Pediatric Homicide: Medical Investigation

by Karen Griest (Editor)

Overview

Pediatric homicide investigations are clouded by a number of factors, not the least of which is a lack of straightforward resources. The cause of death in infants and children is often subtle and difficult to establish. Designed for quick access, Pediatric Homicide: Medical Investigation provides an invaluable resource for medical examiners, police, child abuse investigators, and attorneys charged with either making or ruling out the diagnosis of homicide.

Focusing on forensic pathology aspects, this book covers the causes of death which are most difficult to determine, including:

• head injury
• asphyxiation
• drowning
• abdominal trauma
• poisoning
• starvation and dehydration

With contributions by a team of expert pathologists, the book provides a scientific foundation for diagnosing homicide, discusses methods to determine the timing of injuries and death, and reviews the legal requirements for presenting evidence in court. More than 100 photographs enhance the text and clarify the source of injury in these difficult cases.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781420073003
Publisher:	Taylor & Francis
Publication date:	09/16/2009
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	6.40(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Dr. Karen Griest is the editor and a major contributor to The Pediatric Trauma and Forensic Newsletter, established in 1993. She has taught forensic medical investigation to police officers, criminal investigators, medical personnel, attorneys, and forensic professionals. She has also consulted on hundreds of child injury and death cases and has testified in state and federal courts throughout the United States.

Table of Contents

Intentional Head Injury in Infants and Young Children. Neonaticide. Intentional Suffocation in Infants and Young Children. Inflicted Fatal Thoracic and Abdominal Injuries in Infants and Young Children. Child Abuse by Drowning. Supporting Evidence in Physical Child Abuse. Intentional Starvation/Malnutrition and Dehydration in Children. Proving Pediatric Poisoning in the Courtroom. Timing of Death and Injuries in Infants and Young Children. Index.

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

I found this an interesting and easy book to read and it has provided me with a source of references for further reading, some of which have subsequently proven useful. The book aims to provide a scientific basis for the diagnoses of inflicted injury and death in infants and young children, which I think it achieves, despite being a (reassuringly) compact text. I would certainly recommend this book to doctors involved in paediatric medicolegal work, particularly forensic and paediatric pathologists, but also to clinicians working in paediatric medicine or surgery.
—Dr Matt Lyall, Specialist Registrar in Forensic Pathology, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, writing in The Bulletin of the Royal College of Pathologists, October 2010, No. 152

I can heartily recommend this book to medical examiners, the police personnel of all levels, child abuse investigators, and attorneys charged with either making or ruling out the diagnosis of homicide. I would imagine that it is going to be an invaluable resource for them.

—Anil Aggrawal's Internet Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology

Editorial Reviews

I found this an interesting and easy book to read and it has provided me with a source of references for further reading, some of which have subsequently proven useful. The book aims to provide a scientific basis for the diagnoses of inflicted injury and death in infants and young children, which I think it achieves, despite being a (reassuringly) compact text. I would certainly recommend this book to doctors involved in paediatric medicolegal work, particularly forensic and paediatric pathologists, but also to clinicians working in paediatric medicine or surgery.
—Dr Matt Lyall, Specialist Registrar in Forensic Pathology, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, writing in The Bulletin of the Royal College of Pathologists, October 2010, No. 152

I can heartily recommend this book to medical examiners, the police personnel of all levels, child abuse investigators, and attorneys charged with either making or ruling out the diagnosis of homicide. I would imagine that it is going to be an invaluable resource for them.

—Anil Aggrawal's Internet Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology

I found this an interesting and easy book to read and it has provided me with a source of references for further reading, some of which have subsequently proven useful. The book aims to provide a scientific basis for the diagnoses of inflicted injury and death in infants and young children, which I think it achieves, despite being a (reassuringly) compact text. I would certainly recommend this book to doctors involved in paediatric medicolegal work, particularly forensic and paediatric pathologists, but also to clinicians working in paediatric medicine or surgery.
—Dr Matt Lyall, Specialist Registrar in Forensic Pathology, Royal Liverpool University Hospital, writing in The Bulletin of the Royal College of Pathologists, October 2010, No. 152

I can heartily recommend this book to medical examiners, the police personnel of all levels, child abuse investigators, and attorneys charged with either making or ruling out the diagnosis of homicide. I would imagine that it is going to be an invaluable resource for them.

—Anil Aggrawal's Internet Journal of Forensic Medicine and Toxicology

From the Publisher