Essay about Forensic Entomology

Forensic scientists can identify the body through dental records, DNA samples or if the fingers are intact, fingerprints.

They of course had everything they found on her body, which was the twine, the dog collar, the cable ties, and the scarf. According to an interview with the lead detective, Chris Gregg of the West Yorkshire police department, of the case on the show A Town and Country Murder, once the body was brought to the morgue they brought a forensic scientist who was able to examine a fiber found on her back. The detective also mentions that they brought in a Entomologist, an entomologist is a person who is an expert in Entomology “which is the study of insects” (Google), who looked at the bugs and eggs on her body and they also brought in the Forensic Science Service, the FSS. Peter Grant was the one who mainly worked with them; he was a major crime specialist. The last person they brought in was pathologist (“a branch of medicine used for legal purposes and concerned with determining cause of death, examination of injuries due to crime and negligence, and examination of tissue samples relevant to crimes; also called forensic science” (Dictionary.com).)focused in palynology, “palynology is the study of pollen grains and other spores, especially as found in archaeological or geological deposits”(Google). According to law.com forsensic pathology is: a branch of pathologythat is primarily concerned with determining the cause of death through the examination of a corpse. The pathologist who worked on the case was Patricia Wiltshire.

While the thought of a giant farm full of decaying bodies may seem gruesome and terrifying, everyday it helps us learn new things about forensics. Firstly, The Body Farm was made known to the public when famous crime novelist Patricia Cornwell published a book with the same name about the farm (“Dead” 2). This book gave The Body Farm the recognition in more of a public eye. Patricia even states in the foreword of The Body Farm of how she came to learn about the farm and Dr. Bass, and how it changed her life. The Body Farm is an outdoor classroom designed to teach forensic anthropology students, and professionals in the legal and medical field, how the body decays and how the world plays a role in it (Drinnen 1). This farm not only benefits one type of science, but many all combined together, which is what forensics is made of. Police also use this to test and find how a body died in order to solve a case. The background behind the Body Farm is vast and important to our knowledge of the human body, whether we realize it or

After that they “analyze bones to determine the victim's biological profile” as it is said in “What is Forensic Anthropology” by R.U. Steinberg.

A dead body that has been exposed to the elements such as water, air, temperature and weather, will decompose quicly and will attract much more insect activity. Colder temperatures slow decomposition, while warmer temperatures rather speed up the process of decomposition. If a body is available to insects, than the insects alone can reduce a fully fleshed body to skeletal bones withing a two week time period. Key factors to consider are: temperature, availability of oxygen, cause of death, trauma, humidity or wetness, rainfall, body size and weight, clothing, the surface where the body was resting, and the foods/objects inside the digestive tract of the

In the Casey Anthony case Jeff Ashton who is a former state attorney in Orange county Florida, and also the first prosecutor in the United States to get a conviction based on DNA decided to use a new Forensic method in the Anthony case. The smell of death would be the allowed as evidence for the first time ever. In the trunk of Anthony’s car was a stained area on the carpet and an odor. Ashton stated that the smell was that of human decomposition. That piece of carpet was removed, sealed and sent to Dr. Vass, a forensic anthropologist at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. Dr. Voss has been studying human decomposition at the University of Tennessee’s “body farm”.

Dallin Ashby, a graduated UF entomology master's student, normally spits crickets with his 11-year-old son Myles Ashby when they participate in BugFest. But this year, his 8-year-old daughter, Eliza Ashby, said she was going to try too.

The physical appearance preservation of the bog bodies is normally in prime condition. Because of this condition it means that scientists and archaeologists are able to study the features of the body and conclude things like the development of physical evolution from the ancient body to bodies of modern society. They can also obtain information on the cause of death of the body by seeing things like, for example, the Tollund man, who had a rope around his neck that concluded he had been hung to death. And by concluding causes of death, it can also be seen if the body was of sacrificial or a ritual demonstrating what burial practices were in place.

After that to get even more precise and accurate information they take them to a forensic pathologist. A forensic pathologist performs autopsies on bodies to figure out the time they were killed, how long they have been deceased for, and how they died, or the cause of death. This is where the body farm comes in to play, to why there is a particular need for them. Because without a body farm it would be difficult to determine all these things about the human body after it is deceased and starting to decompose. Without accurate and a lot of research to show evidence and proof.

On December 11, 2008 skeletal remains of a young child were found by an utility worker. By the time the worker had discovered the remains it had went through 5 stages of decomposition. The 1st stage starts when the person dies (Csanyi). The 1st stage consists of enzymes in dead body cells start breaking down tissues which is known as autolysis. While this is going on bacteria in the digestive track start to eat the intestines. The 1st stage is called the fresh stage which can last for 1-2 days, unless of course the body is in a hot and humid area (Csanyi). Also at this stage chemical released start to attract flies. The 2nd stage that the body went through is called the putrefaction or the bloated stage (Csanyi). As the internal bacteria form the intestines start to enter the rest of the body, it causes the body to fill with gasses and as this happens the body begins to swell. The smell that comes from this stage is what attracts egg laying insects most of which are blow flies (Csanyi).

Inside a morbid place was the living and the dead. The pathologist, a burly bearded bifocal wearing man, had scheduled cadaver 9252012 for autopsy that day. It was stored inside drawer F, one of twenty-one refrigerated cabinets. It is a grim place, the laboratory where these butcheries are conducted. Lingering in the air is the foul stench of death, the chemicals used to suppress the ghastly odor only intensifying it, rendering a fusion of ammonia, chlorine and rot. Positioned in the center of the room is a cadaver dissection table, a polished slab of steel surrounded by troughs to catch the oozing blood and bodily fluids that escape the corpses during the process. Detective Ron Burlingame of the Lake City, Florida Police Department, requested

(Wood, 2014) The role of a forensic Anthropologist is very important in any death investigation, since forensic anthropologist understand the different physical properties of skeleton, demonstrating a crucial value to the field of forensic science. (Stanojevich, 2012) Standard work of forensic

Roach then goes into the history of the cadaver in the medical field. Many civilizations used dead bodies to learn about human anatomy and practice medical procedures. England in the 17th and 18th century used cadavers so often, that they had a shortage of them, leading to people snatching bodies from graves to sell to medical schools and anatomists.

Human death has once held more mystery than facts. In pursuit of prolonging life countless knowledgeable individuals attempted to define patterns of work of our body as well as find cure to common illnesses and injuries. Thus in certain way or form, any civilized society would amass experience that translated into early medicine. Simultaneously, the same society would establish rules and regulations that helped govern population. Combination of these two fields led to development of forensics.

Bite marks are found many times in sexual assaults and can be matched back to the individual who did the biting. The Bit marks