ABMDI Scene Assessment and Death Investigation Procedures 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: Which of the following deaths would most likely require medical examiner jurisdiction in most US states?
- Death of an elderly patient under hospice care
- Sudden unexpected death of a healthy 35-year-old (Correct answer)
- Death from a known terminal illness with physician present
- Death in a long-term care facility after a month-long illness
Correct answer: Sudden unexpected death of a healthy 35-year-old
Sudden unexpected deaths in otherwise healthy individuals typically fall under medical examiner jurisdiction because the cause is unknown and must be determined.
Question 2: What is a 'medicolegal death investigation' distinguished by compared to a standard death pronouncement?
- It is performed only by physicians
- It involves systematic investigation to determine cause and manner of death for legal purposes (Correct answer)
- It requires a family consent form
- It is conducted exclusively at hospitals
Correct answer: It involves systematic investigation to determine cause and manner of death for legal purposes
A medicolegal death investigation is a systematic, legally authorized process to determine cause and manner of death, extending beyond simple death pronouncement.
Question 3: When assessing lividity at a death scene, what condition would suggest the body has been moved after death?
- Lividity present on the posterior of the body consistent with supine position found
- Fixed lividity on the anterior while the body is found face up (Correct answer)
- Lividity that blanches when pressed in early stages
- Lividity distributed evenly over the entire body surface
Correct answer: Fixed lividity on the anterior while the body is found face up
Fixed lividity on the anterior surface while the body is found face up indicates the body was placed in a different position after livor mortis became fixed.
Question 4: Which of the following best describes 'manner of death' as used in medicolegal investigations in the US?
- The specific disease or injury that caused death
- The physiological mechanism by which life ended
- The classification of how death came about: natural, accident, suicide, homicide, or undetermined (Correct answer)
- The time elapsed between injury and death
Correct answer: The classification of how death came about: natural, accident, suicide, homicide, or undetermined
Manner of death is the NASH classification (Natural, Accident, Suicide, Homicide, Undetermined) describing the circumstances that led to death.
Question 5: A medicolegal death investigator should obtain a complete medical history primarily from which source at the scene?
- Only from the attending physician
- From multiple sources including family, medications, medical records, and scene evidence (Correct answer)
- From law enforcement records only
- From the decedent's employer
Correct answer: From multiple sources including family, medications, medical records, and scene evidence
A thorough medical history requires multiple sources including family members, prescription medications found at scene, and available medical records.
Question 6: What does the term 'postmortem interval' (PMI) refer to in medicolegal death investigation?
- The time between the 911 call and investigator arrival
- The estimated time elapsed between death and discovery or examination of the body (Correct answer)
- The time needed to complete an autopsy
- The interval between injury and death
Correct answer: The estimated time elapsed between death and discovery or examination of the body
Postmortem interval is the estimated elapsed time between the moment of death and the examination or discovery of the body.
ABMDI Scene Assessment and Death Investigation Procedures 3
Which of the following deaths would most likely require medical examiner jurisdiction in most US states?