Archiwum medycyny sadowej i kryminologii最新文献

The aim of the study was to analyze the causes and circumstances of death among child victims of traffic accidents up to 17 years of age, based on forensic autopsy results conducted between 2002 and 2021 at the Department of Forensic Medicine in Białystok. The analysis was conducted on a group of 123 child traffic accident victims, based on data from 8,241 autopsy reports, representing 1.49% of all forensic autopsies performed during the study period. Cases were examined with regard to the victims' sex, road activity, age, place of death, place of residence, season, day of the week, type of injuries sustained, cause of death, and blood alcohol content. The collected data were statistically processed according to established classification criteria and presented in both descriptive and graphical form. The analysis of 123 autopsy reports revealed that the average age of the victims was 11.7 years, and 65.85% of the deceased were male. The highest mortality rate was observed among passengers, who accounted for 44.72% of all deaths, followed by pedestrians, representing 31.7% of cases. Fatal traffic accidents involving children occurred most frequently in August and September (each accounting for 17% of total deaths), and on Sundays (23% of cases). Sixty-six percent of the victims died at the scene of the accident, with fatal cranio-cerebral injuries identified as the leading cause of death in 85% of cases. A total of 10 deceased children aged 14 to 17 were found to have been under the influence of alcohol. The study results indicate the need for continued educational campaigns targeting children, parents, and drivers - particularly in relation to risky behaviors on the road, such as underage driving or careless movement on foot or by bicycle. Strengthening legal regulations and improving road infrastructure, especially in urban areas where the risk of accidents is higher, may also prove beneficial.

The aim of this study was to determine the incidence of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) in the expert material of the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Jagiellonian University Medical College in Kraków between 2000 and 2024, and to analyze the most common causes of death in children under one year of age. Materials and Methods: Autopsy reports from the Department of Forensic Medicine at the Jagiellonian University Medical College in Kraków from the years 2000 to 2024 were analyzed. Information was collected and examined for 219 children aged 0-12 months, including demographic data - age and sex, external and internal examination findings, and the location where the bodies were discovered. The data were supplemented using available medical records, family interviews, or police notes from the scene. Additional analyses included toxicological, histopathological, and imaging studies, as well as photographic documentation, when available. Results and Conclusions: Fourteen cases were classified as Sudden Unexpected Infant Death (SUID), accounting for 6.4% of the 219 autopsies performed. During the study period, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) was diagnosed in only seven cases, representing 3.2% of the examined group - two among newborns and five among infants. All seven SIDS cases occurred in children under four months of age. The most common cause of death in children under one year of age was systemic infection, identified in 104 cases. In 51 cases, a diagnosis of pneumonia was made, and in 9 cases - pneumonia accompanied by myocarditis. Of all autopsies performed on children under one year of age, 77 (35.2%) concerned newborns.

This study evaluates the application of infrared (IR) photography in forensic medicine for detecting latent evidence, including bite marks, bloodstains, bruises, and tattoos. We conducted a literature review and included our own preliminary observations as illustrative examples. The review and case studies explored infrared imaging techniques, camera systems, and filter types. Key parameters such as wavelength and contrast enhancement were analyzed. The results demonstrated that infrared (IR) photography effectively revealed bloodstains beneath soot or paint, bruises on dark skin, and concealed tattoos. It also facilitated the detection of tire impressions and gunshot residues. While infrared (IR) imaging proved useful for identifying bloodstains on textiles, its effectiveness was limited on non-porous surfaces and in the presence of red pigments. Infrared (IR) photography remains a cost-effective tool in forensic investigations, although standardized protocols are still lacking. Future research should investigate advanced imaging techniques, such as high dynamic range (HDR) and near-infrared (NIR) photography, to further enhance forensic applications.

The article presents the results of forensic medical examinations of human remains discovered in 2021 in a forest near the village of Wapiennik (Lipie commune). Preliminary findings indicated that they may have belonged to Józef Kiedos, alias "Kulawy," who was shot by German soldiers in September 1939. Anthropological analysis revealed that the individual was a man over the age of 50, approximately 171-172 cm tall, with visible pathological changes in the right femur, which could correspond to witness accounts of limping. No gunshot wounds were identified, and the present bone damage was postmortem in nature; however, this does not exclude a traumatic cause of death. Based on the collected evidence and historical context, it was concluded that the remains belonged to Józef Kiedos, a civilian murdered in the early days of World War II. The study highlights the role of forensic medicine in clarifying cases of historical significance.

Crimes involving dangerous tools - particularly knives - have long been a significant focus of law enforcement agencies, public opinion, the media, and criminal law doctrine. However, the Polish legal system lacks a unified legislative approach that would effectively regulate both the possession and use of knives in public spaces. Existing legal provisions remain scattered across the Code of Misdemeanors, the Penal Code, and the Act on Weapons and Ammunition, which creates challenges in both the application of the law and the effectiveness of preventive measures. The aim of this study is to provide an interdisciplinary analysis of knife-related crime in Poland, encompassing both criminal law and forensic perspectives. It includes an assessment of the effectiveness of current regulations and highlights the role of bloodstain pattern analysis (BPA) in reconstructing events. The research draws on legal acts, academic literature, statistical data from the National Police Headquarters, and training and certification practices of experts at both national and international levels. The findings indicate that a reductionist approach prevails in Poland, where blood traces are primarily treated as carriers of biological material for DNA analysis, while their reconstructive potential is largely overlooked.

Post-aggressive suicide refers to a phenomenon that integrates the act of homicide with the subsequent suicide of the perpetrator. This pattern most commonly arises within the context of close emotional relationships, such as intimate partnerships or familial bonds. A defining feature of such cases is the motivational and causal continuity between the two phases - the suicide is typically a premeditated extension of the initial act of violence. This paper presents a case involving a male subject who, in a state of acute emotional agitation triggered by the breakdown of a relationship, inflicted multiple injuries to his partner's head, face, neck and shoulder, and subsequently died by suicide. The presence of similar wounds on both the victim and the perpetrator suggests a highly violent episode, marked by elements of both interpersonal aggression and self-inflicted harm. The psychological profile of the perpetrator indicates prolonged internal distress and maladaptive coping mechanisms in response to perceived rejection. This case study aims to contribute to the limited body of literature on post-aggressive suicide, a rare but clinically and forensically significant phenomenon wherein externalized violence is followed by self-directed fatality.

The aim of the study: The aim of the study was to accurately determine the incidence of white autopsies and to identify possible conditions responsible for such autopsies by means of analyzing confirmed causes of death in the same age group.

Material and methods: We searched autopsy reports from the Department of Forensic Medicine (Jagiellonian University, Medical College) from years 2009-2022 for cases of sudden death in the age group 2-40 years old. Exclusion criteria involved: death caused by trauma or other external factors, subject at an advanced stage of decomposition, in-hospital death.

Results: A review of 900 included cases yielded a total of 97 cases in which the post-mortem examinations did not disclose the cause of death, although only in 20 of those cases all diagnostic measures, including toxicology examination, were used. The average annual incidence of these cases is ca. 7 p.a. We also analyzed the reported causes of death to identify such conditions which both occur relatively often and might not provide any morphological alterations in autopsy; such as: non-ethanol poisonings (143), death due to epileptic seizure, not caused by seizure-connected trauma or aspiration of gastric contents into the respiratory tract (38), myocarditis (37).

Conclusions: The incidence of white autopsies at our center appears to be higher than previously estimated, partly due to the fact that negative autopsies are often not supplemented with additional examinations (toxicology and histopathology). An analysis of confirmed causes of sudden death in the same age group allowed us to identify at least 3 fatal conditions which might leave no trace in autopsy and thus be responsible for at least some of the white autopsy cases. It seems recommendable to include targeted investigations designed to better detect those conditions (non-ethanol poisoning, sudden death in epilepsy, myocarditis) in an algorithm for proceeding in cases of autopsy failure.

Exhumation refers to the extraction of a body or human remains for the purpose of conducting forensic or medical examinations (e.g., to determine or confirm the cause of death), or for transferring the remains to another grave. Exhumations may also be performed under other circumstances and constitute one of the stages in beatification and canonization proceedings. In such cases, the provisions of the Code of Canon Law apply. Between 1989 and 2000, medical experts from the Department of Forensic Medicine and Forensic Toxicology in Katowice participated on three occasions in activities involving exhumation, canonical recognition of mortal remains, and the transfer of remains to new burial sites. This paper presents those cases, outlines the course of medical and judicial procedures, and discusses the legal and ecclesiastical aspects of beatification and canonization processes.

The study analyzed historical data relating to Professor Włodzimierz Jan Sieradzki, Head of the Department of Forensic Medicine at Lviv University, from 1898 to 1940. The analysis utilized documents from the Lviv Oblast State Archives, the Danylo Halytsky National Medical University in Lviv, and the archives of Ivan Franko State University in Lviv, as well as publications from journals from the 20th and 21st centuries. Sieradzki specialized in forensic medicine, biology, and criminal anthropology. His "Wachholz-Sieradzki test" for detecting carbon monoxide gained worldwide recognition. He documented his forensic findings in 31 articles and supervised four dissertations. From 1905, he headed the Institute of Forensic Medicine at Lviv University, conducting sanitary and police tanatopsis as a city prosecutor and forensic expert. Throughout his career, he held key positions: dean (1908-1909, 1919-1921), vice-dean (1909-1910, 1921-1922), part-time head of Pathological Anatomy and Experimental Pathology (1915), rector (1924-1925), and vice-rector (1926-1927). He co-founded and first edited the Lviv Medical Journal, collaborated with the Polish Medical Journal, chaired the Lviv Medical Society, and was involved in various forensic medicine associations. He also participated in the Galician Medical Society. For his services, he was awarded the Commander's Cross of the Order of Polonia Restituta and the Knight's Cross of the French Legion of Honor. In 1948, the Institute of Forensic Medicine at the Medical University of Wrocław was named after him, and plaques commemorating Sieradzki and other victims were placed at the execution sites in Lviv during the German occupation.