Homicide in Adana, Turkey: a 5-year review

Violence is a significant public health problem. Thus, so as to prevent this problem, homicide, the severest form of violence depriving a human being of his right to live, deserves a detailed examination. This study is a retrospective research examining the 2951 cases of medicolegal autopsies in Adana during a period of 5 years (1997-2001). Among these cases, 620, which were determined to be homicidal, were taken into the scope of this study. The cases were examined with respect to sex, age groups, the method used during the act of homicide, the number and the localization of the wounds on the body. A total of 620 (21%) of the medicolegal autopsies conducted within this period were homicides. Of these cases, 515 (83.06%) were male and 105 (16.94%) female, and the rate of the males to females was 4.9; 72.74% of the victims were between the ages of 21 and 50. It was seen that 54.83% of the homicides involved firearms, while 35.16% of the victims were stabbed to death with a cutting object. It was also determined that the victims suffered a single wound in 47.35% of firearm-related murders and 29.35% of stabbings resulted in death. Alcohol was found in the blood of 7.58% of the homicide victims, while none had any illicit drugs.