Forensics

19 Pages 4736 Words

en we breathe, oxygen comes into lungs and is circulated through our system by passage of blood cells. Since every system shuts down up on death, bacteria begin to manifest and let out enzymes that produce gas by breaking down the body from the inside. Therefore, the shade of blood notably darkens and due to the force gravity, it sinks to the lower sides of the body as muscles begin to tense up. Within a half-hour after death, lividity occurs. Lividity is evident when the part of the body facing the ground turns purplish in color. In the early stages, if the skin is pressed, it will temporarily turn white under pressure. Whiteness is not possible more than five hours after death. By the four-hour mark, the body is usually completely stiff or is said to have rigor mortis, which begins with smaller muscles. Two to three days later, the muscles return to a relaxed state since the fibers have begun to deteriorate.
Also taken into account for time of death is the behavior of insects if the murder took place outdoors or in an area with bugs. The division of this particular science is called forensic entomology. The scent of death attracts insects as naturally as it repels humans. A basic rule of thumb for entomology follows these time allotments:
ten minutes - after death (if in open air) flies lay 1000’s of eggs in the mouth, eyes, etc.
twelve hours - the eggs hatch and maggots begin to eat tissues
twenty-four to thirty-six hours - dry skin is consumed by beetles
forty-eight hours later spiders and other insects begin to eat the bugs that are consuming the body
A criminologist named Edmond Locard developed a theory in 1910 and it is referred to as the Edmond Locard theory. This theory states that every time something comes in contact with another, it takes or leaves a part of itself or another. (The Missed Evidence, by Dwayne S. Hilderbrand.) It is also referred to as theoretical exchange when pertaining to homicidal incidents. T...