Time since death in a case of simultaneous demise due to a single gunshot: an issue concerning the use of Henssge's nomogram.

We report a case of a double homicide in which the victims, a man and his daughter, were simultaneously killed by a single gunshot. The temperature-based nomogram method for estimation of the time since death was used to ascertain the reliability of the method in a case of simultaneous demise, where the exact time of death was obtained from the analysis of security cameras.In the case presented, the victims differed for a great number of parameters (e.

Estimation of the time since death: sudden increase of ambient temperature.

This work presents a procedure for the postmortem interval estimation in the presence of a rapid increase of ambient temperature occurred during the cooling phase. The resulting disturbance produced on the cooling curve is proved to obey a two-exponential law and is removed from the actually measured body temperature. This yields a theoretical/modified body temperature, which enables the estimation of the time since death by means of the standard Nomogram method.

Cooling experiments using dummies covered by leaves.

One main method to estimate the time of death is the measurement of the body temperature. The cooling of a corpse depends on a number of conditions including the surroundings. In cases where the cooling conditions differ from the defined standard, a corrective factor is used to characterise the influence of clothing, air movement, the properties of the supporting base and the humidity.

Estimation of the time since death.

The main principle of the determination of the time since death is the calculation of a measurable date along a time-dependent curve back to the start point. Characteristics of the curve (e.g.