You have already defined what an axillary is, doctor. "Mouth and skin temperature in the living person, but the absolute values vary from person-to-person and from time to time even in health."
Now, doctor, what do you want to tell us about the factors which may affect the plateau?
Position of the body. If you take a temperature from the skin you are going to have a difference than when you take it from the rectal area.
The difference where you take the measurement, and environmental temperature is if the outside temperature is very cold and there is also wind factor, you are going to cool the body much faster than if it is just in a stationary average temperature conditions. It depends on the clothing, what the person was wearing. Somebody is wearing heavy clothing, they are going to cool slower than a person who is nude. And size of the body, the larger body takes a longer time to cool than the smaller body.
Doctor, have we basically done what is on this board with respect to the graph that we had out earlier?
Okay. Does this accurately summarize, if you will, what we have just been describing with that graph?
Okay. Now, dropping down to sub-part 3(E), what is this information intended to convey?
Some of the factors I mentioned in the first photograph which affect the plateau phase also affect the temperature loss. One of them is the weight and the surface weight ratio. Children cool faster than adults. The posture of the body, if you are in a fetal position, you cool slower than a person who is in a spread-eagle type of position. Like somebody whose arms are spread out and legs spread out would cool--would cool faster than a person who is in a fetal position.
Doctor, do you remember the photograph showing the position of Nicole Brown Simpson's body at the time it was found on the sidewalk--
She was on her left side with the hips flexed a little bit and her knees flexed. She was, I would say--not in a semi--slightly bent position than what is meant by somebody lying just flat on their back.
And does that position then have an affect, as you have described this area, on how the rate of cooling will occur?
To a certain extent, yes. But it is not as if she was lying--she was not in a fetal position, per say, but she also had just a thin dress and panty on and that will also have an affect.
Incidentally, doctor, is there any scientific formula that tells you, if you have this specific position for the body, then the cooling is affected in the following manner, versus another specific position, or are these all just relative terms that can impact the ultimate determination?
They are just relative terms. There is no scientific calculation for this. Then the lack of clothing or presence of clothing, what type of clothing, all will have an affect on the cooling. Obesity, which is--is the--this would have an affect and obese people cool slower. Emaciation is a term used for people who are malnourished and who are very thin, they could cool faster. Edema is water accumulation in the body, either from disease or--and that would have a factor in the rate of cooling. And environment temperature is whether the outside temperature is freezing temperature or warm temperature. Suppose the body is found in a very hot summer type environment, the body will not cool as quickly as it normally does in an environment where the temperature is lower, because after all, the cooling depends on the difference between the body temperature and the outside temperature.
I was going to ask you, doctor, are you able to determine, under circumstances where a body may have been--a person may have been killed at a particular time but the body is not found for record, let's say, two hours, are you able to determine whether there has been a change in temperature so that even if you take a temperature reading of the environment, the ambient temperature at the time the body is found, it may not reflect accurately what the environment temperature has been during that two-hour period?
That is correct, because you can have a temperature drop of five degrees in those two hours, and when you take the temperature, the environmental temperature could be 70 degrees but actually at the time of death the environmental temperature could be 80 and that will make a difference, too.
Of course I've already discussed wind factor and also hypothermia is the body temperature being lower than normal, and that would be like somebody's temperature being 94.5 or 95 degrees Fahrenheit, and so if the lower body temperature, you had a lower body temperature to start with, that will also affect the rate of cooling.
Doctor, is there any way, again hypothetically, a person is killed at a particular time, two hours later the body is found, is there any way to determine what the wind was, whether there was wind, what the velocity of the wind was, the direction of the wind during that entire two-hour period?
No way to find out, but if it is in an urban area like Los Angeles, you could call the meteorological department and get some idea about the environmental conditions, but it may not necessarily reflect the environment conditions at the place of death. They would give you the environmental conditions for the general area.
For example, doctor, in your own experience as a forensic pathologist have you found that a location where a body is going to be investigated by someone like Ms. Ratcliffe, some areas are windier, draftier than other areas, even though they are basically located very close to each other?
And does that also affect the preciseness with which one can estimate time of death?
Your Honor, while I'm going to change charts, I do have a series of certified documents from the U.S. Department of Commerce dealing with weather observations from Santa Monica, California, and some other locations that are not relevant to this case, but they included it all in one package. They are for the date of June 12, 1994, and June 13th, 1994. May this collectively be marked as People's exhibit 367-H, H as in Henry, and I have shown counsel what these are?
Now, doctor, let me put up another board that I would ask, your Honor, to be marked as 367-I, "Algor mortis continued." And for reference, this starts with "F. Henssge's nomogram."
And while I am marking things, your Honor, I also have two other charts; one bears a temperature time of death relating nomogram for ambient temperatures up to 23 degrees centigrade. May that be marked as 367-J?
Your Honor, I'm sorry, may we interpose an objection for the underlining on the chart?
And another chart, your Honor, is a similar-looking chart except the title is "Temperature time of death relating nomogram for ambient temperature above 23 degrees centigrade."
Basically Henssge developed this chart using mathematical calculations. Just going to briefly discuss it. Developed this chart based on mathematical calculations taking into consideration variability such as the environmental factors, the--also the body weight, clothing, where the body is found, et cetera, and developed a nomogram which pathologists could use if rectal temperatures are obtained. And using the rectal temperature you obtained at a particular time, and also of course the other variables which we discussed, some factoring in has taken place when this nomogram has developed, what it does is it gives you a graph which pathologists could use to get an estimated range.
And even using this, he has developed two graphs. One is for one below 23 degrees centigrade for which he has had experience, but for the graph which he used for the temperature above 23 degrees centigrade, which was discussed earlier, he used the data from some studies done in Sri Lanka by Desaram, D-E-S-A-R-A-M, wherein the ambient temperature is much higher in Sri Lanka than where Henssge did his studies. But what this graph does is if you have a particular temperature of a person, if you know the weight, if you know their--what other--whether they are wearing clothing, what type of clothing, et cetera, using the graph, you will be able to give an estimated range. If you also know the ambient temperature, the average ambient temperature--and he found that even using the graph with all the data, he found that the 95 percent conference level had a variation of three hours plus or minus of the estimate you give for a particular weight, so this graph you can use for different weights. And you have two graphs; one for where the temperature is above 23 and one below 23. Still the minimum--the minimum variation when you estimate was up to three hours.
Let's say you estimate it is from the graph, you get a number of 14 hours and you are to add plus or minus 2.8 hours to that 14 hours. Let me put it in perspective. Let's say that the rectal temperature, which this graph is mainly meant for, not for liver temperature, the rectal temperature is a number, let's say, 85 or 86. Then using the graph you find that the time interval since death is ten hours, let's assume, but still the range is plus or minus 2.8 hours, and let's assume that you took the rectal temperature at two o'clock in the afternoon. By calculation you know it is ten hours since the time you took the rectal temperature, plus or minus 2.8 hours, which would put it at 2:00 A.M. that morning, plus or minus 2.8 hours, which would really be an estimated time of death between 11:20 the previous evening all the way to 4:40 the next morning, if you use this formula.
Doctor, just so we will have both identified, the first one that I marked as I, I believe, 367-I, the one up to 23 degrees centigrade, 23 degrees centigrade, doctor, have you computed that into Fahrenheit temperature?
All right. If I ask you to assume, and I could ask the Court to take judicial notice, I believe, that it is approximately 74 degrees Fahrenheit, 73 point--Mr. Lynch with his calculator is rapidly printing out the information.
All right. Doctor, if 73.4 is 23 degrees centigrade and I want you to assume, based on Ms. Ratcliffe's ambient temperature reading at ten o'clock, 10:30, actually 10:40 in the morning, that the temperature at the Bundy location was 70 degrees, and further, I want you to assume, if I can find my paperwork again, from our exhibit from the weather bureau, that the recorded temperature, the last recorded temperature they have for June 12th, actually into the morning hours of June 13th, is 63 degrees, and the first recorded temperature they have following that for June the 13th at 1:46 in the afternoon is 64 degrees, doctor, given that hypothetical set of circumstances, would this be the nomogram to use, that is, the ambient temperature is below 73.4 during the entire period?
And doctor, again, what is the narrowest range that this nomogram provides using temperature as a basis for estimating time of death?
And if you were out with Officer Riske at 12:13 in the morning and you took a rectal temperature and employed Dr. Henssge's nomogram, what is the narrowest range that you could give based upon this formulation?
And doctor, to your understanding is this the most sophisticated mathematical approach to an attempt to take into account all of the various factors that you have been talking about in estimating time of death based upon temperature?
And just I think you've identified it, but just so we will have it for the record, the other nomogram is for temperatures above 23 degrees; is that correct?
And under that circumstance, doctor, what is the narrowest range that is provided for a temperature determination for range of death, time of death?
Doctor, on the board that was up before we went to the nomograms, there is a quotation from Dr. Knight's book that he edited, Simpson's 10th edition?
Doctor, again is that something that you've read, considered and in part relied upon?
Do you agree that it is impossible to back calculate with any accuracy to the time of death taking into account the many variables using temperature estimations?
Do you also agree that temperature estimations provide the best means of estimating the postmortem interval?
And do you also agree that both doctors, such as yourself, and the police, must be aware of the large errors involved, especially when using such estimates for important forensic purposes, such as breaking the alibi of a suspect in a criminal death?
Doctor, have you relied in part on that observation in formulating range rather than a specific period for the time of death of these two individuals?
Your Honor, I have another board. May this be marked as 368-A. Entitled "Rigor mortis body stiffening."
Doctor, I think earlier today you told us a bit about what rigor mortis is; is that correct?
And have you reviewed various literature, as well as your own experience, in forming opinions, if you have any, on how long it takes for that particular observation to be seen?
Yes. The--if you--if I use all the information I have gained from the literature and my own experience, normally rigor mortis usually develops in all the muscles at the same time, but you best perceive it in the facial muscles and usually you start developing rigor in about three to four hours after death. It starts to be fully developed in about nine to--nine to twelve hours, and it persists anywhere from 24 to 36 hours until it passes away when decomposition sets in. This is just an average based on all the review of the differences in the literature as to when it starts, how long it lasts and when it disappears. And rigor mortis itself is due to the stiffening of the muscles due to enzymatic changes in the muscle due to a decrease in certain enzymes called ATP. What happens is the muscle proteins, which are mainly actin and myosin, bind to form a gel-like binding which results in the rigidity, so there is a variability described in different books. There is a legend for this--each box where this range is given from.
Let me get that legend, doctor, so we can identify your sources. Your Honor, I have another board called "Rigor mortis continued" and Mr. Lynch is going to set up an easel. May this be marked as 368-B.
The legend is self-explanatory. It refers to--a corresponds to the book, Claus Henssge's book, and G corresponds to Warner Spitz' book. We reviewed this literature just to show that each book gives a different time range for starting of the--or rather when rigor mortis is detectable. They give a range for when the rigor mortis becomes complete and you have one other board I think which shows--
I'm going to get to that in a moment, but I wanted to ask a few questions before we move to the next board. First of all, doctor, is there a difference between physiologically the body starting this process that is called rigor mortis and the time when it can be detected by someone such as a Claudine Ratcliffe?
Doctor, as a forensic pathologist do you have an opinion as to when the body starts the process that is described as rigor mortis?
Yeah. The body starts the process after death, but you start detecting it when this enzyme I told you, ATP, goes down to 85 percent of the normal, and it is fully detected when it goes to 15 percent normal, but of course this is research material, so even though it starts soon after death, you can detect it by feeling the muscles. Initially I told you the muscles are relaxed. You start feeling to be stiff. That is, you will find that if your arm is in a flexed position, if you try to extend it, you will see that there will be resistance to extend the arm, but whereas if you examine the body soon after death, you will be able to move the arm easily and that is the relaxed flaccid situation. So detectability is when you can perceive the process, whereas development of the process starts after death.
Doctor, you testified that it starts in all muscles of the body, is that accurate?
However, is it detectable in certain kind of muscles before it is detectable in other kind of muscles?
You can detect it easier in the jaw muscles and facial muscles earlier than the other muscles, and then you can see it in the limb muscles next.
Doctor, where is that the case that you can first see it in the jaw and other muscles before--
Because these are smaller muscles and you can see the jaws--lockjaw, and it is easier, and the larger muscles take time--more time to detect.
Doctor, what significance, if any, does it have to you, from this review of the literature, that there is a range provided that differs from literature to literature on the ability of a forensic pathologist to use rigor mortis to precisely determine the time of death?
The problem with this method is one, the--the range in the development, and no. 2, once it is developed--let's assume it is fully developed when you see the person. You can't tell--you can say that probably developed in twelve hours, but you can't tell until it passes away what time frame you are seeing the body in. For example, somebody dies at--let's assume that it develops fully in twelve hours and somebody dies at 1:00 A.M. in the morning and you see the body at 2:00 P.M. that afternoon and rigor is fully developed, and let's assume that you don't see him at 1:00 P.M. but you see him at 8:00 P.M. and you just see rigor mortis, the rigor mortis which is fully developed will be fully developed at 8:00 P.M. and have the same appearance as when it was fully developed at 8:00 P.M. and you won't be able to tell what time it really was. All you can see that at 8:00 people else dead at least more than twelve hours but you can't tell exactly when he died.
Does the body, at some point after death, return to a condition which for all intents and purposes would appear to be the identical condition exactly at the time of death concerning this muscle reaction?
Yes. When the body starts decomposing and deteriorating, this stiffness will start passing away because of enzyme changes and putrefaction and again it will start getting flaccid, but you can tell the difference from a forensic pathology, because you will have early signs of decomposition of the body when that happens because you will have greenish discoloration. The other factor of course is--which is a very rough parameter is whether the body is warm and cold. If you have a warm body which is stiff, you know, that warm body which is flaccid, you know it is earlier part, from a cold body which is decomposing, and early decomposition and flaccid, you can tell the difference very easily.
Could you also basically stay with the body for some period of time to see whether or not the rigor is increasing in intensity or getting less in intensity?
Doctor, I think you were talking about the rigor becomes complete meaning what, fully fixed? Is that a term that is used?
Fully fixed, and when you try and extend a flexed arm, you will have a lot of resistance in doing it and in breaking the rigor.
Doctor, recalling exhibits 298-A and B, those form 1 documents completed by Ms. Ratcliffe, do they reflect her assessment of the degree of rigor at roughly 10:40 and 10:50 in the morning on June 13th with respect to the two individuals?
She indicated that both the bodies were in full--full rigor. That means the rigor was fully established when she saw the bodies.
Doctor, going back to this hypothetical of the coincidence that you would be with Officer Riske at 12:13 in the morning, what would be the circumstance that you would find which would indicate the least amount of time having past since time of death to 12:13 as it pertains to rigor mortis?
If there is no rigor present and the body is still warm, it would indicate that the death occurred probably within four hours before Officer Riske saw the body. But if he saw some stiffness developing, then you are into a time range between three to nine hours when it is developing, so you won't be able to pinpoint a particular time. You can only give a possible range.
Doctor, is the combination of rigor, the absence of rigor, if hypothetically you had been with Officer Riske at 12:13, you saw no evidence of rigor and you got a core temperature reading of 98.6, the assumed normal temperature, would that permit you to form an opinion as to range for time of death of these two human beings which would be narrower than the 2.8 hours plus or minus that Dr. Henssge's nomogram provides for temperature alone?
Your Honor, I have another board in the rigor series. May this be marked as 368-C, your Honor?
Now, doctor, you indicated that the rigor remains for some period of time and then starts to fade away, if you will?
Yes. A, B, C, D shows the literature from where this data was obtained and you can see that there is a range when rigor--how long the rigor persists and when it disappears. For example, if you take Henssge's book, it says the persistence is anywhere from 24 to 96, mean of 57, and for disappearance is anywhere from 24 to 192, mean of 76, and you can see the variation between that and Spitz' book where it says the persistence is between 12 to 24 hours and then it passes from 24 to 36 when it starts disappearing. And in my experience this seems to be more--more what happens, but I have not seen--this can also happen, depending on what temperature the body is found in.
For the record, Dr. Lakshmanan pointed to first the item G, which is the Spitz reference as the one more consistent with his experience and then to the Henssge item a as the one that can also happen.
Now, doctor, what significance, if any, is it to you that again there is this discrepancy between the various literature you've reviewed on these issues of persistence and disappearance?
Well, it shows the variable factors which have been discussed and your variability in the development, persistence and disappearance--disappearance of the process. And there are factors affecting rigor itself which would play a role in this process and in the development process.
If somebody has had strenuous physical activity before death, they would develop rigor, much faster than a person who has had not much activity. If it is a hotter temperature, rigor develops earlier. If it is a colder temperature, it develops slower. Physical condition of the decedent, depending on the muscular development of the decedent, there is a difference in the development and disappearance of the rigor. And cause of death, if it is electrocution, rigor develops earlier. Also poisonings, like strychnine, you can develop rigor earlier, so there are a lot of variables.
Doctor, are there any scientific charts or formulas which attempt to quantify in specific terms of hours or minutes how each of these variable factors should be calculated into the determination of the rigor impact on the period since death determination?
Doctor, the last entry on that board, is that again one of the materials that you have read, considered and in part relied upon?
Doctor, in your opinion is rigor mortis the most uncertain and unreliable of these factors that you use medically to determine a range for time of death?
Your Honor, I have a board entitled "Livor mortis, hypostasis, blood settling." May this be marked as 369-A?
Before you run too quickly to item 2, there are three different terms starting that item 1; livor mortis, lividity and the term hypostasis. Is there any difference, and if so, what is the difference between those three terms?
I have already defined is basically draining of the blood in the dependent part of the body after circulation has ceased and causing discolorations in the parts of the body which are not under pressure. And this again is a review of onset and when it is fully perceived from the literature and you can see that this is a range that you can be perceived anywhere from thirty minutes to four hours when it starts to be seen, and the average seems to be about twelve hours when it is maximum in development. One of the things we do in our office is when you have an area of discoloration, you try and give pressure to that area. If the discoloration blanches, it would indicate that it is in a phase between onset and maximum. Because once you don't get blanching, it would indicate that some of the discoloration has become permanent, due to either leaching of the blood or breakdown of the blood cells leaving a discoloration. That is one theory. The other theory is that the blood gets thicker in the area of where the dependent pooling has taken place which results in a more permanent discoloration, so the usefulness of this is if the body position is turned after death by a perpetrator, then the--you could have a new position in which the discoloration will develop, depending what part of the body was the dependent part.
Doctor, could you use me as an example and just basically indicate how livor mortis or hypostasis can be of benefit in assessing this issue of movement of the body between time of death and time the body is found?
--and he has been lying on his back for more than twelve hours, by this definition you get discoloration on his back because he is lying on his back. But let's say that Mr. Kelberg didn't die a natural death, but was--something else happened to him and the perpetrator comes back after a day and Mr. Kelberg has not yet been discovered, but then decides to move his body to a different position, and let's say he has been now placed face down instead of his back. The livor which develops in the back will still remain because it has already become fixed, and you may or may not get new livor developing on the front because, as you know, there could be still some blood left, liquid, which could pool on the front also, but the livor which has become permanent in the back will be there, which would give a pathologist, if a change of position has taken place, some indication that some body movement or change in body position has taken place several hours after the livor became permanent.
Doctor, as an alternative what happens if I start out on my back at the time I've been killed and somebody comes and decides to turn me over onto my stomach during the period between the time of onset and before the time the livor becomes maximum or fixed as you've described it?
Then you will get it in the new position in which you were placed and you may or may not have any livor on the previous position you were in, because the livor is not permanent.
Now, doctor, I--let me ask you, first of all: What significance, if any, does it have to you, from your review of the literature and your own experience--let me ask preliminarily, in your own experience is there variability in the period for the onset of livor mortis?
Yes. In my experience you usually start developing within a few hours, three to four hours, but it is usually fully developed in ten to twelve hours, but it is one of the least reliable among all the three parameters we have discussed so far in estimating time of death.
What is the significance, if any, from the variability between the literature sources that you've reviewed on the preciseness within--with which one may estimate a range for time of death based on livor?
The problem is it is not reliable because it can persist until the body starts decomposing and you have the same problems as you have with rigor and little more--less defined process than rigor, because you can start developing it at four hours and you will have a difficult time giving an estimated range just purely based on livor mortis, and especially if any change in body position has taken place.
The--this refers to a condition which one should be aware of that if you have blood loss or the person is anemic from natural disease process, they naturally will not develop the same intensity of livor mortis as a normal person would.
Doctor, would you describe the condition of Nicole Brown Simpson as a case involving extensive blood loss?
Would you describe a case such as Mr. Goldman's as one involving extensive blood loss?
In those two cases what would be the affect of that blood loss on the ability of yourself, for example, had you been there at 12:13 with Officer Riske, to detect onset of livor mortis even if the body had been in that position for several hours or more?
Well, they did have livor when we saw the body at 10:00, but at 12:15 it is a difficult situation. You may or may not have seen any rigor at all.
And doctor, if you saw--would it be accurate to say that if you detected no livor, that using that factor alone, that would be the condition showing the least amount of time having past from the time of death?
That would be partly correct, because if the significant blood loss had played a major role in that livor developing, that conclusion may not be totally correct.
I want to get to that aspect as a follow-up, but I want to start just in the abstract sense, forgetting the cause of death for these two human beings for just a moment and just assuming that they are dead, would it be an accurate statement to say that a condition in which there is no livor mortis detected on the body at 12:13 would be the condition which would reflect the passage of the least amount of time since death, using that factor alone?
And then, doctor, can you differentiate the absence of livor as being due to simply not enough time having past in the usual situation from livor which would have developed except for the extensive blood loss sustained by each of these human beings?
And how, if at all, does that impact on your ability to provide preciseness to the time of death based upon this factor?
Again, it brings up the primary issue I brought up earlier during this discussion. You cannot be precise.
Doctor, in your opinion, hypothetically again, if you had been with Officer Riske at 12:13 and you saw no livor mortis, you saw no rigor mortis and you detected a body temperature, core body temperature of 98.6 degrees Fahrenheit, would you be able to provide a more precise range for the time of death than what Dr. Henssge's nomogram of plus or minus 2.8 hours indicates?
If I hear another reaction from the audience, there are some people who are going to be leaving the audience. Proceed.
I'm sorry. Your Honor, I have another board "Livor mortis" I would ask to be marked as 369-B, as in boy.
Doctor, again is the information on this board information from the medical literature which you have reviewed, considered and relied at least in part on in forming an opinion regarding the use of livor for a range of death determination?
Is it your opinion that the use of livor mortis or hypostasis in estimating the time of death is of little evidential use?
Is it your opinion that as an index of time since death that livor is even more unreliable than rigor?
Doctor, just for the record, exhibit 298-A and b had a determination made by Claudine Ratcliffe as to a degree of livor observed; is that correct?
And what was the recordation by her with respect to each of these two human beings?
And in terms of your experience indicating an approximate range of how long before time of death?
Your Honor, I have another board entitled "Vitreous humor potassium level." May that be marked as People's exhibit 370?
We take it only on cases where the suspected or metabolic cause of death is diabetes keto acidosis or diabetes mellitus and we also obtained vitreous humor when we want to study electrolytes for dehydration, but we don't collect it for estimating postmortem interval and estimating a potassium level for that purpose.
Because one, this test is not very useful when you live in an environment where the environmental temperatures are higher, because it has been shown in the literature that you have a higher potassium level, which is the environmental temperature is higher after death, and the--the results you get have wide range when you calculate using some formulas which are available to calculate the time interval since death using the potassium level, so it is not very reliable.
Doctor, what is the temperature level which is usually considered a level below which the potassium level from the vitreous humor may be of some benefit?
In fact, was this test developed by a forensic pathologist in Minneapolis, Minnesota, using cases from the winter climate?
Does this board accurately reflect factors that affect the reliability of potassium levels in vitreous humor?
And your Honor, just briefly, I have one more board in the vitreous area as 370-B, as in boy.
Doctor, your attention to 5-A and B, are those two different formulas that are used to calculate postmortem interval from potassium levels?
And if you had a reading of potassium and you used the two formulas, would you end up with a different result?
Does that impact on the reliability of this technique for estimating time of death?
Yes, it does, and you can see that there is a wide range which you get and also it has an impact on when you take the sample in relationship to when the death occurred, because if you have a longer postmortem interval, the range of estimate is wider, compared to if the time of death--time of death was--if the potassium was taken closer to the time of death.
Doctor, just briefly, if you could explain if you took a sample of vitreous humor in a case where in fact the person had died within a 24-hour period of the sample being taken, what is the range that one must employ to accurately use this test to determine a period for time of death?
You have a range between plus or minus six hours to plus or minus twelve hours, and if it is over 24 hours, I mean--up to a hundred hours postmortem, you will have a range of 9.5 hours plus or minus 40 hours.
Doctor, the last information on that board, is that part of the material you read, considered and at least to a degree relied upon in forming a policy in your office regarding whether or not vitreous humor potassium samples will be taken?
This material is a new material. The policy in the office has been there for a long time. We don't do vitreous humor potassium levels.
And is in fact that information consistent with your understanding of this test's reliability?
And that is a basis for why your office routinely does not take vitreous humor potassium samples?
That is correct and this--this edition is a newer edition and it only reinforces our preexisting policies of not doing vitreous potassium to estimate time of death.
Your Honor, I have another board entitled "Gastric stomach contents." May this be marked as 371-A?
Doctor, item no. 1 asks the question or poses the issue of what do you look for at autopsy concerning stomach contents?
We look at what the contents are, the volume, and if there are any medications, they would look for any medications, and basically that is what is done in our office. And you record the information you have obtained from these observations.
We saw with your earlier testimony, and if I could have just a moment, your Honor, to pull out two from the previous exhibits--
I am just searching for the autopsy protocol for Nicole Brown Simpson. I believe I have it, and--I do. This is exhibit 349, the blow-up of the forms, I believe, 15 and 16. I will verify that. Yes.
And doctor, you testified as to Dr. Golden's handwritten entry on that form 16 regarding the stomach contents of Nicole Brown Simpson; is that correct?
Is that the kind of thing you would expect the medical examiner to do as part of an autopsy in this case?
Now, doctor you also--let me just throw up the protocol which is board 0B of 349, and flip first to page 10 just to show we are going to be dealing with the gastrointestinal system and then one more page regarding the protocol description of the stomach contents. Do you recall that, doctor?
Now, doctor, in your office you have I think testified that the usual practice is for the medical examiner to dictate this autopsy protocol which is subsequently transcribed; is that correct?
And in fact did you provide Dr. Golden's original dictation tapes for these two autopsy protocols to us?
All right. Then the actual paper--you want it appended to the 8-and-a-half-by-11 page exhibit?
Before it is played, doctor, I want you to listen and listen to whether or not there is a difference between what Dr. Golden dictates and what the actual protocol, the typed protocol in this paragraph says.
May we stop, your Honor. Mr. Fairtlough--I think Mr. Fairtlough turned the tape over and is playing the wrong side.
You cannot be precise.
The minimum variation when you estimate was up to three hours. 2.8 hours, which is three.
Rigor mortis is the most uncertain and unreliable of these factors.
You won't be able to tell the difference.
I'm sure there are many who would like that to be the case.