Friendly neighborhood self-confessed laconophilia, whose armor suits him, but it can not hide that mark (Nothing ever will), who was prepared the very moment that he let his arrow fly, that’ll slay anything that's evil (that's his deal), who will never die (just go Missing In Action), who's desperate to regain his honor, who has the innate ability to be overlooked and ignored, who hides a bitter heart under a veneer of lovable idiot, and who knows deep down that Who I am is not who I want to be...
I've been used as the base model for 4 Marvel Sketch Cards, 1 Topps Star Wars Galaxies trading card, a Star Wars Insider cover image, and a T-Shirt at Hot Topic.
Catching Elephant is a theme by Andy Taylor
Vitreous humour (vitreous body)
the clear gel substance that fills the space in the eye between the lens and the retina, can also be referred to just as the vitreous
The vitreous humour (and sometimes aqueous humour, another ocular fluid) can reveal more accurate post-mortem results than blood samples because it is a more stable fluid post-mortem. An analysis of ocular fluids can be helpful in determining time of death, and can also be used to measure levels of alcohol and heroin.
Blood spatter on the foot indicting that the decedent had been upright for at least some time following injury before they died.
Blood spatter work was one of my favorite areas of study. I never got to do it in the field for casework, but they were some of my favorite labs and lectures.
Angle of impact of blood spatter is the arcsin of the width of the blood stain divided by the length of the blood stain. In this case, since the blood drops are very close to circular, we know that the width and length are the same, so the arcsin of 1 is 90 degrees, meaning these blood drops fell almost vertically downwards, which is how we can draw the conclusion that the victim remained standing up right for a period of time after receiving the injury.
Gun-induced laceration and soot deposition on the hand.
The mechanism of the pistol produced a laceration of the hand. Soot was also deposited on the hand and fingers. These findings indicate that the gun was in the hand of this victim and supports the theory of suicide.
This is one of those times that we would push back against management and try and point out what a waste of resources it would be to do GSR testing in this case. In these cases the other pieces of evidence make it rather clear that it was in fact a self induced gunshot suicide and the addition of GSR testing on top of the normal case load and not add anything to the proceedings.
“Cadaveric spasm,” or “instantaneous rigor mortis,” in a drowning victim. Note the vegetation clutched in the hand.
Also notice the skin on the palm and underside of the fingers. Being submerged in water has caused the skin to begin to separate from the underlying muscle tissue. This is a phenomenon referred to as “degloving.” The epidermis commonly retains enough ridge detail to allow fingerprints to be obtained, often by placing the recovered epidermis tissue on top of a pair of latex gloves, allowing an analyst to literally wear the skin like a glove.
It’s time for you Forensics Protip of the Day!
When referring to blood evidence found at the scene of a crime, such as blood found cast onto a wall or other surface, this is appropriately referred to as “spatter” “Splatter” is the verb.
Stiff: The Curious Lives of Human Cadavers by Mary Roach
A really great read, made me really want to get back into my field and reminded me how much I miss doing Forensics.
Best Police Sketch ever, or BEST police sketch ever?
The crime is terrible, an old women was abducted and tied to a tree so Hill Billy Bob here could steal her car, but I can’t help laughing at this official police artist sketch of the suspect.
(Source: news.cincinnati.com)
