Suicide by electrocution with low-voltage current

Three cases of suicide by electrocution with low-voltage current were observed in five years (1994-1998) by medical clinical forensic examiners of an Emergency Forensic Unit of the Paris suburb among 2,000 external death examinations. The cases involved one woman, aged 72 and two men, aged 38 and 41. In the last two cases, electric burns were retrieved under bared electric wires, placed on the arms or fingers in order to realize a hand-to-hand electric circuit involving the heart muscle. In the other case, the electric circuit between mouth and foot also involved the heart muscle. Household low-voltage current delivered (220 V in France) had a sufficient strength to induce local muscular paralysis and heart fibrillation. In the three cases, blood samples taken have retrieved very high levels of muscular enzymes (CPK, LDH) correlated to the mechanism of electric death. The rareness of suicide by electrocution and its forensic characteristics are detailed in order to help the clinical forensic examiners, prosecutors, and police officers concerned by such death examinations.     

Petechiae of the baby's skin as differentiation symptom of infanticide versus SIDS

The successive killing of three siblings by their biological mother at two-year intervals is described. The children were 367 days, 75 days and 3 years old. Although sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS) or interstitial pneumonia could not be ruled out as the cause of death in the two younger children, who were killed first, the third child exhibited discrete signs of violence in the mouth and throat area which were interpreted as proof of infanticide. All three children had petechiae of the skin of the face and throat, the upper thorax, the shoulders and the mucous membranes of the mouth. None of the children exhibited signs of a disease-related hemorrhagic tendency. After the mother was convicted of murdering the three-year-old boy by smothering in combination with compression of the thorax, she confessed to having killed the other two children in a similar manner. In the absence of hemostatic disease, the presence of petechiae of the skin extending over the entire drainage area of the Vena cava superior can be regarded as evidence of an increase in pressure in the thoracic cavity secondary to obstruction of the airways with simultaneous chest compression.     

Drug-related deaths among recently released prisoners in the Strathclyde Region of Scotland

Drug abuse and its consequences are everyday problems encountered globally, and Scotland is no exception. During a study of drug-related deaths in the Strathclyde region of Scotland it was noted that known drug users who had recently been released from prison were at high risk of dying from a drug overdose. The majority of deaths occurred within one week of the release date and polydrug use was prevalent. Morphine was the most frequently encountered drug and this was found in combination with benzodiazepines in a significant number of cases. This paper highlights the dangers of resuming drug consumption following a period of abstinence.     

Potency trends of delta9-THC and other cannabinoids in confiscated marijuana from 1980-1997

The analysis of 35,312 cannabis preparations confiscated in the USA over a period of 18 years for delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol (delta9-THC) and other major cannabinoids is reported. Samples were identified as cannabis, hashish, or hash oil. Cannabis samples were further subdivided into marijuana (loose material, kilobricks and buds), sinsemilla, Thai sticks and ditchweed. The data showed that more than 82% of all confiscated samples were in the marijuana category for every year except 1980 (61%) and 1981 (75%). The potency (concentration of delta9-THC) of marijuana samples rose from less than 1.5% in 1980 to approximately 3.3% in 1983 and 1984, then fluctuated around 3% till 1992. Since 1992, the potency of confiscated marijuana samples has continuously risen, going from 3.1% in 1992 to 4.2% in 1997. The average concentration of delta9-THC in all cannabis samples showed a gradual rise from 3% in 1991 to 4.47% in 1997. Hashish and hash oil, on the other hand, showed no specific potency trends. Other major cannabinoids [cannabidiol (CBD), cannabinol (CBN), and cannabichromene (CBC)] showed no significant change in their concentration over the years.     

Spectroscopic determination of skin viability. A predictor of postmortem interval

We have demonstrated that skin viability decreases at a measurable rate following death in an animal model. The decreased skin viability was measured by fluorescein diacetate and ethidium bromide using fluorescence emission spectroscopy. There is significant decrease of the fluorescence intensity of the fluorescein diacetate assay between the 1-4 h, the 6-24 h, and the >40 h time points postmortem. For times between 6-24 h and >40 h postmortem the ethidium bromide assay showed consistent and significant increases in signal. The fluorescence measurements in this study showed that under the experimental conditions the time of death could be determined for <4, 6-24, and >40 hapotmotrem. The application of these assays in the field will require further study of the environmental factors.     

Detection of semen in stains on material evidences by quantitative immunofluorescence test

Russian and foreign methods used in forensic medicine for detection of the semen in stains on material evidences are compared. The potentialities of quantitative immunofluorescence test for detection of the semen in stains on material evidences, developed at Bureau for Forensic Medical Expert Evaluations of the Leningrad region, are described. Unlike other methods used in Russia, this method detects the semen in stains in the absence of spermatozoa and in stains with very low amount of the semen. Our modification allows objective recording of the results with computer processing. The method is cheaper than its foreign analogs and its sensitivity is similar to them.