Page 39 - CFDI Guide

Certified Forensic Death Investigator (CFDI) Program
Dean A. Beers, CLI, CCDI, CFDI-Expert and Karen S. Beers, BSW, CCDI, CFDI-SME
Associates in Forensic Investigations, LLC
Criminal Defense Investigation Training Council (CDITC) Accredited

Reviewing autopsy reports at the local coroner or medical examiner offices is an excellent resource for
learning the different types of injuries, how inflicted, and how they may be contributory or non-

contributory to death. Injuries, particularly pattern injuries or the location of injuries, may assist in
determining where a person was positioned in a vehicle, if they were restrained by a seatbelt, wearing a

helmet, how they were moving when crossing a street and other helpful indicators in investigating a death

or even serious bodily injury case. A vehicle occupant injured by shards of glass, indicated by multiple
‘dicing’ incisions of the skin caused by the shards of glass, will be injured on the side adjacent to the source
– passenger or driver. A restrained person will have a pattern injury (or transfer of fibers) from the

seatbelt that corresponds with the seated position – from right shoulder to left hip (passenger/side) or left

shoulder to right hip (driver/side).

❖ Clothing
The clothing of the decedent, or victim, is important evidence for a variety of reasons. This includes

corresponding injuries, trace evidence and possibly identification.
o Corresponding injuries – if the decedent is clothed and has a blunt force or sharp force injury, there

will be a corresponding defect in the clothing if the instrument causing injury is capable of a laceration
or incision. This may not include internal injuries. Incised or puncture wounds, including knife or

gunshot wounds, will have a corresponding defect. This defect may have indicators of the type of
weapon (single or double –edged knife) or distance (gunshot powder pattern detectable using

Alternate Light Source). These are only if the clothing was covering the injury at the time of the injury.
As an example, if a person’s clothing has moved or was not where the stabbing occurred, that clothing

will not have defects and will assist with showing motion and a dynamic event.
o Evidence – there may be a transfer of hair, fibers, blood or other material from the assailant to the

victim or evidence that assists with identification of the weapon or instrument causing injury.

❖ Trace Evidence
Trace evidence is an often used phrase that typically refers to small or minute evidence that may link:

person to a crime or incident scene, victim to a crime or incident scene, instrument to the assailant and/or
victim, and the instrument to the crime or incident scene. Trace evidence may be hair, fibers, blood, tool

marks, ballistics, fingerprints and other forms of DNA (saliva, semen, etc.). Trace evidence is based on
Locard’s Theory, as previously detailed. Moreover, trace evidence is direct only in that it places two

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