Overkill with Scissors- A case report
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.37506/ryache19Keywords:
overkill, stab wound, scissors, autopsy, intimate partner homicideAbstract
Introduction: “overkilling” in Forensic Medicine refers to a specific type of homicide which is characterised by excessive amount or severity of wounds or injury. Further, stabbing is the predominant form of homicidal violence globally, resulting in both physical impairment and death.
Case presentation: We present a case of a 28-year-old woman who was stabbed multiple times by her husband, who had used a shawl as a ligature material and a single pair of tailoring scissors as the weapon. On external examination a total of 48 injuries were inflicted on the body- with multiple scratch abrasions and a pressure abrasion over the neck. Vital injuries were noted to hit the right lung, diaphragm, liver, kidneys, abdominal aorta, ureter, mesentery, ascending colon. The stomach contents exhibited a kerosene smell, that was later confirmed to be organophosphorous compound.
Conclusion: A complete autopsy is vital to determine the cause, mechanism, and manner of death and to reconstruct the events before death.
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