ABSTRACT
Society regards the taking of human life as the ultimate crime and therefore demands the greatest thoroughness in the investigation of deaths that are not due to natural causes, whether murder, suicide, or accident. Some cases are relatively simple, such as a homicidesuicide where the killer leaves a note explaining his actions and the evidence at the scene is clear cut. Others can require collecting a vast amount of evidence, including information and statements from witnesses and suspects, as well as physical evidence obtained from the primary scene and from secondary scenes identified during the course of investigations. More than with most crimes, death investigation requires a team effort. Identifying the time, manner, and cause of death can involve specialists in addition to the pathologist, such as an entomologist, a toxicologist, a radiologist, and a firearms expert. When the investigation moves to reconstructing events at the scene and identifying the killer, the full battery of crime scene investigation and forensic laboratory personnel could also be involved in gathering and analyzing fingerprint and DNA evidence, hair and fibre evidence, impression evidence such as footwear and toolmarks, and digital evidence, in addition to creating animations to describe the scene.
