In the modern criminal justice system, death investigations remain among the most complex cases covered in criminal investigations due to the procedural requirements in the identification of victims and suspects in establishing the context of the case. For crime investigators, comprehending the procedural requirements in a death investigation remains essential in successfully performing an investigation. Today, forensics plays an immense role in providing the framework for successful death investigations. Forensic investigations entail using scientific approaches and techniques to analyze physical evidence in civil, legal, and criminal proceedings. Notably, suicides, homicides and accidental deaths require unique examination correlation and documentation while integrating forensics in solving the cases.
Tasking Death Investigations
Suicide
Solving suicide cases stands out as it requires an autopsy on the deceased body to determine the leading cause of death following the surgical procedure. Notably, suicide is characterized by intentionally taking one’s own life (Miner et al., 2022). Establishing the cause of death remains the main task for coroners and, apart from autopsies, may require toxicology reports and laboratory tests to offer clarity in solving the case. Notably, suicide is an unnatural death and, therefore, warrants investigation through assessment of physical evidence to aid in the handling and solution of the case. The process may include preserving evidence at the crime scene, death reconstruction, motive establishment, sample collection, trends identification and evaluation of death notes (Miner et al., 2022). Overall, the data collection process requires attention to detail to ensure that no piece is left out in the inquiry into a victim’s demise.
Homicide
Homicide entails the killing of one person, the victim, by another. The challenge arising in homicide investigations lies in the fact that the victim is not present during the trial. Therefore, the investigator needs to prioritize the understanding of the context of their death during the trial (Miner et al., 2022). Primarily, the investigations start with an index list of all persons to be interviewed and identifying cues to prioritize individuals that should be interviewed by creating a witness index. Further, testimonies and confessions present the best shot at obtaining the essential details surrounding a case (Constanzo & Leo, 2020). Notably, the crime scene processing and investigation process remains critical in gathering facts and senses on the case from an advocacy viewpoint and identifying the victim’s background. Overall, connecting the dots to compose a valid case against a suspect requires a comprehensive integration of knowledge and expertise to ensure the inquiry into the motive and cause of death are correctly identified for prosecution.
Accidental
Accidental deaths are unintentional, unforeseen, and unexpected, medically described as death by misadventure. In such a case, an accidental death claim needs to be filed first to initiate the investigation. Primarily, it involves reviewing the death certificate, coroner reports, police and accidental reports and decedent health records (Miner et al., 2022). Further following investigations, the case is ruled accidental if little to no evidence indicates the intent to cause harm. Further, an accidental case may be categorized as undetermined if there are uncertainties surrounding the circumstances of the victim’s death.
Further, data and information collection on a case involves a review of the death scene, body transportation, body identification, examination, autopsy, post-examination, and death documentation review (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2023). Notably, autopsies following accidental deaths need to be performed as soon as possible, with a maximum of three days following the death. The findings from the evaluations will assist in informing the “accident” features in a given accidental death investigation.
Stages of Death Investigation
Examination
The examination stage in a death investigation involves the collection of evidence to lay the groundwork for the investigation. It includes evaluation of the body, including external and internal examinations, which are required. Internal examination involves an autopsy procedure, which provides medical evidence during a death investigation. External examination comprehensively describes the decedent’s features, including scars, medical devices, incisions and tattoos. It involves the collection of cues by the officer in charge and does not require medical training or qualification to identify the victim’s features.
In contrast, internal examination requires a certified coroner who performs a complete autopsy, including dissection of the thoracic and abdominal regions and analysis of organs, openings leading to the head, removal, evaluation and analysis of the brain (). Furthermore, specimens can also be taken for microbiology, histology, radiology and toxicology reports. The report from the examination process provides the needed foundation for building and proceeding with a specific case.
Correlation
The phase involves gathering, categorizing and evaluating all evidence gathered on a case. Primarily, correlation is a process that involves establishing relationships between pieces of evidence and whether the relationship is causal or not. The correlation process can reveal either positive relationships, no relations, or little relations, which are all essential in the subsequent interpretation phase of the investigation (Geberth, 2020). Further, at this phase, investigators must demonstrate and integrate their expertise to ensure the collected evidence has meaning. It can be connected to other cues from the crime scene to inform the conclusions for the case. The ability to establish the presence or absence of a relationship between evidence pieces also informs the interpretation by the investigating party to ensure the decisions in an investigation are informed by sufficient evidence (Geberth, 2020). For instance, a cut on the victim that matches cast-off blood in a crime scene image offers an ideal correlation in establishing a cause of death in a homicide investigation. Upon comprehensive analysis and correlation of evidence, the investigators can proceed to the third phase in the investigation process.
Interpretation
The final phase of an investigation requires attention to detail from the officer investigating to ensure an informed prosecution stems from a criminal investigation. The pieces of evidence, when put together, need to make sense to ensure the cause of death can be termed as suicide, homicide or accidental death. The evidence is mainly interpreted from a scientific and theoretical perspective, offering a detailed evaluation and analysis of clues and information gathered on a given case (Brookman et al., 2020). Interpretation integrates models that determine whether further inquiry is required following the determination of the actual cause of death. The surgeon’s expert opinion significantly affects the court’s final decision. The interpretation details the reasons for a person’s death, how it occurred, and the main body parts impacted by the cause of death. This can help further understand specific aspects of the collected and analyzed data from a case (Brookman et al., 2020). Ultimately, the interpretation must be admissible, ensuring that the facts of the case outweigh the prejudicial value and guaranteeing that the prosecutor can prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt.
Forensics in Death Investigations
Crime Scene Investigation
Forensics play an immense role in crime scene evaluations as they ensure all physical evidence from a crime scene is collected and maintained under the appropriate custodial chain. The evidence collected from the crime scene can be physical, digital or biological, distinguished by their nature. Physical evidence refers to quantifiable evidence, including fingerprints, blood, haircuts and tide marks. Biological evidence is often considered physical when blood samples, semen, and saliva are collected from a crime scene (National Institute of Justice, 2024). Digital evidence includes technologies including smartwatches, gaming consoles, CCTV and video game consoles. The information is also collected in various samples, including photographs, videos, notes, and samples. Notably, forensics promotes ultimate care and handling of pieces of evidence to prevent damage, contamination, or corruption during the movement and transportation of the evidence. Overall, processing the crime scene demands significant attention and nuance to ensure chronological documentation of the evidence.
Crime Scene Documentation
Documentation mainly intends to record the comprehensive condition of the crime scene and the nature of the physical evidence gathered from the premises. Documentation is performed through photography, note-taking, sketching and videography, all performed in chronological order to ensure no one piece of evidence is substituted for another (National Institute of Justice, 2024). A comprehensive report from the crime scene includes a detailed description of the scene, a timeline of evidence collection, packaging and marking of the evidence, and disposition of the evidence following its collection. The detailed description and activities performed at the crime scene assist in reconstructing and recalling evidence during court proceedings. The comprehensive document is further described in a procedural order that covers arrival, preliminaries, and processing completion. Ultimately, consistency remains paramount in ensuring all the evidence pieces fit together into one narrative.
Special considerations
Given the multidisciplinary nature of forensics, considering ethics, psychology, and engineering remain vital in processing unique crime scenes. The code of ethics in forensic investigations emphasizes impartiality, accuracy, truthfulness, thoroughness, objectivity, maintaining professional competence limitations, averting conflict of interests, and respecting individuals’ beneficence, nonmaleficence, autonomy and justice (Foote et al., 2020). Furthermore, forensic psychology involves the integration of psychological perspectives, understanding and research. Furthermore, it assists in understanding the mental status and competence of suspects to undergo trial and establishment of the motive by the perpetrator. Ultimately, forensic engineering is mainly applicable to reconstructing accidents and crimes. Collect evidence, conduct evidence analysis, conduct failure analysis, and establish chains of causation (Noon, 2020). Although forensic developments remain popular in industrial and commercial focus, they are slowly gaining popularity in individual cases. Overall, the multidisciplinary perspective helps ensure that forensics continues playing a critical role in successful death investigations.
Conclusion
In sum, suicides, homicides and accidental deaths require unique approaches from investigators in successfully solving death cases. Understanding the specific demands for the specific death investigations offers the prerequisites for identifying victims and suspects, even in the most complex contexts, through understanding the requirements during the investigative phases of examination, correlation and interpretation. The application of forensics in death investigations presents an opportunity for collecting and preserving evidence crucial in the execution of ancillary investigations. Ultimately, understanding the multidisciplinary nature of forensic investigations remains vital in facilitating successful investigations of suicide, homicide and accidental deaths.
References
Brookman, F., Jones, H., Williams, R., & Fraser, J. (2020). Dead reckoning: Unraveling how “homicide” cases travel from crime scene to court using qualitative research methods. Homicide Studies, 24(3), 283–306.
Centres for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Investigations and autopsies. https://www.cdc.gov/phlp/publications/coroner/investigations.html
Costanzo, M., & Leo, R. A. (2020). Research and expert testimony on interrogations and confessions. In Expert psychological testimony for the courts (pp. 69-98). Psychology Press.
Foote, W. E., Goodman-Delahunty, J., & Young, G. (2020). Civil forensic evaluation in psychological injury and law: Legal, professional, and ethical considerations. Psychological Injury and Law, pp. 13, 327–353.
Geberth, V. J. (2020). Practical homicide investigation: Tactics, procedures, and forensic techniques. CRC Press.
Miner, A. S., Markowitz, D. M., Peterson, B. L., & Weston, B. W. (2022). They are examining the examiners: How medical death investigators describe suicidal, homicidal, and accidental death. Health communication, 37(4), 467-475.
National Institute of Justice. (2024). Crime scene examination. https://nij.ojp.gov/topics/law-enforcement/investigations/crime-scene#:~:text=They%20take%20photographs%20and%20physical,hairs%2C%20fibers%20and%20fire%20debris.
Noon, R. K. (2020). Introduction to Forensic Engineering. CRC Press.
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