Citation

Hejna P, Havel R. Am. J. Forensic Med. Pathol. 2014; ePub(ePub): ePub.

Affiliation

Institute of Legal Medicine, Charles University, Hradec Kralove, Czech Republic; and Forensic Pathology Unit, The Hospital Jablonec and Nisou, Jablonec and Nisou, Czech Republic.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2014, Lippincott Williams and Wilkins)

DOI

10.1097/PAF.0b013e3181e5e113

PMID

20543663

Abstract

A rare case of vehicle-assisted suicide in a 40-year-old man is presented. The victim had tied a rope between his neck and a tree and then attempted to drive the vehicle away while seated in the driver's seat. The acceleration of the vehicle resulted in complete decapitation. Injuries to the organs of the man's neck bore vital signs. This, together with blood aspiration into his airways, confirmed that the victim's injuries took place when vital functions of his organism were still preserved. The degree of cervical trauma found in this case was far greater than that in characteristic ligature strangulation or hanging, except in cases where the body has fallen some distance.

Language: en