An introduction to postmortem interval estimation in medicolegal death investigations

Abstract

Throughout the history of forensic medicine, the postmortem interval has been one of the most commonly and thoroughly investigated problems. The importance of an accurate PMI in the context of a medicolegal death investigation cannot be understated due to its utility and application toward investigative determinations including inclusion or exclusion of suspects, determination of time of assault versus time of death, and preliminary victim identification. However, despite its importance, the question of postmortem interval estimation is often answered with a low degree of accuracy as compared to the rates of certainty within other forensic disciplines. While there are various methods that may be utilized for answering the time of death question including both scientific and investigative techniques, the variables that affect the application of these methods to death investigations are abundant. As a result, there are numerous limitations associated with time of death determination in a medicolegal death investigation and the estimation of the postmortem interval must be done with caution and deference to the many variables that affect its accuracy. This article is categorized under: Forensic Anthropology > Time Since Death Estimation Forensic Medicine > Death Scene Investigation Crime Scene Investigation > Education and Formation

Transmission of Ancient Chinese Forensic Medicine in the West: The View from Xiyuan Jilu (Records for Vindication)

“…Even though attempts to further determine the postmortem interval have continued for centuries, investigators and scientists still have not significantly improved the accuracy of measurement of the postmortem interval to this day. 16 In the book review of the classic Western book Spitz and Fisher's Medicolegal Investigation of Death: Guidelines for the Application of Pathology to Crime Investigation, V. W. Weedn, former chief medical examiner at the Maryland Department of Health, further clarifies that the description of toxicology was clearly presented in Song Ci's book, meaning that Chinese forensic medicine is the first to systematically set a standard that all practice of medicolegal death investigation must follow. 17 Broadly speaking, forensic medicine research in modern times greatly exemplifies the values established in ancient Chinese legal medicine.…”

Radiocarbon dating as tool to assist in triaging cases of unidentified human remains in Victoria, Australia: A case series

“…Determining whether remains are of medicolegal significance is initially based on an assessment of the preservation of the remains and the context in which they were recovered. Although there has been extensive research undertaken to estimate a time since death (i.e., post-mortem interval) based on a visual examination of the stages of decomposition (e.g., [11][12][13][14]), it is well established that estimating the time since death becomes increasingly difficult as the interval between death and the examination of the body increases [15]. Despite this, individuals in the various stages of relatively early decomposition (i.e., bloat, active, and advanced decay [16]) are typically considered to be of medicolegal significance based on preservation alone.…”

A retrospective comparative study to evaluate the reliability of post-mortem interval sources in UK and US medico-legal death investigations

“…Obtaining an accurate PMI estimation presents a major challenge due to the vast array of extrinsic and intrinsic variables that influence the decomposition process [4][5][6]. Despite the wealth of forensic taphonomy research into these variables, their interrelationships on the rate and pattern of decomposition remain largely uncertain [4].…”

“…Furthermore, the predictability of the PMI decreases as the time frame since death increases. Therefore, the estimated PMI is currently associated with low confidence in the practice of medico-legal death investigation [6].…”