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Associate
professor Tumanskaya L.M.
GENERAL QUESTIONS OF FORENSIC
MEDICINE
Forensic or legal medicine deals with the application of medical
knowledge to aid in the administration of justice. It is used by the legal
authorities for the solution of legal problems. Some examples are: applying
the medical knowledge in deciding cases of injuries, asphyxial deaths,
sexual offences, infant deaths, poisoning, etc. In short it deals with medical
aspects of law.
Medical jurisprudence (juris = law; prudentia = knowledge) deals
with legal responsibilities of the physician with particular reference to
those arising from physician-patient relationship, such as medical
negligence cases, consent, rights and duties of doctors, serious professional
misconduct, medical ethics, etc. In short, it deals with legal aspects of
practice of medicine.
Medical ethics deals with the moral principles which guide members
of the medical profession in their dealings with each other, their patients
and the State.
Medical etiquette deals with the conventional laws of courtesy
observed between members of the medical profession.
Forensic medicine deals almost entirely with crimes against the
person, in which medical examination and evidence are required.
Forensic medicine is mostly an exercise of commonsense, combined with
the application of knowledge and experience, already acquired in the study
of other branches of medicine, surgery, obstetrics, etc. Its aim is to find out
the truth.
Its particular field of activity is judicial investigation, both civil
and criminal.
In all cases of crime involving the person, e.g. homicide, suicide,
assault, sexual offences, traffic accidents, poisoning, etc., the help of the
medical practitioner is sought by the police. In all such cases, the doctor
will be required to appear as an expert witness in a Court of law.
In cases of sudden death, the authorities will depend mostly or
completely on medical evidence in establishing the cause of death, and in
case of accident to determine blame.
The Court has no special medical knowledge. It relies on his witness
for an opinion and expects him to assist it with his special knowledge and
experience. The medical evidence does not itself prove the case of
prosecution.
Other things being equal, the better the presentation of medical
evidence, the better is the administration of justice. The pathologist must be
guarded in what he says, and how he says it.
The medical expert should be very careful when he is examining
living people. He should not encourage an accused person to talk about the
crime with which he is charged, or about the events that led to his arrest. If,
during a medical examination, a person says anything that might
incriminate himself, it should be neither recorded nor repeated.
Three things are needed for success: 1) the power of observation, 2)
a wide range of exact knowledge, 3) the power of deduction.
A good command of language, clear presentation, and ability in
expressing a relatively firm opinion are necessary for the success of the
forensic pathologist. The forensic pathologist must be alert to where
evidence should be looked for, and how it should be interpreted.
Forensic medicine is not an exact science. Unexpected results are
produced due to biological variations. In every case, there is an element of
uncertainty, and absolute proof is a rarity in any medical problem. Doctors
should bear in mind the essential difference between probability and proof.
The medical witness should not be dogmatic about his opinion.
The doctor should be ready to defend every finding and conclusion
on the report on clinical and scientific grounds. He should be aware of
professional and scientific viewpoints which might differ from his, and
should be familiar with the latest scientific literature in relation to the
subject involved. For the purpose of illustrating and clarifying his
testimony, the medical expert may employ photographs, maps, diagrams,
charts, X-rays, skeletons, models, etc., when they are properly verified.
MEDICO-LEGAL AUTOPSY
Objects:
1) To find out the cause of death, whether natural or unnatural.
2) To find out the manner of death, whether accidental, suicidal or
homicidal.
3) To find out the time since death.
4) To establish identity when not known.
5) To collect evidence in order to identify the object causing death and
to identify the criminal.
6) In newborn infants to determine the question of live birth and
viability.