Today’s Doubtful Yet Truly Morbid Fact!
In many cases at a crime scene, there is no doubt that a death has taken place. In other cases, there may be a doubt. It is always possible that the medical investigator may unexpectedly discover evidence of auscultation, or movement of the heart, even with a victim who otherwise appears “as dead as mutton”.
Resuscitation always has to be continued – even at the risk of destroying forensic evidence – if there is the slightest hope of revival. Professor Keith Simpson cited an unusual case of neglect:
“In 1957 a 78-year-old widow was certified dead by a doctor called to examine her as she lay in bed at home. An empty box of sleeping pills and several letters indicating a suicidal intent were by her bed. Undertakers (morticians) took her in a coffin, with a loose lid, to the mortuary, and the coroner was informed.
“Nearly six hours after, just as a post-mortem examination was about to begin, a police constable saw that she was still breathing. She was rushed to hospital, but died the next day.”
Culled from: Crimes and Punishment, the Illustrated Crime Enyclopedia: Volume 23
Poll Result!
On the August 5 Morbid Fact Du Jour, I featured a car crash photo from Deathsentences of the Polished and Structurally Weak and asked whether you thought the crash was fatal or not. The results are in!
First of all, here’s the post again:
Deathsentences of the Polished and Structurally Weak is an album and booklet by Negativland. The band describes the project as “a 6 by 12 inch 64-page full-color book which comes with a 45-minute CD soundtrack.” I’m not interested in the band Negativland, but I own a copy of this objet d’art macabre because car crashes are fascinating… and this is very similar to a project I wanted to do years ago but never got around to completing (nothing new there). What they did was go to junkyards and look for notes left behind in the smashed cars and display them together. Of course. you’re left wondering – did the person who wrote the note or for whom the note was intended live or die? I have no answers… but speculating can be its own entertainment, and so I present to you this entry.
So let’s take a poll: What do you think? Did Natalie (Baby) survive?
Here’s the wreckage:
And here’s the note pulled from inside of it:
And, it turns out that 65.4% of you think that Natalie is alive and well! Thanks for participating.
Beware, Anti-vaxxers!
Ruthlessly swiped from Cathleen Early’s Pinterest.