Biomedical Criminalistics and Medicolegal Death Investigation Systems

Vocabulary flashcards covering core terms, standards, roles, and legal frameworks in biomedical criminalistics and medicolegal death investigation systems.

Biomedical Criminalistics

A synthesis of multiple disciplines involved in answering questions of medical interest, most often associated with medicolegal death investigations, but also applicable to non-fatal crimes (such as physical or sexual assaults) and non-criminal matters like public health, estate settlements, and insurance claims.

ANSI/ASB Standard 125

The standard associated with medicolegal death investigation systems responsible for conducting death investigations and certifying the cause and manner of deaths in the United States and abroad.

Chief Medicolegal Officer

The medical examiner, coroner, justice of the peace, or other official who oversees the operation of a medicolegal death investigation office and/or system.

Coroner

An elected or appointed official whose duty is to oversee medicolegal death investigations, usually for a single county, and ensure certification of cause and manner of death based on local enabling statutes.

Medical Examiner

An appointed forensic pathologist whose duty is to oversee medicolegal death investigations, perform postmortem examinations, and certify cause and manner of death.

Forensic Pathologist

A physician who is board-certified in anatomic pathology or anatomic and clinical pathology, as well as forensic pathology.

Forensic Pathology

The practice of medicine applying principles of pathology to problems of potential legal, public health, or public safety significance, commonly involving autopsies to determine cause of death and assist in determining manner of death.

Medicolegal Death Investigator

An official who acts on behalf of the medical examiner or coroner to determine jurisdiction, assist in determining cause and manner of death, identify the decedent, notify next of kin, and secure personal property.

Unnatural and Unexplained Deaths

Deaths under medicolegal jurisdiction including homicides, suicides, unintentional injuries, drug-related deaths, and sudden or unexpected disease-related deaths.

Chapter 49 Code of Criminal Procedure

The Texas statute governing its county-based medicolegal death investigation system, divided into Justice of the Peace (subchapter A) and Medical Examiner (subchapter B).