided by a ligature mark in such cases. We found that deaths due to hanging constituted 3.4% of the total unnatural deaths subjected to medicolegal autopsy; young adults, of the age group 21 to 25 years accounted for the maximum cases, 27%; and the male: female ratio was 2:1. Chunni was the most common ligature material used. Majority of the victims preferred multiple knots (61%) and fixed knots (58%) and a single loop (93%).

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Near Hanging Presenting To An Accident And Emergency Department

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Abstract

Victims of near hanging are being increasingly seen in accident and emergency (A&E) departments. This paper reports on seven cases of near hanging seen over four years in a district general hospital. The mechanism of injury is ligature strangulation rather than cervical spinal cord injury. All cases of near hanging should be actively and vigorously resuscitated, as initial presenting features bear a poor correlation to eventual outcome. (JAccid EmergMed 1996;13:135-136) Attempted hanging may represent suicidal, parasuicidal, sexual, or attention seeking behaviour. In this paper we present seven patients seen over a four year period in the accident and emergency (A&E) department of a large district general hospital, followed by a short discussion of the epidemiology, pathophysiology, clinical features, and management of such cases.

Case 1
A 14 year old schoolboy with no history of psychiatric problems was found by his father suspended by a rope attached to a beam in his bedroom. He had...

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Study Of Ligature Mark In Cases Of Hanging

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INTRODUCTION

Violent asphyxial deaths is one of the most important cause for unnatural deaths amongst which hanging and strangulation are commonly encountered in day to day autopsy. Hanging is that form of asphyxia, which is caused by suspension of the body by a ligature around the neck, the constricting force being the weight of the body. Deaths resulting from hanging show features amongst which the ligature mark in the neck is considered to be decisive. The ligature mark is a pressure abrasion on the neck at the site of the ligature which appears as a groove. Character of the ligature mark depends on various factors like the nature of the ligature, body weight, length of time the body has remained suspended and the number of turns of the ligature round the neck. The course of the ligature mark depends on whether a fixed or running noose has been used. In typical hanging, the ligature mark is situated above the level of thyroid...

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Medicolegal, Legal and Social Issues in a Case of Hanging

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Introduction

Death by hanging is not uncommon and occurs in all parts of the world. Hanging is that asphyxia which is caused by suspension of the body by ligature which encircles the neck, the constricting force being the weight of the body. When body is fully suspended and no part of the body touched the ground then it is called complete hanging, where constricting force is weight of whole body. On the other hand in incomplete hanging or partial hanging, the body is partially suspended, the toes or feet touching the ground or are in a sitting, kneeling, lying down, prone or any other posture with only head and chest off the ground. On the basis of position of knot, hanging can be classified into: typical hanging, where knot of ligature should be at the nape of neck on the back and a typical hanging, where knot of the ligature may be at any site other than the nape of the neck....

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Fractures of the Hyoid Bone and Thyroid Cartilage in Suicidal Hanging

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Hanging is a form of ligature strangulation in which the force applied to the neck is derived from the gravitational drag of the body weight(1-7). Most hangings are suicides, while only a few are accidents or homicides(1-9). As a method of suicide, hanging is found as frequently as drug use or poisoning(5,10-13). The position of the knot of hanging is very important because it can cause unequal pressure to the neck and result in different injuries to the organs(14). The type of hanging can be divided by pressure into two groups, complete and incomplete hanging. Complete hanging is a hanging in which the full body weight acts upon the ligature and places pressure on the neck, Incomplete hanging is a hanging in which some organs touch the floor, using only part of the body weight to load and cause pressure to the neck(1,2,9). Fractures of the hyoid bone and thyroid cartilage are important pathogenesis to forensic science, especially when death is caused...

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Near-Hanging Injuries: A 10-Year Experience

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Introduction

Hanging has become the second most common cause of suicide in the United States, accounting for 14% of the over 31,000 suicides that occurred in the year 2002.24 However, there have been relatively few studies on the outcomes and injury patterns in patients after unsuccessful hanging (near-hanging) attempts. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the demographics, injury patterns, and outcomes for near-hanging patients admitted to the Los Angeles County + University of Southern California (LAC + USC) Medical Center.

Methods
The trauma registry at the LAC + USC Medical Center was queried for all patients admitted after attempted suicide by hanging, between 1 January, 1993 and 31 December, 2003. All patients who were dead on arrival or in cardiopulmonary arrest were excluded. The trauma registry is maintained by seven full-time trained nurses, and the quality of data entry is monitored by the Emergency Medical Service of the Department of Health Services of the County of Los s Angeles. Patient variables collected included age, gender, ethnicity,...

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Hanging As A Method Of Suicide Retrospective Analysis Of Postmortem Cases

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Abstract

This retrospective study was conducted on 145 postmortem cases of hanging victims at government medical college morgue over a period of two years. The objective of this study was to find out the pattern of hanging cases as a proper method of suicide and to evaluate the present situation of hanging in this capital city. Out of 145 cases, 41% were male and 51% were married. One hundred and one victims hanged themselves at night, while 44 at day time. In 72 victims, stomachs were found empty. Most (97%) of the bodies were recovered from inside the living rooms. Ninety seven percent had complete suspension. One hundred and forty two (98%) cases had ligature mark in neck. Thirty nine cases had fracture of hyoid bones, 27 cases had fracture of thyroid cartilages. Most of the victims (45%) were from the age group 20- 30 years. Dopatta (orna) was the commonest (35%) ligature material. Quarrel among husband and wife was the commonest (31%) cause...

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Haemorrhage Into The Lungs In Cases Of Death Due To Trauma

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When changing circumnstances bring a lesion to the notice of a morbid anatomist as a manifestation of a new atiological factor it is well to review the past experience of the lesion and to detail, so far as possible, the variations that have been observed. Under war conditions fatalities have occurred in which the outtstanding postmortem finding has been haemorrhage into the tissue of the lung. Reviewing the peacetime incidence of haemorrhage into the lung in association with death from trauma, it must be recalled that such a lesion may occured in various conditions. Peacetime Injuries Blood may be inhaled after haemorrhage from lesions of the upper air passages or nasopharynx, or even from a fracture of the base of the skull. The blood in these cases will be found in the bronchi, bronchioles, and filling the respiratory bronchioles and alveoli in a lobuile, giving the appearance of haemorrhagic areas approximately wedge-shaped but with lobulated margins. These bloody foci are likely to be...

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Tell Me Who Your Friends Are And I Will Tell You, Who You Are

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Background and keywords:

In his book providing key strategies for teaching boys, Biddulph (2003) stated that girls in today’s Western world possess more self-confidence than boys. Self-confidence is frequently linked to the position a child occupies within the group, who supports him and his inner circle. Friends and groups/cliques are especially important to children during puberty years. It is common knowledge that at that age, children start gradually detaching themselves from their parents and home life, as they become more independent. Often parents dictate to their children, which friends are desirable and which are not. As Helga Gürtler so eloquently puts it, parents want their children to have friends that greet in a friendly manner, wipe their feet before coming inside and know how to speak “in a civilized manner”. Often parents are not very good judges of which children make good friends and which others are merely, only figuratively-speaking good at “buttering them up“. Children themselves have completely different criteria, when it comes to meeting...

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Father and Daughter Motives and Satisfaction

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There are few studies in the communication discipline dealing with father/daughter relationships and methods for increasing satisfaction within these relationships. This study investigates the motives fathers and daughters have when communicating with each other and how these motives affect relationship satisfaction. Results indicated that daughters communicated mainly with their fathers for the following motives: affection, relaxation, pleasure, and inclusion. Fathers reported communicating with their daughters for pleasure, affection, and relaxation. Findings indicate a means of increasing satisfaction among father/daughter relationships by encouraging communication that incorporates statements of affection and pleasure. Prior research on daughters’ communication behaviors with their parents has shown that daughters have specific reasons for communicating with their parents. Fitzpatrick and Badzinski (1984) reported that parents communicate with their children for two reasons: to control their behaviors or actions and to express support. Yet, little is known about satisfaction concerning communication motives of children communicating with their parents and whether the motives are interrelated. Hence, the purpose of this paper is to gain...

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Sexual Motives,Gender and Sexual Behavior

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Abstract

The roles of gender and the sexual motives of Love, Pleasure, Conformity, Recognition, Dominance, and Submission in numerous usual and unusual sexual behaviors were investigated. In a survey of 191 college undergraduates it was found that Love, Pleasure, Conformity, and Recognition motives, often in interaction with gender, were all important predictors of sexual behavior. Gender was the best predictor of initiating usual sexual behavior, whereas the Love motive was the best predictor of actually engaging in usual sexual behavior. Pleasure and Recognition in interaction with gender were the best predictors of engaging in unusual sexual behavior. None of the sexual motives predicted initiating unusual sexual behavior. Findings suggest that a variety of sexual motives may underlie sexual behavior.

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