Through an examination and assessment of the body at a death scene, the medicolegal death investigator (MLDI) must be able to recognize circumstances that point to what manner of death occurred—be it natural causes, homicide, suicide, accident, or undetermined. A handy reference for use in the field and in the lab, Death and Accident Investigation Protocols provides 34 checklists and forms to help investigators make these determinations.
Categories of death covered in this guide include:
- Aircraft and motor vehicle accident
- Alcohol- and drug-related
- Blunt- and sharp-force injury
- Drowning
- Electrocution, exposure, and fire
- Gunshot
- Hanging
- Hospital- and nursing home-related
- Infectious disease
- Natural causes
- Occupational exposure
- Poison and toxic substances
- Sexual assault
- Suicide
Formatted as a convenient 8 ½ x 11 spiral-bound book, this manual helps investigators know what to look for, what questions to ask, and how to categorize the scene and the physical injuries. The forms in the book can either be downloaded, which allows for easy form modification. The text includes descriptive illustrations and diagrams associated with various categories of death. An essential tool for the busy investigator, the book facilitates the organization of information for a myriad of death scenarios.
Aircraft Accident
Alcohol-Related Death
Blunt Force Injury
Child Fatality—Abuse or neglect
Child Infant Death – General
Child-Sudden Infant Death Syndrome
Combo/Short Form (Natural death, motor vehicle accident, suicide)
Death report – General
Drowning
Drug Overdose
Electrical
Exposure
Falls
Fire
Gunshot/Shotgun
Hanging
Homicide
Hospital death – natural
Hospital death – Surgical
In Custody Death
Infectious Disease
Inquiries
Lightning
Medication List
Motor Vehicle Accident – Driver/Passenger
Motor Vehicle Accident – pedestrian
Natural death
Occupational Exposure
Organ and Tissue Donor Information Report Form
Poisons and Toxic Substances
Sexual Assault
Sharp Force Injury
Suicide
Unidentified Remains
Biography
Mary H. Dudley