EvidenceLogForm

Date:41514
CSIName:MagicNick
Crime#:1
TypeofEvidence:BulletTrajectory
DateEvidenceCollected:41514
LocationEvidenceCollected:KitchenintheresidenceofAaronLee(3209West6thAve#4)
thevictim.
Summaryofhowtheevidencewasprocessedandanalyzed:
Thebulletwentthroughthevictimsheadandarm.Afterthebulletentrancewound/pathonthe
victimwasidentified,alaserpointerwasdirectedthroughtheentrancewoundinthehead,
throughtheexitwound,andthroughthearm,landingatapointinthetablewerethewoodwas
chipped.Thelaserdidnotmatchupwiththebulletholeinthewall.Becausebulletstravelathigh
velocityinastraightline,itisimpossibleforthemtoturninmidair,thusitisassumedthatthe
wallbulletholeswerecausedbyapotentialricochetoranotherbulletAwoodendowelwasthen
insertedintothewound(s)tovisualizethetrajectoryofthebullet.

Bulletscontainamixtureofgunpowderandcordite,whichleaveburnmarksontheskinofthe
individualeitherwoundedorkilled.Theyalsoleaveafineresidueonthefingersandhandsofthe
individualfiringthegun.Theseburnmarkscansignifyclosenessofthevictimtotheperpetrator,
kindofweapon,andalsoiftheweaponhashadanymodificationsmadetoit.Someweapons
havebeendisarmedbyhavingthefiringpinsandmechanismsremoved,butthereare
individualswhocan'reactivate'theseweaponsforuseagain.Also,eachweapon'sbarrel
containssmallligaturesandgrooves,which,whenabulletisfiredfromthem,makemarkson
theshellcasing.Thesemarkscanbeusedasameansofidentifyingthemakeandmodelofthe
gunwhentheseshellcasingsarefoundatthescene.Whentheentrywoundwasexamined,no
burnmarksfromthebarrelwereobserved,onlystippling.

Whatconclusionscanbedrawnfromthispieceofevidence?
Becauseoftheangleandmannerinwhichthebulletpenetratedthevictim'sbody,itcanbe
concludedthatthevictimwasimmobile(notmoving)andlyingonthetablewhenhewasshot.
Thetrajectoryofthebulletdidn'tmatchupwiththebulletholeinthewall,suggestingthatthe
bulletricochetedoffthetableandintothewallfurtherprovingthatthevictimwasimmobileon
thetable.Also,thegunwasnotpresseddirectlytotheheadbutwasinsteadheldfartheraway
andfiredataclosedistance(afeatimpossibleforsomeonewhoislyingdown).Becauseofthis,
weconcludethatthevictimdidnotcommitsuicide.

Whatquestions,ifany,areraisedbythispieceofevidence?
Becausethevictimdidn'tkillhimself,wemustquestionwhoisresponsibleforhisdeathandwhy
hewaskilled?

AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm

Date:41614
CSIName:MagicNick
Crime#:1
TypeofEvidence:Fingerprints(collectedusingsupergluefumingtechnique)fromWhiskey
andTequilaBottles,CuponFridge,PrescriptionBottle,9mmGun,Cup,andtheShellCasing
DateEvidenceCollected:41614
LocationEvidenceCollected:Objectslocatedat(orinthevicinityof)thekitchentableinthe
residenceofAaronLee(3209West6thAve#4),thevictim.
Summaryofhowtheevidencewasprocessedandanalyzed:
Latentfingerprintswerecollectedoffofthegun,plasticdrinkglasses,andtheliquorbottlesthat
werepresentatthecrimesceneusingsupergluefumingtechniquealsoknownas
cyanoacrylatefuming.Tounderstandhowthesupergluemethodworks,onemustfirstknow
somebasicinformationaboutfingerprintsthemselves.Therearethreedifferenttypesof
fingerprints:visible,impression,andlatent.Investigatorsnormallyneedaportable,permanent
copyofthefingerprintstoanalyze.Aphotographcangenerallyfulfillthisneed.Ofthethreetypes
offingerprints,visiblefingerprintscanbephotographeddirectly,andimpressionfingerprintscan
usuallybephotographedunderspeciallightingconditions.Itisonlytheinvisiblelatentfingerprints
thataredifficulttophotograph.Theymustfirstbemadevisible.Cyanoacrylatefumingisa
chemicaltechniqueforcollectinglatentprints.

Latentfingerprintsarecomposedofseveralchemicalsexudedthroughtheporesinthefingertips
andareleftonvirtuallyeveryobjecttouched.Theprimarycomponentoflatentfingerprintsis
ordinarysweat.Sweatismostlywater,andwilldryafterafairlyshortperiodoftime.Theother
componentsoflatentfingerprintsareprimarilysolid,andcanremainonasurfaceforamuch
longerperiodoftime.Theothercomponentsoffingerprintsincludeorganiccompoundslike
aminoacids,glucose,lacticacid,peptides,ammonia,riboflavin,andisoagglutinogens,aswell
asinorganicchemicalslikepotassium,sodium,carbontrioxide,andchlorine.Thebasicconcept
behindsupergluetechniqueistoapplysomethingthatwillchemicallyreactwithoneofthe
constituentchemicalsoflatentfingerprintstotheareasuspectedofcontainingsuchafingerprint
(e.g.,agun,glass,orbottleinoursituation).Supergluereactswiththetracesofaminoacids,
fattyacids,andproteinsinthelatentfingerprintandthemoistureintheairtoproduceavisible,
stickywhitematerialthatformsalongtheridgesofthefingerprint.Thefinalresultisanimageof
theentirelatentfingerprint.Thisimagecanbephotographeddirectly,orafterfurther
enhancement.

Toenablesuchareactiontotakeplace,thecyanoacrylatemustbeinitsgaseousform.The
basicproceduretodeveloplatentfingerprintsusingsupergluetakesthisfactintoaccount,butis
stillnotoverlycomplicated.Thesurfacesthataretobecheckedforlatentfingerprintsareplaced
inanairtighttankalongwithasmallheater.Afewdropsofliquidsuperglueareplacedintoa
tiny,opencontainer,andthecontainerisplacedontopoftheheaterinsidethetank.Theboiling
pointformostsupergluevariesbetweenfortynineandsixtyfivedegreesCelsius(roughly120
to150degreesFahrenheit)dependinguponitsexactchemicalcomposition.
AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm

Oncethesuperglueinthecontainerreachesitsboilingpoint,itwillbegintoboilawayintothe
surroundingatmosphere,creatingaconcentrationofgaseouscyanoacrylate.Ifanylatent
fingerprintsexistanywhereinsidethetank,theywilleventuallybeexposedtothegaseous
cyanoacrylate.Thisexposureandthehumiditycontainedintheatmosphere(fromthewatercup)
areenoughtotriggerthereactionautomatically.Onceeverythinghasbeensetup,the
investigatormerelywaitsforthereactiontooccur.Thewholereactioncantakeovertwohours.
However,becauseitisinpracticeverydifficulttocalculatetheexactamountoftimeinadvance,
thereactionmustbemonitoredtoinsurethatitisnotallowedtocontinuefortoolong.Ifitruns
unchecked,thelatentfingerprintscanoverdevelopthechemicalimagesoftheridgeswillslowly
growwideruntiltheyoverlap,obscuringvitaldetail.

Aftertheprintswereobtained,wecomparedthemtoprintscollectedfromsuspectsandthe
victim.Whenanalyzingfingerprints,therearethreemaintypesofitemstoobserve:arches,
loops,andwhorls.Identifyingthetypeofprintmakesthecomparisonprocessmuchfaster
becauseonlyprintsofthesametypeneedtobeanalyzed.Becauseallfingerprintshaveunique
identifyingcharacteristics,calledminutia,theywerecomparedtosamplestakenfromthe
suspectsandthevictimtoidentifywhowasatthecrimescene.

Whatconclusionscanbedrawnfromthispieceofevidence?
Thefollowingprintswerecollectedandidentifiedasfollows:
WhiskeyBottle:
AaronLee
MichelleLee
TequilaBottle:
AaronLee
MichelleLee
Cuponfridge:
AaronLee
MichelleLee
ScottHenderson
PrescriptionBottle:
MichelleLee
ScottHenderson
9mmGun:
Noprintswererecovered
Cup:
AaronLee
MichelleLee
ShellCasing:
Noprintsrecovered

AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
Itcanbeconcludedthatthevictimwashavingadrinkwithhiswifesometimebeforehewas
murdered.Itissuspiciousthatthevictim'sprintswerenotfoundontheprescriptionbottlefound
infrontofhim.Onlythewife'sandson'sprintswereontheprescriptionbottle.Becausethe
wife'sprintsarealsofoundonthevictim'sglass,itsuggeststhatshemighthavedruggedher
husband.Thesonmayhavealsobeeninvolvedbecausehisprintswerealsoonthepillsandthe
cupontoponthefridge,whichmeansatonetimehewaspresentinthehouseandaroundthe
alcohol.

Whatquestions,ifany,areraisedbythispieceofevidence?
Didthewifedrugherhusbandinordertokillhim?Whywouldshedrughim?

AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
Date:42114
CSIName:MagicNick
Crime#:1
TypeofEvidence:BloodTyping
DateEvidenceCollected:42114
LocationEvidenceCollected:KitchenintheresidenceofAaronLee(3209West6thAve#4)
theclothsMichelleLeewaswearingduringtheeventsofthecrime.
Summaryofhowtheevidencewasprocessedandanalyzed:

Bloodtypingisusedtohelpeliminateorcategorizesuspectsinacrime.Thefunctionofbloodis
totransportsubstances(suchasnutrients,waste,heats,hormones,etc.)throughoutthebody.
BloodalsoaidsintheregulationsofpHlevels,bodytemperature,andhydrationaswellasthe
defenseofthebody.

Bloodismadeupofredandwhitebloodcells.Theentirecellingeneralcarriesplasma,afluid
containinghormones,clottingfactors,andnutrients.Redbloodcellstransportsoxygenand
carbondioxidewhilewhitebloodcellscombatforeigninvaders.

Aperson'sbloodtypeisdeterminedlargelybygenetics,anddoesnotchangethroughhisorher
lifetime.Humanbloodtypesarecategorizedbythepresenceorabsenceofproteinsinthecells.
Thecombinationoftheseproteinsdeterminesyourbloodtype.Themostcommonformofblood
typingistheuseoftheABObloodgroupingsystem.Thissystemseparatesthebloodtypesof
humansintofourcategories:A,B,ABorO.(Seebelowformoreindepthexplanation.)

Whitebloodcellsactasantibodiesthatreacttospecificantigens.Anantibody,alsoknownasan
immunoglobulin,isalargeYshapeproteinproducedbyplasmacellsthatisusedbytheimmune
systemtoidentifyandneutralizeforeignobjectssuchasbacteriaandviruses.Antigensarea
toxinorotherforeignsubstancethatinducesanimmuneresponseinthebodytoaspecific
antibody.Animmuneresponseisthereactionofthecellsandfluidsofthebodytothepresence
ofasubstancethatisnotrecognizedasaconstituentofthebodyitself.

Humanbloodincludesover100differentantigens,whichcouldbeimpracticaland
timeconsumingtotestforeachantigenduringthealreadycomplicatedprocessofcrime
solution.ForensicserologistsinsteadincorporatetheABOsystem,whichinvolvesexamining
thesurfaceoftheredbloodcellsfortwoantigensknownasAandB,withbloodtypebeing
namedafterthetypeofantigensitcontains,includingA,B,ABandO.Thebasicfoundationof
serologystatesthatforeveryantigen,aspecificantibodyisinexistence.Theprocessofroutine
bloodtypingincludestheutilizationoftwoantigens:AorB.Adropletoftheseantigensinto
samplesofbloodproducesanagglutinatedeffect.Agglutinationistheclumpingofbloodcells,
oftenleadingtotheburstingofbloodvessels.

Theresultsareasfollows:
BloodtypeAagglutinatedbyantigenA
AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
BloodtypeBagglutinatedbyantigenB
BloodtypeABagglutinatedbybothantigenAandB
BloodtypeOagglutinatedbyneitherantigenAorB

Bloodtypes,initsmostbasicforms,canhelptocategorizeapersonbytheirdescent.For
example,BloodtypeOiscommonamongNativeAmericansandLatinAmericans,whiletypeA
isseenmostofteninCaucasiansandpersonsofEuropeanorigin.TypeBisseencommonly
amongAfricanAmericansandABismostfrequentinJapaneseindividuals.Thissimpletypeof
classificationcandrasticallynarrowdownalistofpotentialsuspectsorvictimidentification.

BloodtypingtakestheclassificationevenfurtherwiththeRhsystem,developedin1940byKarl
Landsteiner,whichisfarmorecomplicatedthantheABOsystemwitharound30combinations
possible,andistypicallyexpressedaseitherpositiveornegative(e.g.,AB,O+).TheRhfactoris
foundonthecoveringofredbloodcells.UsinganantibodysolutiontotheRhprotein,thesame
conceptisused,wherebloodclumpingdeterminestheabsence/presenceofthisprotein,
bringingtolightthefinerbloodgroups,whichinclude:A+,A,B+,B,AB+,AB,O+andO.The
ABOsystemalsoincorporatessubgrouping,usingextractsfromplantsandseedsthatcreate
antigensthatclotbloodtypesevenmoreselectively,suchasO1,A1,AB2,andsoon.

Bloodtypingcanalsobeappliedtobloodtransfusions,tomakesurethebodydoesntrejecta
bloodsample.Forexample,ifyougaveatypeApersonA+blood,becausethebloodtypeA
containsRhantigens,itwouldrejecttheA+transfusion.However,ifanAB+individualwereto
receiveanOtransfusion,thebodywouldacceptthebloodbecauseOistheuniversaldonor
bloodtypeandAB+doesnthaveRhantigens.

Inthecollectionofbiologicalevidencefromcrimescenes,wetbloodofferssignificantlymore
testabilitythandriedblood,andbloodbeginstodryafterfiveminutesofairexposure.Thisis
especiallyrelevantinthetestingfordrugsoralcohol.Thetestingofbloodforforensicpurposes
canalsoincludeDNAtesting,whichisamorecomplicatedprocessthatinvolvesseparating
piecesoftheDNAstrandswithintheblooditself.

Bloodtyping,whenconductedaccurately,isavaluablepieceofevidenceinthecriminaljustice
process,helpingtopinpointindividualsandtheirrelationtothecrime.

Whatconclusionscanbedrawnfromthispieceofevidence?

Twotypesofbloodwerefoundatthecrimescene,O+andO.ItwasfoundthattheO+sample
belongstoMr.Lee(thoughcontactwithhisdoctor)andthatMrs.LeeisO(fromasample
collectedfromher).

BloodtypeO+wasfoundonthekitchentablewhereMr.Leewasmurdered,aswellastheblood
spatteronthewall.OnMrs.Leesshirtthatshewaswearingduringthenightofthemurder,
therewastypeO+bloodfound,aswellasadropoftypeOonthecollar.However,theO+
AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
bloodthatwasfoundonMrs.Leesshirtwasintheformofspatter,notthatofsmearing.This
suggeststhatMrs.Leewasintheroomandwithinrangeaswellasbeingbehindthegunwhen
Mr.Leewasshot(inordertobesprayedwiththevictim'sblood).Theonedroponthecollaralso
belongstoMrs.Lee,meaningthatshewasbleedingduringsomepointonthenightofthe
murder,butnoconclusionscanbedrawnatthistimeastohowandwhythebloodisthere.

Whatquestions,ifany,areraisedbythispieceofevidence?

IfMrs.Leewasbehindthegunwhenitwasfired,whatmoreevidencecanbegatheredto
formulateacaseagainsther?Also,whatarethemotivesofthiscrime?Whyisthereasingle
dropofMrs.Leesbloodonhershirtandhowdiditgetthere?

AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
Date:42314
CSIName:MagicNick
Crime#:1
TypeofEvidence:BloodTyping
DateEvidenceCollected:42314
LocationEvidenceCollected:TheroomofScottHendersonattheSpanishTrailsmotel(3141
MainAve).
Summaryofhowtheevidencewasprocessedandanalyzed:

Bloodtypingisusedtohelpeliminateorcategorizesuspectsinacrime.Thefunctionofbloodis
totransportsubstances(suchasnutrients,waste,heats,hormones,etc.)throughoutthebody.
BloodalsoaidsintheregulationsofpHlevels,bodytemperature,andhydrationaswellasthe
defenseofthebody.

Bloodismadeupofredandwhitebloodcells.Theentirecellingeneralcarriesplasma,afluid
containinghormones,clottingfactors,andnutrients.Redbloodcellstransportsoxygenand
carbondioxidewhilewhitebloodcellscombatforeigninvaders.

Aperson'sbloodtypeisdeterminedlargelybygenetics,anddoesnotchangethroughhisorher
lifetime.Humanbloodtypesarecategorizedbythepresenceorabsenceofproteinsinthecells.
Thecombinationoftheseproteinsdeterminesyourbloodtype.Themostcommonformofblood
typingistheuseoftheABObloodgroupingsystem.Thissystemseparatesthebloodtypesof
humansintofourcategories:A,B,ABorO.(Seebelowformoreindepthexplanation.)

Whitebloodcellsactasantibodiesthatreacttospecificantigens.Anantibody,alsoknownasan
immunoglobulin,isalargeYshapeproteinproducedbyplasmacellsthatisusedbytheimmune
systemtoidentifyandneutralizeforeignobjectssuchasbacteriaandviruses.Antigensarea
toxinorotherforeignsubstancethatinducesanimmuneresponseinthebodytoaspecific
antibody.Animmuneresponseisthereactionofthecellsandfluidsofthebodytothepresence
ofasubstancethatisnotrecognizedasaconstituentofthebodyitself.

Humanbloodincludesover100differentantigens,whichcouldbeimpracticaland
timeconsumingtotestforeachantigenduringthealreadycomplicatedprocessofcrime
solution.ForensicserologistsinsteadincorporatetheABOsystem,whichinvolvesexamining
thesurfaceoftheredbloodcellsfortwoantigensknownasAandB,withbloodtypebeing
namedafterthetypeofantigensitcontains,includingA,B,ABandO.Thebasicfoundationof
serologystatesthatforeveryantigen,aspecificantibodyisinexistence.Theprocessofroutine
bloodtypingincludestheutilizationoftwoantigens:AorB.Adropletoftheseantigensinto
samplesofbloodproducesanagglutinatedeffect.Agglutinationistheclumpingofbloodcells,
oftenleadingtotheburstingofbloodvessels.

Theresultsareasfollows:
BloodtypeAagglutinatedbyantigenA
AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
BloodtypeBagglutinatedbyantigenB
BloodtypeABagglutinatedbybothantigenAandB
BloodtypeOagglutinatedbyneitherantigenAorB

Bloodtypes,initsmostbasicforms,canhelptocategorizeapersonbytheirdescent.For
example,BloodtypeOiscommonamongNativeAmericansandLatinAmericans,whiletypeA
isseenmostofteninCaucasiansandpersonsofEuropeanorigin.TypeBisseencommonly
amongAfricanAmericansandABismostfrequentinJapaneseindividuals.Thissimpletypeof
classificationcandrasticallynarrowdownalistofpotentialsuspectsorvictimidentification.

BloodtypingtakestheclassificationevenfurtherwiththeRhsystem,developedin1940byKarl
Landsteiner,whichisfarmorecomplicatedthantheABOsystemwitharound30combinations
possible,andistypicallyexpressedaseitherpositiveornegative(e.g.,AB,O+).TheRhfactoris
foundonthecoveringofredbloodcells.UsinganantibodysolutiontotheRhprotein,thesame
conceptisused,wherebloodclumpingdeterminestheabsence/presenceofthisprotein,
bringingtolightthefinerbloodgroups,whichinclude:A+,A,B+,B,AB+,AB,O+andO.The
ABOsystemalsoincorporatessubgrouping,usingextractsfromplantsandseedsthatcreate
antigensthatclotbloodtypesevenmoreselectively,suchasO1,A1,AB2,andsoon.

Bloodtypingcanalsobeappliedtobloodtransfusions,tomakesurethebodydoesntrejecta
bloodsample.Forexample,ifyougaveatypeApersonA+blood,becausethebloodtypeA
containsRhantigens,itwouldrejecttheA+transfusion.However,ifanAB+individualwereto
receiveanOtransfusion,thebodywouldacceptthebloodbecauseOistheuniversaldonor
bloodtypeandAB+doesnthaveRhantigens.

Inthecollectionofbiologicalevidencefromcrimescenes,wetbloodofferssignificantlymore
testabilitythandriedblood,andbloodbeginstodryafterfiveminutesofairexposure.Thisis
especiallyrelevantinthetestingfordrugsoralcohol.Thetestingofbloodforforensicpurposes
canalsoincludeDNAtesting,whichisamorecomplicatedprocessthatinvolvesseparating
piecesoftheDNAstrandswithintheblooditself.

Bloodtyping,whenconductedaccurately,isavaluablepieceofevidenceinthecriminaljustice
process,helpingtopinpointindividualsandtheirrelationtothecrime.

Whatconclusionscanbedrawnfromthispieceofevidence?

OnlytwobloodtypeswerefoundintheapartmentofScottHenderson,OandO+.TheO+blood
wasfoundaroundthefaucetofthebathroomsink.TheObloodwaslocatedonthelipofthe
trashcan.BothScottHendersonandAaronLeesharethebloodtypeO+,whichmeansthatthe
bloodonthesinkiseitherMr.LeesorMr.Hendersons.ThetypeObloodfoundonthetrash
canisirrelevantinconjunctionwiththisparticularmurderbecausethevictimhasO+blood.

Whatquestions,ifany,areraisedbythispieceofevidence?
AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm

IstheO+bloodfoundonthesinkMr.LeesorMr.HendersonsDNAtestingshouldyield
clarifyingresults?

AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
Date:42514
CSIName:MagicNick
Crime#:1
TypeofEvidence:Toxicology
DateEvidenceCollected:41914
LocationEvidenceCollected:BodyofthedeceasedAaronLeeat(3209West6thAve#4)
Summaryofhowtheevidencewasprocessedandanalyzed:

Toxicologicanalysisisappliedanalyticalchemistry.Therearemanybranchesoftoxicology,
suchas:regulatory(consumerhealth&safety),occupational(workerhealth&safety),and
forensic(crimeinvestigation)toxicology.Moderntoxicologicanalysisdependsuponscreening
andconfirmatorytests.Screeningtestsaretypicallyperformedwithcommercialkitsthatcontain
antibodiesdirectedtowardcommondrugsofabuse.Ifthisscreeningtestisnegative,thenthe
decedentisusuallyconsiderednegativeforanintoxicatingsubstance.Ifthescreeningtestis
positive,thenthatpositiveresultmustbeconfirmed,typicallywithgaschromatographymass
spectrometry(GC/MS).

GC/MSanalysisallowsseparationofcompoundsbasedontheirretentiontimewithina
chromatographycolumnandidentificationofeachcompoundbythecharacteristicfragments
intowhichagivenchemicalisbrokenfollowingionizationofthecompound.Overtheyears,
technologicadvancesinelectronicsanddetectorshaveallowedGC/MStodetecteversmaller
concentrationsofcompounds,ashastheadditionofotheranalyticaltechniques,suchasliquid
chromatography.

Ingeneral,screeningtestscanbeperformedquickly,buttheyprovideonlyaqualitativeresult
(e.g.,,asubstanceisorisnotpresent).Confirmatorytestingusuallytakeslonger,butitprovides
anactualconcentrationofthesubstanceinthebodyfluidanalyzed.

Fromamedicalpointofview,collectingandretainingspecimensforpotentialtoxicologic
analysisisalwaysappropriateineveryautopsythatisundertakentodeterminethecauseofa
person'sdeath.Multiplesamplesshouldbecollectedbecausesomedrugs,oncepresentinthe
system,maybealteredbythebodysnaturalprocessesorredistributedafterdeath,resultingin
aninaccurateresult.Thoroughspecimencollectionispossibleinexaminationsmandatedby
law,buthospitalautopsiesareauthorizedbythepermissionofthedecedent'snextofkin.

Bloodisobtainedfromaperipheralvesselfortoxicologicanalysis,astheconcentrationof
compoundsinbloodfromtheheartmaybealteredafterdeathbyredistributionofbloodfromthe
lungsorliver.Sourcesclaimthatbloodfromafemoraloriliacveinisleastsusceptibleto
contaminationfromtheliverwhentheveinisfirstobstructedbyatieorclamp,butothersreport
thatligation(closing)oftheveinhasnosignificanteffectonthebloodsample.Theworst
mistake,ofcourse,istohavenosampleatall.

AHSCrimeLab
EvidenceLogForm
Whenavailable,urineorocular(eye)fluidshouldbeobtainedfromeveryautopsybecausethey
areideallysuitedforrapidscreeningassays.Vitreousfluidcanbescreenedfordrugsand
ethanolascancerebrospinalfluidandbile.Dependingonthecase,vitreousfluidmaybestored
inaredtoptube(ifanalysisforelectrolytesisbeingconsidered)oragraytoptube(ifdrug
screeningmaybeperformed).Thetubetopcolorcorrespondstothetypeoftestbeing
conductedonthesample.Manymedicalexaminerofficesalsoroutinelyretainliver,brain,bile,
andgastriccontentsfortoxicologicanalysisifneeded.Splenictissueandskeletalmusclemay
beusedindecomposedbodiesaswell.

Subduralhematomas(acollectionofbloodonthesurfaceofthebrain)shouldbesampledif
present.Theymaycontaindrugsoralcoholsthathavesincebeenmetabolizedintheperipheral
blood.

Ifanindividualwasevaluatedatahospitalbeforedeath,thentheylikelyhadblooddrawnfor
tests.Thisperimortembloodisaprecious,irreplaceableresourcefortoxicologicanalysisand
shouldberoutinelyobtainedaspartofthedeathinvestigation.Bloodobtainedatthehospital
wouldnotbesubjecttopostmortemredistributionthewaythatbloodobtainedatautopsyis.
Hospitalpathologylaboratoriesholdbloodonlyforseveraldays,sorequestingthatthelaboratory
holdthesampleassoonasinvestigationofthedeathbeginsisimportant.Asampleofblood
mayberetainedinthebloodbanklongerthanelsewhereinthelaboratory.

Thebraincanbeespeciallyusefulfortoxicologicanalysisbecausethisorganislightlyaffected
bypostmortemredistributionofdrugs.Furthermore,thebrain,whichisfattyandsequestered
bothbyitsanatomiclocationandbythebloodbrainbarrier,canharboradruglongerthanother
bodysystems.

Thus,thebrainmightbetheonlypositivesourceforcocaineinacaseinwhicha
pathologistsuspectstheabuseofadruginayoungperson,whohasdiedfromahypertensive
bleedinthebasalganglia(hairanalysiscanalsobeusedinthesamesortofwayasbrain
analysis).Thebraincanalsobeusedformolecularanalysisincasesofexciteddelirium(a
conditionthatmanifestsasacombinationofdelirium,psychomotoragitation,anxiety,
hallucinations,speechdisturbances,disorientation,violentandbizarrebehavior,insensitivityto
pain,elevatedbodytemperatureandsuperhumanstrength).

Whatconclusionscanbedrawnfromthispieceofevidence?

Thevictim,AaronLee,testedpositivefortheopioidoxycodoneat1150ng/mL.Thesafe
therapeuticrangeforoxycodoneis10100ng/mL.Duetotheexcesslevelofopioidspresent,the
victimhadtohavebeenpassedoutwhenhewaskilled.Also,becausethelevelsarefarbeyond
theclinicallysafeamount,itissafetoassumethatthevictimwaspurposefullydrugged.

Whatquestions,ifany,areraisedbythispieceofevidence?

DidthesonorthewifedrugAaronLee?Whatweretheirmotives?

AHSCrimeLab