Injury Documentation and Evidence Handling Flashcards
7 cards from real ABFM practice questions. Tap to flip, then mark Knew It or Still Learning — missed cards come back until you master them.
Read the first 7 Injury Documentation and Evidence Handling flashcards as text
A victim presents with a wound showing a central puncture surrounded by a stellate (star-shaped) laceration. This pattern is MOST consistent with:
Answer: Contact or near-contact gunshot wound where gas expansion tears the skin
At contact or near-contact range, propellant gases enter the wound before the bullet exits and expand explosively, tearing the overlying skin into a stellate pattern.
Which of the following BEST describes the medicolegal significance of rigor mortis in injury documentation?
Answer: It helps estimate postmortem interval to contextualize timing of injuries
Rigor mortis onset and resolution follow a predictable time course, providing a rough estimate of postmortem interval that helps determine whether injuries were ante- or post-mortem.
A forensic examiner collecting fingernail scrapings from an assault victim should use which collection tool to minimize evidence loss?
Answer: Sterile wooden toothpick or orange stick per nail, with separate packaging
A sterile wooden tool (toothpick or orange stick) minimizes metal contamination and collecting each nail separately prevents cross-contamination between digits.
In forensic documentation, the term 'incised wound' refers to a wound created by:
Answer: A sharp-edged instrument where the length exceeds the depth
An incised wound (slash or cut) is produced by a sharp edge where the wound length on the surface is greater than its depth, contrasting with a stab wound.
Which documentation tool is considered the gold standard for preserving three-dimensional wound geometry and surface texture for court presentation?
Answer: Three-dimensional photogrammetry or structured-light scanning
Three-dimensional photogrammetry and structured-light scanning capture precise surface geometry of wounds, enabling accurate measurements and court-admissible 3D models.
When a forensic examiner identifies a potential firearm trajectory through a body, the CORRECT documentation sequence is:
Answer: Photograph the external wound, document anatomical trajectory, collect swabs before probing
External wounds must be photographed and documented in situ before any manipulation; probing risks altering tissue and introducing artifact into the wound tract.
Under what circumstance is it appropriate for a forensic examiner to alter or redact their contemporaneous notes before submitting a final report?
Answer: Never — contemporaneous notes must be preserved unchanged and provided as written
Contemporaneous notes are a legal record; altering them constitutes evidence tampering, and corrections must be made as addenda or errata in the final report, not by changing original notes.