Library

In cases where a person is killed by injury inflicted by another, the corpse's mouth and eyes are open, hair is loose or disheveled, hands are slightly clenched, and the injured vital areas show significant damage with skin and flesh curled and protruding. If the body membrane is penetrated, intestines and viscera will inevitably protrude.

When the victim is attacked by an assailant using a bladed weapon, there must be a struggle, and the victim uses their hands to block or intercept, resulting in injuries on the hands. Any rescuers will also likely have injuries on their backs. If the assailant delivers a single fatal blow to a vulnerable vital area, the deceased's hands will show no injuries, but the wound itself will be severe. If the assailant uses a blade to chop the head, vertex (Baihui, GV20), temporal region, or posterior hairline, the hair must be severed, resembling cuts made by scissors. A fracture of the cranial bone indicates penetration by a pointed object; one must palpate to check for bone damage.

An axe mark from a sharp blade is wide and long on the surface but narrow internally. A large knife wound is narrow if shallow, but wide if deep. Knife wounds typically taper at both ends, without distinct differences between the initiating and terminating strokes. A spear puncture is narrow if shallow, but penetrates through if deep, leaving a roundish trace. If a bamboo spear or sharpened bamboo pole strikes a vital area, the wound edges are often irregular, with traces varying in shape.

When examining deaths caused by sharp instruments, one must inspect the original clothing for tears that align with the wounds, verifying bloodstains. For example, in cases of evisceration by slicing, the wound site should show two or three slashing marks from the blade. Why would a single cut result in multiple slashes? Because human intestines coil around the hypochondriac regions on both sides, causing the blade to graze them multiple times during extraction.

When inspecting wounds from knives, spears, or blades, one must document: the location of the corpse, the clothing worn, presence of bloodstains, dimensions (length, width, depth) of the wound, whether it penetrated the flesh, and if intestines or membranes protruded, identifying the fatal site. Also inspect perforations in clothing caused by the weapon. If death resulted from a bamboo spear or pointed object, state "death caused by piercing with a sharp hard object."

In all injury examinations, first determine if the instrument was a blade and whether the wounds occurred ante-mortem or post-mortem. Ante-mortem blade wounds exhibit widened tissue margins and interlaced patterns; post-mortem wounds appear cleanly cut, indicating they were fabricated after death.

Ante-mortem blade wounds contain blood exudate, and the surrounding tissue and blood appear fresh and bright red; penetration of the membrane leads to death. Post-mortem incisions show dry, white tissue without bloody exudate (as circulation ceases after death, turning tissue white). This requires definitive verification by the inspector regarding the timing of the injury.

In living victims killed by blades, the skin and flesh at the wound site contract, surrounded by blood. In cases of dismemberment, tendons, bones, skin, and flesh adhere densely; the wound site shows contracted skin and exposed bone.

In corpses dissected after death, skin and flesh remain unchanged, blood does not infiltrate, the skin at the cut site does not contract, there is no blood flow at the blade's end, and the color is white.

If blood is found under the trace, washing, checking, squeezing, and pressing reveals no clear blood within the flesh, indicating the injury did not occur ante-mortem.

Regarding decapitation: if performed while alive, tendons retract inward; if performed after death, the neck remains elongated with no retraction.

When examining homicide victims, if the weapon was a sharp-pointed instrument, describe it as a stab to a vital area; if a flat-edged weapon, do not use the term "stab." If wounds are on the abdomen, hypochondrium, or below the umbilicus, after stating dimensions, note oblique deep penetration into internal tissues, protrusion of fat membranes and intestines, and blood contamination, confirming fatal injury to vital areas. If wounds are on the precordium or upper ribs, note oblique deep penetration and blood contamination, confirming fatal injury to vital areas. If wounds are below the throat, note depth reaching the neck, clavicle damage, irregular circular/oval cuts around the perimeter, severance of the esophageal and tracheal ties, and blood contamination, confirming fatal injury to vital areas. If wounds are on the face, temples, temporal region, or posterior hairline, and the weapon was large, note bone damage; if brain matter protrudes with blood contamination, confirm as fatal injury to vital areas. If chopping or stabbing occurs anywhere on the body, and death ensues after several days, state "death due to inadequate care following injury."

Before arriving at the inspection site, when examining injury victims, first inquire of the reporting official: Has the assailant been apprehended? What is their status/identity? What type of weapon was used? Was the weapon recovered? If recovered, examine its size and draw a sketch on paper; if not, ask for its location and have the official draw a sketch. After drawing, have the official sign beneath the sketch. Further inquire if the assailant and victim are relatives and if there is any prior enmity.