Coroner's report - Jane Doe #009
Office of the Yoknapatawpha County Coroner |
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DATE and HOUR AUTOPSY PERFORMED: Manish Agarwal, M.D.
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Assistant: Victoria Witte, M.D.
Full Autopsy Performed |
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SUMMARY PRELIMINARY REPORT OF AUTOPSY |
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EVIDENCE OF TREATMENT N/A EXTERNAL EXAMINATION The autopsy is begun at 1:45 P.M. on November 7, 2024. The body is presented in a black body bag admixed with fragments of collapsed and burnt construction debris and body tissues. The body is that of the charred remains of an adult white female measuring 63 inches (residual) and weighing 117 pounds (residual). There is extensive charring with burning of flesh and massive heat-related bony fractures. Right side of face, neck, and chest, however, are spared. Focally burnt, blackened and fragmented clothing items include shirt, skirt, bra, and underpants. In addition, a yellow metal ring was recovered from the left hand. The head is collapsed and fragmented and consists mainly of portions of the posterior left and right parietal, left and right temporal, frontal left zygomatic, and sphenoid. Debris submitted in the body bag contained fragments of the calvarium, which were subsequently reconstructed. Reconstructed calvarium revealed the presence of two gunshot defects, described in detail below. The neck is intact and markedly rigid. The chest is symmetric and presents extensive charring of the right upper chest extending to the flank area. There is sparing of the left chest, as noted above. The abdominal surface is extensively charred, with total destruction of the lower abdominal wall and herniation of loops of the small bowel. Charred female external genitalia is present. The back presents global charring. Upper extremities are fully articulated and present extensive heat damage with massive charring of the left shoulder, left arm, and elbow, as well as the dorsal surface of the entire right arm and forearm. There are heat-related fracture dislocations of both left and right elbow joints and distal left radius and ulna. Lower extremities are burned and charred but largely intact except for the distal phalanges of the feet. INTERNAL EXAMINATION CENTRAL NERVOUS SYSTEM: Soft tissues of the scalp are generally absent. There is extensive destruction of the calvarial vault over the frontal temporal and anterior parietal areas. Despite extensive destruction of the skull by charring, there is no evidence of notable heat fracture. Rather there are traumatic fractures associated with a gunshot injury described below. Fractures radiating from the mid-sphenoid body into the right and left cavernous sinuses and to the left jugular foramen, then into the left posterior cranial fossa where the delicate fossa floor is fractured and disrupted. Fractures radiate from the exit defect in the mid occiput into the parietal, inferiorly to and along the lambdoid suture, and into the left posterior cranial fossa inferiorly, adjoining the fracture from the entry wound described above. There are no notable projectile fragments recovered within the cranial cavity. The brain is markedly heat-altered with destruction of the superior and anterior cerebral cortices. The residual brain approximates 400 grams. Minimal residual hemorrhage is visible along the autolyzed wound track. CARDIOVASCULAR SYSTEM: The heart weighs 139 grams, and has a normal size and configuration. The heart is firm, moderately desiccated, and pale due to cooking. Cardiac valves and coronary ostia are anatomic and unremarkable. No evidence of atherosclerosis or gross ischemic changes of recent or remote origin are present. RESPIRATORY SYSTEM: The neck presents an intact hyoid bone and thyroid cartilage. The larynx appears normal. The trachea and spine are in the midline and devoid of trauma. The lungs weigh: left, 316 grams; right 203 grams. Tracheobronchial tree contains a notable amount of hemorrhagic fluid. GASTROINTESTINAL SYSTEM: Esophagus and GE junction appear unremarkable without erosions or varices. Stomach is intact and devoid of food particles. Loops of small and large bowel reveal prominent but patchy areas of charring. The appendix is absent, consistent with surgical amputation of remote origin. The rectum is charred. URINARY SYSTEM: The kidneys weigh: left, 48 grams; right, 41 grams. The kidneys are anatomic in size, shape, and location and are without lesions. The pelvic calyceal system and ureters are unremarkable. The bladder is devoid of urine. FEMALE GENITAL SYSTEM: External genitalia is charred. Internal genitalia reveal a non-gravid uterus with unremarkable fallopian tubes and ovaries. DESCRIPTION OF INJURIES - SUMMARY (1) Entry gunshot wound of mouth (posterior pharynx) (GSW #1) Description: Evidence of gunshot injury is found in the base of the skull and posterior palate. There is a pyramidal-shaped defect of the palate beginning 2/3 of the distance between the alveolare and the posterior edge of the bony palate. Due to extensive heat disruption of the nasal cavity, there is little additional residual wound track visible through the posterior pharynx. A perforating defect is found through the sphenoid body, which is internally beveled and soiled by soot, more notably along the left and inferior margins than along the right. The track is then traced from anterior to posterior, inferior to superior, through the regions occupied by the rostral pons, posterior corpus callosum, and cerebellar vermis, as well as the medial occipital lobes of the brain, impacting the skull in the upper occipital area at the juncture of the sagittal and lambdoid sutures. The bone fragment from the right parietal bone is absent; there is no charring along the margins of the absent bone. There is notable external beveling of this bony defect, consistent with a projectile exit. Fractures extend left and inferior, right inferior along the lamboid suture and superiorly along the sagittal suture. Fractures radiate from the entry defect into the sphenoid body and sinus, cavernous sinuses bilaterally and there are "blow out" fractures of the right middle and left posterior cranial fossae. An additional fracture radiates from the entry defect along the inferior edge of the left petrous temple ridge to the jugular foramen and then into the posterior cranial fossa. There are no projectile fragments recovered at autopsy. Opinion: This is a fatal injury. (2) Exit gunshot wound of the mid-occipital skull (GSW #2) Description: The wound is localized to the occipital bone 3 centimeters superior to the opisthion and very slightly right of the mid-sagittal line. The defect is circular, larger than the entry defect, and measures 1.4 centimeters along the inner table and 4.7 centimeters along the outer table. Characteristic beveling of the outer table is present. There is focal charring along the left, superior, and right margins of the defect. There is no overlying scalp. The wound is consistent with gunshot wound of exit. Opinion: This is a fatal injury. (3) Global charring with extensive body mutilation Opinion: This is a postmortem injury. (4) Minimal inhalation of carbon monoxide Opinion: This is a non-fatal injury. LABORATORY DATA Drug Screen Results:
Further analyses to establish toxin levels are in progress. Millicent Schmid, Ph.D. EVIDENCE COLLECTED 1. Samples of Blood, Bile, and Tissue (heart, lung, brain, kidney, liver, spleen) 2. Thirteen (13) autopsy photographs 3. Three (3) postmortem dental x-rays 4. Residual clothing for trace evidence analysis Hair sample, blood sample, and tissue sample transferred to Crime Lab for further analysis. OPINION Time of Death: Autopsy findings and witness statements approximate the time of death between 6:00 p.m. on November 5, 2024, and 2:00 p.m. on November 6, 2024. Immediate Cause of Death: Craniocerebral trauma due to gunshot wound of the head Manner of Death: Suicide Remarks: Autopsy was performed on a rush basis at the request of the Yoknapatawpha County Sheriff's Department and the Yoknapatawpha County District Attorney. Findings presented here are preliminary and subject to revision at a later date, particularly concerning toxicological analysis. Some analysis results were not available as of this date as more time is required to complete the analyses. //Manish Agarwal, M.D. |
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