TY - JOUR
T1 - Evaluating the utility of time-lapse imaging in the estimation of post-mortem interval
T2 - An Australian case study
AU - Wilson, Alyson
AU - Serafin, Stan
AU - Seckiner, Dilan
AU - Berry, Rachel
AU - Mallett, Xanthé
PY - 2019/8/17
Y1 - 2019/8/17
N2 - Estimating post-mortem interval is an important aspect in forensic investigations. The aim of this study was to investigate if time-lapse imaging can be used to improve estimates of post-mortem interval using Megyesi et al.‘s [1] method for a human donor decomposing in an Australian environment. To achieve this, time-lapse images were taken every 30 min over a 6-month period. The Megyesi et al. [1] total body score (TBS) system was used to quantify the level of decomposition of the donor for each image. Linear regression was performed to determine if observing decomposition more than once a day leads to increased accuracy in predicting PMI (post-mortem interval). Decomposition initially progressed quickly and then plateaued at 1004 hours PMI, with a TBS of 24. Individual timestamps were created from the time-lapse images taken each day at 08:00 hrs, 11:00 hrs, 14:00 hrs, 15:00 hrs, and 17:00 hrs. All timestamps produced R2 values > 0.80, indicating that the Megyesi et al. [1] method accurately predicts PMI for this donor. The 08:00 hrs timestamp had the highest value R2 = 0.886, whilst the combined timestamp (which included the scores from all five images for each 24-hour period) R2 = 0.823 was the lowest. This study supports the validity of Megyesi et al.‘s [1] TBS model to estimate PMI. Two other interesting findings were that the results suggest that scoring TBS multiple times per day does not improve estimates of PMI, however scoring TBS at daybreak produces more accurate results than scoring TBS later in the day. This may be an important consideration in forensic scenarios.
AB - Estimating post-mortem interval is an important aspect in forensic investigations. The aim of this study was to investigate if time-lapse imaging can be used to improve estimates of post-mortem interval using Megyesi et al.‘s [1] method for a human donor decomposing in an Australian environment. To achieve this, time-lapse images were taken every 30 min over a 6-month period. The Megyesi et al. [1] total body score (TBS) system was used to quantify the level of decomposition of the donor for each image. Linear regression was performed to determine if observing decomposition more than once a day leads to increased accuracy in predicting PMI (post-mortem interval). Decomposition initially progressed quickly and then plateaued at 1004 hours PMI, with a TBS of 24. Individual timestamps were created from the time-lapse images taken each day at 08:00 hrs, 11:00 hrs, 14:00 hrs, 15:00 hrs, and 17:00 hrs. All timestamps produced R2 values > 0.80, indicating that the Megyesi et al. [1] method accurately predicts PMI for this donor. The 08:00 hrs timestamp had the highest value R2 = 0.886, whilst the combined timestamp (which included the scores from all five images for each 24-hour period) R2 = 0.823 was the lowest. This study supports the validity of Megyesi et al.‘s [1] TBS model to estimate PMI. Two other interesting findings were that the results suggest that scoring TBS multiple times per day does not improve estimates of PMI, however scoring TBS at daybreak produces more accurate results than scoring TBS later in the day. This may be an important consideration in forensic scenarios.
KW - Australian facility for taphonomic experimental research
KW - Forensic anthropology
KW - Taphonomy
KW - Time-death interval
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85071133322&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85071133322&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.fsisyn.2019.08.003
DO - 10.1016/j.fsisyn.2019.08.003
M3 - Article
C2 - 32411972
AN - SCOPUS:85071133322
SN - 2589-871X
VL - 1
SP - 204
EP - 210
JO - Forensic Science International: Synergy
JF - Forensic Science International: Synergy
ER -