Chapter 172 Cause of Death

Chapter 172 Cause of Death

Why the deceased died is a very serious topic for forensic doctors.

Forensic pathology, that’s what the whole book is about.

The court also attaches great importance to the cause of death.

Just like today's case, if the death is caused by arson, that is, the deceased died due to arson, but was not the target of arson, then he may be sentenced to life imprisonment.

But if it is arson after murder, this is an aggravating circumstance, and it is basically the death penalty.

On the other hand, if someone accidentally kills someone in a fire, or if someone else sets a fire after the killing and the body is burned, it is possible to return to life imprisonment.

Niudong, who was mainly engaged in dissection, also had a solemn expression.

Burning after killing is a relatively common scenario.

In order to escape their crimes, murderers often use various methods to destroy corpses and eliminate traces.

However, after so many stabbings in the abdomen, my lungs felt like they were spinning...

These are two completely different causes of death.

A tingling feeling in the lungs, or a feeling of holding snow, usually means that it is related to suffocation.

Niudong cut off the lung tissue without hesitation. I saw some pink foamy liquid flowing out.

This further proves that the death is most likely related to suffocation.

So, the deceased was stabbed in the abdomen, unconscious due to injuries, and then died of smoke?

Niudong's eyes couldn't help but look at the throat of the corpse.

As we all know, corpses killed by smoke have three characteristics.

First, the airway and mouth may be burned by high-temperature smoke. Second, the eyes are usually closed. Third, carboxyhemoglobin saturation is high.

The first item is easy to understand.

The second item is actually easy to understand. The irritation of smoke is so great that it can cause death. If you are in the smoke, you will definitely be unable to help but close your eyes.

The third item, the high carboxyhemoglobin saturation, actually represents an indicator of carbon monoxide poisoning.

This indicator is usually negative among normal people, and the indicator for smokers may be 02 to 04.

But if there is carbon monoxide poisoning in the smoke, the carboxyhemoglobin saturation index will soar to more than 20%.

However, the opening and closing of the eyes is not easy to verify.

Because human eyelids can be covered after death. For example, if a man cries bitterly at a fire and covers his brother's eyelids, he will be suspected of strangling his brother to death and covering up the cause of death.

Carboxyhemoglobin saturation requires toxicology testing to prove it.

Originally, for forensic doctors, the most direct way was to cut open the airway and take a look.

But the tissue on the deceased's chest, including the upper part of the throat, had been carbonized. Niudong stepped forward and made a cut. Nothing could be seen, so he did not cut anymore.

"Do you want to take the heart blood and send it for examination?" Jiang Yuan asked politely.

"OK fine."

Niudong's reaction was a beat slower than Jiang Yuan's.

The heart blood is taken for toxicology testing.

Jiang Yuan once again recommended himself: "Shall I do it?"

He is here to practice, and he can't just keep dangling on the edge.

Niudong was stunned for a moment and gave up his position to Jiang Yuan.

Jiang Yuan took the blood from his heart and the contents of his stomach.

Toxicology testing mainly tests these two areas.

One represents what's in your blood, and the other represents what's in your stomach.

After taking out the things, Jiang Yuan tapped his abdomen with a knife and asked, "Would you like to look for it?"

Wang Lan and Niudong were stunned again and whispered: "Then let's look for it."

He didn't need to say what he was looking for, and the three forensic doctors started looking for it together.

"No clots."

"The stomach was punctured, but there were no blood clots or carbonization."

"Here in the lower abdomen as well, there is no carbonization."

Everyone spoke out the key points in a tacit understanding.

If a blood vessel is punctured before death, it will bleed. This is because the heart pumps blood out.

Blood vessels that are punctured after death will not bleed because the heart has stopped beating.

The reason why you cannot eat blood-letting pork in European and American countries, apart from economic factors and customs, is that blood-letting pork requires the pig to bleed while it is still alive, which is very unethical for Europe.

And there is no clot in the abdomen, which means that the blood vessel of the deceased was punctured after death, or...

Theoretically, it's also possible that the blood clot was incinerated by the flames.

Saying that there is no carbonization in the stomach and no carbonization in the lower abdomen is to reduce the possibility of follow-up.

"Looking at it this way, toxic suffocation and mechanical suffocation are more likely, and the body was stabbed so many times after death..." Niudong couldn't help but shake his head.

Jiang Yuan gestured at the location of the stabbing and said, "It's possible that an acquaintance committed the crime. He was afraid of being recognized, so he stabbed him again."

"It's very possible." Niudong became excited and said, "Then I'll make a call first."

The cause of death has basically been found.

The specific situation depends on the drug test report, but the stabbing in the abdomen was done after death. This has a great impact on the detection of the case, and the frontline must be notified first.

After Niudong cleaned his hands, made a phone call, and put on his gloves again, he saw Jiang Yuan and Wang Lan taking out the heart and examining it carefully.

"Have you noticed anything?" Niudong quickly stepped onto the stage on his footstool.

"There's a little bit of bleeding," Jiang Yuanda said.

"Circumstantial evidence of suffocation." Niudong nodded.

Asphyxiation can lead to hypoxia, which can form spot-like hemorrhages on the surfaces of multiple internal organs.

Such is the heart of the deceased.

However, it is not easy to notice spotting bleeding in the condition of the corpse today.

My chest was almost burning.

If the fire had been extinguished slower, it would have burned down the entire house, and his heart would have been burned to the core.

"Jiang Yuan's eyes are quite good." Niudong said appreciatively.

Wang Lan raised his head, shook his head to relieve the discomfort in his neck, and said: "Jiang Yuan not only has good eyesight, he also looks at the bleeding on the surface of the internal organs. The liver and kidneys have been carefully checked. The heart is also OK. If you find it, the bleeding will be dried."

"Forensic Doctor Jiang can do it." Niudong nodded.

Knowledge is written in books, and it is not easy to use it appropriately at the right time - Niudong's evaluation of Jiang Yuan was still a young newcomer, but now he has a slightly higher opinion.

"Let's do the rest. Captain Lei will come over and take a look later." Niudong said and continued to cut open.

Cao Keyang, the trace inspector next to him, was almost vomiting from the help. He sighed and said, "Captain Lei is coming here right now? Is it midnight?"

"He didn't sleep in the middle of the night. It's okay." Niudong didn't have any sympathy for the leader.

Jiang Yuan, Wang Lan, Cao Keyang and the forensic assistant nodded in agreement.

The atmosphere in the anatomy room became warm as a result.

An hour later, Lei Xin, the criminal police captain of Qianjin District, Qinghe City, ran over.

"Forensic Doctor Jiang, thank you for your hard work, thank you for your hard work."

Qinghe City has a total of three districts. Qianjin District belongs to the old urban area. The criminal police brigade of the district bureau is at the same level as the criminal police brigade of Ningtai County.

This is a detective who is a bit thin, has yellow hands and yellow teeth, and can only use his brain but not his hands at first glance.

Entering the door, Lei Xin first greeted Jiang Yuan politely, and then gave cigarettes to others.

Jiang Yuan said "It's okay" and took the cigarette and lit it.

If you are attentive to something, it must be for the sake of the matter.

Taking advantage of the case to get acquainted with each other, Lei Xin said again: "Forensic Doctor Jiang, Forensic Doctor Wang, Niudong, can I introduce the case?"

"good."

Lei Xin considered his words and said: "To put it briefly, today...yesterday afternoon, a house built by villagers caught fire in the area we are moving forward. After the fire was extinguished, the female body found...the body had DNA done. For comparison, I just got the results."

"The deceased's name was Zhang Ying, 22 years old. She was unmarried and rented here. The situation at the scene was that the deceased was lying on the bed in the house without clothes, so there was a possibility of rape."

“Self-built houses in urban villages have more people coming and going, and there are few cameras.”

"We are currently investigating Zhang Ying's social relationships. The deceased worked in a shopping mall and was a salesperson at a L'Oreal counter. She did not feel particularly close to her colleagues. Her parents did not know much about their daughter's social relationships..."

Lei Xin talked for a while and then said: "Forensic Doctor Jiang, are you free to take a look at the scene?"

Jiang Yuan did not object, but just scratched his head and said: "There is very little evidence at the scene after the arson."

He had done fingerprints on arson cases before, so he was considered to be a fool.

Lei Xin didn't have anything to hide, and said: "Basically no evidence has been found during the current investigation. If no evidence such as semen fluid is found on the body, even if the person is found, there will probably be a lack of physical evidence."

"The murder weapon?"

"The murder weapon was thrown in front of the fire point. It was a chef's knife, the kind used in Western-style kitchens, a five-piece kitchen set or something like that. It was given in a wooden box with the knife inside. The outside was also burnt."

Not to mention, Lei Xintao is almost back in his element, and the problems he is encountering now are really difficult.

Lei Xin complained, seemingly truthfully: "We haven't found any results yet. Even if there are results, I still have to worry about the physical evidence. Nowadays, murder cases are becoming more and more demanding. There is no DNA evidence or hard physical evidence. The prosecutor Even the officials complained."

Wang Lan nodded sympathetically: "CSI effect."

The CSI effect means that everyone has watched too many TV movies and variety shows about forensic science, so that everyone’s requirements for forensic science have quietly increased.

In European and American countries, the CSI effect is reflected in jurors' requirements for physical evidence and increased expectations. For example, jurors will demand more DNA testing and the most advanced technology possible.

In China, the CSI effect is more reflected in leaders. Especially for non-professional leaders, or more senior leaders, when they ask for "physical evidence" in a certain case, it is impossible for criminal investigators to say that they do not feel pressure.

To a certain extent, this is actually an improvement. After all, leaders who want "physical evidence" seem to be more scientific than leaders who want "oral confessions."

For grassroots leaders like Lei Xin, all aspects must be considered.