End of The Year Project
By:Rosa Amastal
Core standard 4.1 Explain the Process Of An Autopsy
An autopsy is a detailed examination and dissection of the human body after death. it is used to determine the likely time and cause of death, as well as to evaluate the presence of disease and/or injuries.
Step 1: Begin with an examination of the outside of the body take note of the height, weight,age and sex of the body also look for any distinguishing characteristics like birthmarks, scars or tattoos
- take finger prints
- photograph the appearance of the body
Step 2: Take x-rays of the body to find any broken of fractured bones and also dental work recorders to help identify the body
Step 3:Check the genital area for any signs of rape
- bruising
- tearing
Step 4: Take a blood sample for DNA purposes it can also help determine if the victim was on drugs,had been using alcohol or if poisoning was involved a urine sample should be taken from the bladder using a syringe
Step 5: Using a scalpel make one large "Y"shaped incision from each shoulder across the chest then down the to the pubic bone
- check to see if any ribs are broken
- split the rib cage and examine the lungs hearts (note any abnormalities)
Step 7: Observe the eyes carefully the presence of tiny,broken blood vessels can be a sign of choking or strangulation
Step 8: Examine the head check for any trauma to the skull including fracture or bruises the remove the top of the skull and brain (follow the same procedure as with all other organs.
Step 9: State the cause of death and the reasons that brought you to that conclusion
Core standard 5.3 compare casing and bullets for potential matches to evidence exemplars
- Ballistics (derives from the Greek word ballein meaning to throw) is the science of mechanics that deals with launching,flight,behavior, and effects of the projectiles
- A projectile is any object projected into space by the exertion of force
- examiner have to be able to identify if a particular bullet or cartridges was fired from a specific firearm
- this can be concluded by small (often microscopic) markings that on bullets or cartridges that are unique to ammunition to a weapon
- the uniqueness of each firearm transfers to the cartridge case and bullet whenever the weapon is fired
- the firearm's surface that contact the softer cartridge case and bullet contain random,unique,microscopic irregularities that make it different from other firearms
- Manufacturers cut spiral grooves into the gun barrel to help stabilize the flight path of a bullet
- Gunshot residues fall into two categories
- The first type is gathered from the suspected shooter's hands
- The second type looks for residues on items such as a victim's clothing in an effort to determine the muzzle-to-target distance
core standard 8.4 distinguish skeletal features using forensic anthropology to estimate gender age ancestry, health and cause of death
- people who specialize in this are called anthropologist
- anthropologist help in the identification by constructing a biological profile which includes....
-sex
-stature
-ancestry
-disease
-injuries
- they identify human remains
- they also analyze injuries that happened around the time of a persons death which can determine how they died
- then the first thing an anthropologist must ask them selves are the materials found bones
- once the anthropologist is sure that the material is bone they must determine where it came from a human or not by examining the size,shape,and structure of a bone, an anthropologist can determine if its human
- the investigator must identify which bones are present and which ones are absent by placing the element out on a table in an anatomical position
- this creates an inventory that allows any missing element to be identify quickly
- anthropologist must determine the number of individuals involved to do this they look for duplicates
- if the elements don,t match it could suggest that is more than one individual
- when the remains of two or more individuals are mixed together this is called cominling
- males tend to have larger skulls than females
- to assess ancestry,anthropologist look for skeletal features that tend to be more in some population than others
- Anthropologist cannot determine skin or eye color but they are able to place an individual into one of the three broad geographic categories: European, African, or Asian
- Healed fractures alter the bone in unique ways that can be used to distinguish individuals and can be helpful when it comes to comparing them with antimortem medical records of missing persons to fin potential matches