What is forensic pathology?
Forensic pathology is the study of unexpected, unexplained, or violent death. Many of the deaths examined by a forensic pathologist are natural in origin but are of an unexpected nature. Most of the other deaths examined by a forensic pathologist involve violence of one kind or another. The violence may be self inflicted or be inflicted by someone else. There may be evidence of physical violence in the form of injuries or chemical violence in the form of licit or illicit drugs. Forensic pathology involves the examination, documentation and interpretation of the findings on the body.
Forensic pathology is a branch of the field of pathology which applies the principles of pathology to the legal profession. Forensic pathologists specialize in examining bodies and evidence such as body fluids and tissue samples for the purpose of gathering information which can be used in criminal investigation and court trials. They are sometimes known as medical examiners, coroners, or simply pathologists, depending on the region where they work. Some people think that the term “forensics” refers to forensic pathology, which generates considerable confusion when forensic accountants, forensic document examiners, forensic psychiatrists, and other forensics professionals are discussed. “Forensic” actually comes from the Latin forum, and it means “pertaining to a trial.” The field of forensics was developed in the 1800s, when people began applying scientific methods to criminal investigation and legal trials. The field of pathology in general is focused on the study of disease and its
This is the first question the prosecutor will ask after the pathologist gets on the stand, after the usual questions about his name and employment. Since the average juror may not really be sure just what a pathologist does, my personal initial response is always that we must define pathology. Pathology is literally the study of disease. Forensic pathology applies what is known about disease, along with all of medical science, to legal problems. In the United States, forensic pathology is a recognized subspecialty of the larger specialty of anatomic pathology. As such, this field has its own board-certification exams given by the American Board of Pathology, which can only be taken by doctors who have already passed the anatomic pathology boards. Many forensic pathologists are also board-certified in clinical pathology, as well. In the past, any board-certified anatomic pathologist with two years of experience in the field could sit for the forensic exam. Today, only pathologists who
