Optimising crime scene temperature collection for forensic entomology casework.
Forensic Sci Int
; 270: 129-138, 2017 Jan.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-27940072
The value of minimum post-mortem interval (minPMI) estimations in suspicious death investigations from insect evidence using temperature modelling is indisputable. In order to investigate the reliability of the collected temperature data used for modelling minPMI, it is necessary to study the effects of data logger location on the accuracy and precision of measurements. Digital data logging devices are the most commonly used temperature measuring devices in forensic entomology, however, the relationship between ambient temperatures (measured by loggers) and body temperatures has been little studied. The placement of loggers in this study in three locations (two outdoors, one indoors) had measurable effects when compared with actual body temperature measurements (simulated with pig heads), some more significant than others depending on season, exposure to the environment and logger location. Overall, the study demonstrated the complexity of the question of optimal logger placement at a crime scene and the potential impact of inaccurate temperature data on minPMI estimations, showing the importance of further research in this area and development of a standard protocol. Initial recommendations are provided for data logger placement (within a Stevenson Screen where practical), situations to avoid (e.g. placement of logger in front of windows when measuring indoor temperatures), and a baseline for further research into producing standard guidelines for logger placement, to increase the accuracy of minPMI estimations and, thereby, the reliability of forensic entomology evidence in court.
Palavras-chave
Texto completo:
1
Coleções:
01-internacional
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Temperatura
/
Monitoramento Ambiental
Tipo de estudo:
Guideline
Limite:
Animals
/
Humans
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2017
Tipo de documento:
Article