Chapter 9 Flashcards by Michelle Sifuentes

Purposeful premeditated and unlawful taking of the life of a human being by another person. It is considered the most serious of all statutory crimes and may be divided into 1st & 2nd degree

Murder

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What are the various modes of wrongful death?

Accidental death, natural death, suicide, and murder

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Most serious and includes Premeditation and preplanning

First degree murder

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Lesser offense but requires that the person “attempted” to kill the intended victim

Second degree

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Deliberate killing of another person and subdivided into voluntary and involuntary

Manslaughter

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Killing another person in act of passion and lacks premeditation

Voluntary manslaughter

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Accidental or non intentional death of another person due to severe negligence

Involuntary manslaughter

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Steps of preliminary investigation

Is victim alive or dead
Medical help for victim
Apprehend perpetrator if still on scene
Make appropriate notifications if perp has left scene
Safeguard crime scene
Detain witnesses

After prelim duties protect crime scene and establish maintain chain of custody

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Human decomposition takes place in five stages

Stage 1 fresh stage
Stage 2 putrefaction stage (bloating)
Stage 3 black putrefaction stage
Stage 4 butyric fermentation stage (mummification)
Stage 5 dry decay stage (skeletonization)

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Visual evidence of decomposition includes

Body color 
Changes in the eyes
Body temp
Rigor Morris
Postmortem lividity

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Type of wound inflicted by a firearm can be affected by a number of factors

Type of caliber used
Distance between shooter and victim
Whether lethal bullet had ricocheted off another object

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Where muzzle of weapon was held against the body when discharged, certain residue will be present

Contact wound

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Killing several victims in three or more separate events with time breaks as short as two days to as much as weeks or even months between victims

Serial murder

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Killing of at least four victims In a single incident within a short span of time

Mass murder

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Murder that arouses intense public interest

Sensational murder

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Killing in a rampage fashion and involves killing two or more victims in a short time at multiple locations(w/out a cooling off period)

Spree murder

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A case is considered ________ until a suspect has been identified arrested and prosecuted for the crime

unsolved

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Muzzle is held tightly against the skin. Little external evidence that it is a contact wound if entrance is inspected usually searing and powder blackening of the immediate edge of the wound is seen. Autopsy will reveal particles of soot and unburnt powder in wound track

Hard contact wound

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Muzzle is held lightly against the skin soot that is carried by gas is deposited in a zone around entrance which can be wiped away

Loose contact wound

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Barrel is held at acute angel to skin gas and soot radiate outward from where the gun does not touch the skin. Hot sooty gases escape the gap leaving a blackened and seared section of the skin w/scattered grains if powder

Angled wound

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Muzzle is close to skin but is not in direct contact grains do not have a chance to disperse and leave powder tattooing wide zone of powder soot and seared blackened skin surround the entrance wound

Near contact wound

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Muzzle is held away from the skin but close enough that it produces powder tattooing reddish brown or orange lesions around entrance wound also characterize this type wound

Intermediate wound

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Leaves no marks other than those produced by bullet perforating the skin

Distant wound

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Process of stiffening or contraction of body muscles, after vital functions cease, sets in 2-4 hours after death. Starts at same time throughout the entire body. First observed in jaws and neck tends to progress head to foot.

Rigor mortis

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Blood settles to bottom side of body because of gravity, purplish lividity forms on skin closest to surface. May appear one half hour to four hours after death.

Post mortem lividity

Bullet enters an object and remains inside

Penetrating wounds

The bullet passes completely through the object

Perforating wound

Reddish brown area of roughened skin, surrounds an entrance wound and small amounts of blood escape through Note: exit wound is larger w/ protruding tissue and no abrasion ring exit wound far more blood escapes

Abrasion ring

A choke is a constriction in last couple inches in barrel plays role in the rate which the pellets spread as they travel away and can vary in degree of construction. Common choke designations are

Full, modified, and improved cylinder

At ranges of around _________ the shot and wadding mass will produce a single large hole in a target

5-10 feet

The close range entrance less than 5 ft hole is almost _________ you might notice a pinkish color to material around hole

square

Distances greater than ________ shot mass starts to break up. Fliers will start to appear around the edge of entrance wound and wadding may or may not enter the victim

5-10 feet

Cooling of the body's temperature to that of its surroundings. Occurs in fresh stage, few days after death

Algor mortis

The products from the breakdown create acids, gases, and other products that cause production of putrefactive effects. It is produced during early stages of human decomposition( in fresh stage)

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs)

Diptera insects begin to lay eggs on the body during this stage especially member of the caliphoridae family of insects

Fresh stage

Odor, color changes, and bloating of the body, green color change

Putrefaction stage

When bacteria enters venous system that leads to formation of red streaks along the veins (putrefaction stage)

Hemolyze

Red streaks along veins that changes to green (putrefaction stage)

Marbelization

The black putrefaction stage ends as the bones become apparent which can take anywhere from ________ after death depending on region and temperature.

10-20 days

Types of insects differ based on where the body is although _________ can be found feeding on the body in almost all cases.

Diptera larvae

Studies various stages of growth of each larva before it develops into an adult insect.

Entomologist

Grave wax formation is loss of body color and formation of a chessy appearance on the cadaver(butyric fermentation stage)

Adipocere

________ temperatures leads the protein in bones to break down more rapidly

Higher

Studies the clues to cause of death found in the corpse as a medical phenomenon

Forensic pathology

Studies skeletons and human remains to seek clues to identity race sex of their former owners

Forensic anthropology

A basic guide for the effect of environment on decomposition (or ratio) if all other factors are equal then where there is free access of air a body decomposes twice as fast than if immersed in water and eight times faster if buried

Casper's law

Freshly skeletonized bone is often called ________ and has a characteristic greasy feel

Green bone

Pupils may become irregular in size and shape and typically become milky and cloudy in color within _____ of death

8-10hrs

A corpse will feel cool to the touch from ______ after death and will remain the same temperature as it's surrounding for about 24 hours after death.

8-12 hrs

The _______ the difference between the body and the environment the faster the body will cool down

greater

Ring from gunpowder deposited around wound has a dirty appearance and can usually be wiped off

Smudging

Tiny pinpoint hemorrhage from unburnt powder being deposited in skin, cannot be wiped away

Tattooing

This test for GSR, Involves swabbing suspects hand with cotton swabs, soaking in acid solution, exposed to high temps, and a light reads the absorption rate. It is time consuming and time limited process because swabs have to be "digested"

Atomic absorption test

__________ test where the amounts of chloride on each side of the heart were compared to determine if the person drowned in fresh or salt water

Getter Chloride

A robot rule based expert system programmed to profile serial criminals

Violent criminal apprehension program (ViCAP)

________ and nonnegligent manslaughter as defined in the UCR program is the willful (nonnegligent) killing of one human being by another.

Murder

Spree murders involve killings at __________ locations with almost no time break between murders

two or more

Mass murder is the killing of _________ at one location within one event.

four or more victims

Serial murder happens over time and involves the killing of several victims in ____________.

three or more separate events

Nearly _____ of the nations murders were reported in the ______.

44%/South

He or she must become aware of the crime scene situation and be prepared to take certain immediate actions , the focus being identifying any aspects of the scene that might be subject to chemical change, change by dissipation or change because something was moved

Scene-conscious

Refers to the sequential documentation of evidence that shows the seizure ,custody ,control ,transfer ,analysis ,and disposition of evidence

Chain of custody

A specific person must always have the __________of a piece of evidence

physical custody

A good practice for investigators is to have ___________ person identify the remains to avoid a case of mistaken identity

more than one

Other identifiers investigators should look for to identify remains is fingernail scrapings, fingerprints if deceased and __________

Wounds and blood : if wounds indicate severe bleeding and little blood is on the scene the body may have been moved

The declaring does not actually have to die for the statement to be admissible but he or she needs to have had a genuine belief that he or she was going to die and declaring must be _______ to testify in court

Unavailable

The dying declaration must relate to the circumstances or the cause of the declarants _______.

own death

The dying declaration will be in admissible unless it is based on the declarants ____________.

actual knowledge

Forensic autopsy deaths are placed in one of five categories

Natural ,accidental ,homicide, suicide and undetermined

The time span for the hatching of the maggot is ____

24 hours

If buried remains decay _______ in acidic based soils than in alkaline soils

faster

The formation of adipocere _______ decomposition by inhibiting the bacteria that causes putrefaction

slows

One reliable method of determining body temperature is to insert a thermometer into the rectum of the deceased. The medical examiner will usually place a thermometer in the victims ______.

Liver

IACP offers a working formula to determine estimated time of death when it is thought to be less than 24 hours

98.6(normal temp) 2(rectal temp) no. hrs since deat ___________________________________ 1.5 (average heat loss)

After lividity has set in for ____ the body will not diminish in color and will remain unchanged

12 hours

At the completion of rigor mortis typically _______ after death the torso jaws neck an duper lower extremities are stiff as a board

8-12 hours

After lividity has set in for ____ the body will not diminish in color and will remain unchanged

12 hours

Bodies found in air will have decomposed ______ as fast as those found submerged in water

twice

If a reddish brown to orange red powder tattooing exists that indicates the individual was ____ when the wound was inflicted

Alive

If the powder has produced _________ marks instead the individual was deceased before the shooting

Gray or yellow

No grooves on the bullet it was likely fired from a ______ such as a rifle if there is elongated grooves with deep incisions it was likely fired from a weapon smaller in size

Large weapon

Most labs will not test samples collected from living person more than ____ after the shooting

6 hours

The gauge of a shotgun is determined by the number of round lead balls of bore diameter that it takes to equal ______.

One pound

The irreversibility of drowning begins ______ in warm water and for as long as 66 minutes in cold water

3-10 minutes

A perso. Is considered a victim of "near drowning" if after being rescued he survives for ____ after being submerged in water even if he dies shirty after or suffers brain damage

24 hours

______ of all drowning a are considers "dry drownings"

10-15 percent

A person dies by suicide about every ____ in the US

16 minutes

_______ of all people who die by suicide have a diagnosable psychiatric disorder

90 percent

______ are used in more suicides than homicides

Firearms

It is estimated that _____ of suicides are accompanied by a note

12-20 percent

When completing the act of suicide victims will often ______ their actions

"personalize"

Chapter 9 Flashcards

(91 cards)