LIsa Black
Cape Coral, FL
Female, 49
I spent the five happiest years of my life in a morgue. As a forensic scientist in the Cleveland coroner’s office I analyzed gunshot residue on hands and clothing, hairs, fibers, paint, glass, DNA, blood and many other forms of trace evidence, as well as crime scenes. Now I'm a certified latent print examiner and CSI for a police department in Florida. I also write a series of forensic suspense novels, turning the day job into fiction. My books have been translated into six languages.
I'm sorry I can't help but that's a pathology question. I do not know.
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Yes, I'll email you when I'm back at work tomorrow.
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Most people die in their homes, so that's the 'normal' place to find them, but there are plenty of more unusual incidents as well. It's never scary, though, since when I go there I'm surrounded by cops, EMS workers, possibly firemen, Medical Examiner staff etc. I always observe the body where it is found, since that is my job. The Medical Examiner's or Coroner's office staff examines the body at their lab, so they can choose to come to the scene or not. If the death appears to be straightforward and natural, they will often not come to the scene and simply have the body transported to them.
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Was she washed up out of the water or found on a dock or something? In the first case it wouldn't be interpretable because you can't know where the body was when rigor set in. In the second it might indicate that the body had been moved if the hand position wasn't consistent with where the body was found. I don't know what you mean by 'refreshness'. Stomach contents can help a pathologist estimate how long it had been between eating and time of death, though of course everyone's digestion rate is a little different. I hope that helps!
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Gunshot residue can actually refer to two things, gunpowder that flies out of the barrel with the bullet and can land on the victim, and primer residue that can leak out of the back of the bullet cartridge and spray out onto the shooter's hand. But it can also get on the gun or nearby surfaces or people so presence of it on hands does not prove someone fired a gun, and it can wipe off easily so absence of it doesn't prove they did.
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I have no idea. It could be either. It doesn't matter how many times they were shot. As far as I know it would only matter if their eyes were open or not at the moment they died, not what happened before or after they died.
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A 'forensic science technician' can refer to anything from someone who works in the Property Department to someone who does DNA analysis to someone who investigates death scenes. A good way to get a handle on the situation is to look at online job postings from places where you might want to work--the local police department, the county morgue, the state crime lab. They will post the duties and requirements for each position. You can also check the same information on the websites of professional organizations such as the American Academy of Forensic Sciences or the International Association for Identification. That should give you a good start.
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