Use of special knowledge during the examination of the body found in the reservoir

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Use of special knowledge during the examination of the body found in the reservoir

Daria Dmitrivna Kochkina

Cadet of the 3rd year Dnipropetrovsk State University of Internal Affairs Supervisor:

Olga Albertivna Drobot

Chief forensic expert of the department handwriting studies, technical study of documents and accounting of the laboratory forensic types of research Dnipropetrovsk Scientific-research expert forensic centerof the Ministry of Internal Affairs

As evidenced by forensic and expert practice, criminals often stage a murder as an accident or suicide, imitating the drowning of a person. In this way, they try to destroy the traces, as well as misinform the bodies of the pre-trial investigation about the causes of death. Often drowning is also a direct way of causing death to another person.

In the context of this problem, it should be noted that a characteristic feature of the inspection of such a scene as a reservoir is the leaving of a small number of traces of a criminal offense in connection with the mobility of water (movement of a corpse, the destructive effect of water and the natural environment (flora, fauna)), weather conditions and unintentional actions of third parties.

When investigating a body in a body of water, the right tactics and adherence to a certain list of rules are important for the investigation of crimes related to the loss of another person's life. The optimal approach is to follow the standard procedures and protocols that have been developed for cadaver examination.

In particular, when examining a corpse that was discovered in a reservoir, special attention should be paid to the following points:

protection of the corpse from additional damage. That is, when removing a corpse from the water, it is necessary to avoid any additional damage to the body. This procedure should be carried out carefully and with some safety precautions;

establishing the causes of death is the main stage of the corpse investigation. In cases of inspection of corpses found in a reservoir, it should be established whether it was death due to drowning or for other reasons, since the versions of a person entering the reservoir are different (suicide, drowning, death due to illness, and others).

Let's consider drowning as one of the versions of the corpse being in the reservoir. In general, drowning is considered to be asphyxiation, during which the mechanical factor is any liquid (usually water, but it can also be gasoline, paint, and other liquids) that enters a person's respiratory tract [1]. The place of drowning can be both natural reservoirs (more common cases), and barrels, bathtubs, wells, cisterns, and the like. This type of violent death can last from three to five or more minutes, which depends on many factors. In some cases, it is very difficult to establish the causes of death, since biological death can occur not from asphyxiation, but, for example, from a sharp immersion in a cold liquid or from a hemorrhage in the brain, which makes it impossible to leave traces of struggle on the human body and, in turn, complicates the process of investigation and presentation of investigative versions [2].

The cause of death is determined by a medical examiner. The circumstances of death during the inspection of the scene and the examination of the corpse, in particular, must be established by the investigator, and in this he must be assisted by the operative units. These circumstances with the corresponding versions are established during the site inspection of the territory adjacent to the reservoir, during the external inspection of the corpse, its bed, inspection of the reservoir and its shores.

When examining a corpse found in a reservoir, first of all, it is necessary to state the facts that confirm its presence in a certain liquid, for example, wet hair, wet clothes, the presence of silt, algae, sand and the like on the hair or clothes. In addition, when describing the clothes on the corpse, such aspects as its seasonality, material, color and moisture level of the fabric, contents of pockets, damage to the clothes, the presence of extraneous layering on it are examined (if necessary, they can be selected and sent for examination). Provided that the corpse was not in a reservoir, water samples should be taken [4, с. 222].

An important aspect is the examination of the corpse for the presence of bodily injuries, paying attention to the presence of foreign objects on it, such as a rope around the neck, arms or legs, a heavy object tied to the body. At this stage, the origin of such injuries on the corpse is also established, that is, whether they were inflicted during life or posthumously. At the same time, it should be taken into account that some physical injuries in the form of traces of struggle or dragging may occur postmortem as a result of the presence of stones, snags and other objects in the water, movement of the corpse by the current, from impacts on the surface of the bottom, as a result of the use of resuscitation measures, as well as during extraction a corpse from the water.

Also, an important issue when examining a corpse found in a reservoir is the determination of the time period of its stay in the water, which is carried out with the participation of a forensic medical expert, and with the help of research and detection of signs of maceration on the hands and feet of the body. For example, during the stay of the corpse in the water for two to three hours, the epidermis of the palmar and plantar surfaces of the nail phalanges of the fingers swells, turns pale and becomes wrinkled, if the time period increases to about two to three weeks, the epidermis separates on the above-mentioned areas of the body together with the nails from derms, i.e. "death gloves" [5].

The survey of the reservoir must be carried out over the surface of the entire water from one shore to the other, as physical evidence can be moved due to wind and current, which must also be taken into account. An important tactical component of conducting such a procedural action is the study and consideration of the features of the surface of the bottom of the corresponding reservoir, which is important in establishing the nature of the origin of certain bodily injuries on the corpse, and for the implementation of which relevant specialists (divers) are involved [3, с. 110]. drowning accident suicide

Thus, the greatest effectiveness during the review is achieved only if the investigator, as the senior investigator of the investigative team, possesses special knowledge and skills and skillfully applies them in his practical activities. Therefore, all investigators should be familiar with the specifics of forensic tactics for conducting an examination of a corpse found in a reservoir in order to achieve the goal of conducting the appropriate investigative (search) action, namely: identifying and recording information about the circumstances of the murder.

References

Управління охорони здоров'я. Перша допомога при утопленні. URL: http://www.medycyna.sm.gov.ua/index.php/uk/1178-ytp (дата звернення: 18.04.2023).

Несен О.О., Нагайник Т.Г., Самодін А.В., Чорний М.В. Судова медицина та

психіатрія: мультимедійний навчальний посібник: НАВС. Київ, 2021.

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Самодін А.В., Антощук А.О. Сучасні тенденції науково-технічного забезпечення огляду місця події: Knowledge, Education, Law, Management, № 3 (19). 2017. С. 110.

Кравчук П. Ю. Особливості слідчого огляду у випадку виявлення трупа у водоймі. Міжнародний юридичний вісник: актуальні проблеми сучасності (теорія та практика). 2018. Вип. 1-2. 220-227 с. С. 222.

Медичний довідник «Судова медицина». Ознаки перебування трупа у воді. URL: https://medical-enc.com.ua/utoplenie-4.htm(дата звернення: 18.04.2023).

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