Herman the Shocker

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Fig.2 Exit with cranial rupture.

Suicide by intraoral shotgun wound

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Russia. This individual committed suicide by intraoral shotgun wound. In the head, neck, and limbs, shotgun exit wounds…
Fig.4 A compound comminuted fracture of the head and face.

Motorcyclist’s heart skipping along the road and head split

| Accident | No Comments
USA. A motorcyclist changed lanes on the freeway to avoid stopped traffic ahead of him. As he started…
Fig.1 Suffocation suicide with plastic bag.

Suffocation suicide with plastic bag

| Asphyxiation, Suicide | No Comments
Spain. No info. Suffocation by plastic bag is not common. The finding of a body at the scene…
Fig.1 Dicing injuries.

Dicing injuries

| Accident | No Comments
These are short, linear, angulated, incised injuries caused by the characteristic cubed fragments of shattered tempered glass. Tempered…
Fig.1 Gunshot wound on the neck.

Gunshot wound on the neck

| Gunshot | No Comments
Gunshot wound on the neck, no further info. A gunshot wound (GSW) is a penetrating injury caused by…
Fig.4 Needles stuck to the face.

An overkill matricide

| Homicide | No Comments
Italy. A 73-year-old woman was found dead in her own home by the police. The police intervened because…
Fig.1 Plastic bag suffocation.

Plastic bag suffocation

| Asphyxiation, Suicide | No Comments
Cook County. The plastic bag prevents the physiologic breathing by rapid oxygen consumption and mechanical obstruction of the…
Fig.1 Contact-range gunshot wound on the head.

Contact-range gunshot wound on the head

| Gunshot | No Comments
This individual has a contact-range gunshot wound on the head. The head has been shaved around the wound.…
Fig.1 Lacerations from a hammer.

Lacerations from a hammer

| Homicide | No Comments
Fatal lacerations from hammer on the head. No further info. Claw hammers have the specific characteristic of having…
Fig.1 The victim’s hair covered her face. There was a belt wrapped tightly around her neck.

Female autoerotic death

| Accident, Asphyxiation, Autoerotic Death, Hanging | No Comments
Chicago, Illinois. The victim was a 34-year-old white female, who lived alone in an apartment on the north…
Fig.1 Advanced decomposition and purge fluid.

Advanced decomposition and purge fluid

| Decomposition | No Comments
An example of a body demonstrating relatively advanced decomposition, with bloating, skin discoloration, and abundant purge fluid. The…

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Fig.1 Skeletal remains of a body found outdoors.

Skeletal remains of a body found outdoors

| Animal Scavenging, Decomposition | No Comments
Nassau County, New York. Skeletal remains of a body found outdoors. No further info. Skeletonization is the state…
Fig.1 Massive head trauma from a suicide.

Massive head trauma from a suicide

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
This individual committed suicide with a gun. He has massive head trauma and cranial rupture. The head is…
Fig.3 The mother’s partially skeletonized body on the kitchen floor.

2 mummified bodies found in Florida home

| Decomposition, Homicide, Mummification, Suicide | No Comments
Lehigh Acres, Florida, US, 2002. A 63-year-old woman lived with her 34-year-old son in a residential neighborhood in…
Fig.1 Stab wounds of the back.

Female psychiatrist fatally stabbed

| Homicide | No Comments
Italy. A 53-year-old female psychiatrist was fatally stabbed in her office in a Mental Health Center by a…
Fig.1 Postmortem animal predation.

Postmortem animal predation

| Animal Scavenging, Decomposition | No Comments
This individual died and his body was scavenged by animals, no further info. The phenomenon of postmortem animal…

The Essex boys – The Rettendon murders

| Gunshot, Homicide | No Comments
The Rettendon murders (also known as the Range Rover murders or Essex boys murders) occurred on 6 December…
Fig.1 Homicide and dumping.

Homicide and dumping

| Decomposition, Homicide | No Comments
Germany. This individual was murdered and the body then dumped in a river. A stab wound was noted…
Fig.1 Trauma to the scalp inflicted with a glass ashtray.

Trauma to the scalp inflicted with a glass ashtray

| Homicide | No Comments
Spain. The trauma to the scalp was inflicted with a blunt object (glass ashtray). The wounds could be…
Fig.1 Rapid skeletonization of remains due to water temperature and carnivorous fish species.

Rapid skeletonization due to carnivorous fish species

| Accident, Animal Scavenging | No Comments
Brazil. Rapid skeletonization of remains may occur in bodies of water in tropical areas due to water temperature…
Fig.2

Worker shredded in a plastic pellet mixer

| Accident | No Comments
February, 2015 - Nakhon Pathom, Thailand. A 45-year-old worker died in a gruesome accident at a plastic window…

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Massive head trauma severely limiting visual identification

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Massive head trauma severely limiting visual identification. No further info. At close range, the shotgun is the most…
Fig.1 Exit gunshot wound.

Exit gunshot wound

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Exit gunshot wounds are usually irregular in shape and relatively large – and may be confused with contact…
Fig.1 The victim is 37-years old male. The cadaver was found in the apartment where he lived.

A case of autoerotic death

| Accident, Asphyxiation, Autoerotic Death | No Comments
Bulgaria. The victim is a 37-years-old male. The cadaver was found in the apartment where he lived. It…
Fig.3 When Nikki was eight years old, doctors discovered a tumor in her brain that they initially didn’t think she would survive.

Porsche girl – The accident of Nikki Catsouras

| Accident | No Comments
On Halloween, 2006, 18-year-old Nikki Catsouras crashed her father’s Porsche 911 Carrera, driving at more than 100 miles…
Fig.1 Homicidal cut throat.

Homicidal cut throat

| Homicide | No Comments
Homicidal cut throat. No further info. Cut throats can be homicidal, suicidal or accidental. Homicidal cut-throats are a…
Fig.1 Tire marks on the skin.

Tire marks on the skin

| Accident | No Comments
This individual was killed when he was run over by a vehicle. One characteristic of traffic accidents is…
Fig.1 Woman’s face eaten by the family dog.

Woman’s face eaten by the family dog

| Animal Scavenging, Decomposition | No Comments
This woman’s face was eaten by the family dog postmortem, which increased putrefactive changes to the internal components…
Fig.1 Facial injuries sustained when a letter bomb exploded as it was being opened.

Facial injuries sustained when a letter bomb exploded as it was being opened

| Explosion, Fire, Homicide | No Comments
Facial injuries sustained when a letter bomb exploded as it was being opened. No further info. It is…
Fig.1 Three radiating petals from the entrance wound under the jaw.

Entrance wound radiating petals patterns from muzzle break

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
The figure shows three radiating petals from the entrance wound under the jaw of a victim of suicide…
Fig.1 This individual died after getting hit by a train.

This individual died after getting hit by a train

| Suicide | No Comments
This individual died after getting hit by a train, no further info. Railroad deaths in the US totaled…
Fig.1 A man was found with his head, torso, and most of his upper and lower extremities completely submerged in a bathtub.

Alcoholic found dead in a bathtub

| Accident, Asphyxiation, Drowning | No Comments
A 42-year-old man was found with his head, torso, and most of his upper and lower extremities completely…
Fig.1 Stab wounds of the chest and abdomen.

Stab wounds of the chest and abdomen

| Homicide | No Comments
This individual has been stabbed multiple times in the chest and abdomen, the body has been washed at…
Fig.1 Beheaded Serb by a Bosnian terrorist.

Beheaded Serb by a Bosnian terrorist

| Homicide | No Comments
A war crimes investigation in Serbia and Republika Srpska of a beheaded Serb by a Bosnian Al-Qaeda terrorist…
Fig.1 South Bronx rape–homicide victim.

South Bronx rape–homicide victim

| Homicide | No Comments
Bronx, New York City. This is the victim of a rape–homicide that occurred in an unoccupied apartment within…
Fig.1 Open secondary skull fracture at exit of a shotgun blast.

Open secondary skull fracture at exit of a shotgun blast

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Spain. Open secondary skull fracture at exit of a shotgun blast. No further info. Head injuries from shotguns…
Fig.1 Avulsion and raccoon eyes.

Avulsion and raccoon eyes

| Medical | No Comments
Avulsion laceration produced from a shearing-type force, with a resultant ‘flap’ of torn & undermined tissue. Raccoon eyes…
Fig.1 Tangential gunshot wound of the left cheek from a 9 mm bullet.

Tangential gunshot wound of the left cheek from a 9 mm bullet

| Gunshot | No Comments
Tangential gunshot wound of the left cheek from a 9 mm bullet. If a bullet is deformed or…
Fig.1 Gunshot wound from a .357 Magnum.

Gunshot wound from a .357 Magnum

| Gunshot | No Comments
Intermediate-range gunshot wound from a .357 Magnum—range of approximately 1 ft. Irregular, cruciform, or stellate entrance wounds can…
Fig.1 Laceration of the right upper lip extending to the right nostril. Note some small lacerations and abrasions around the nostril.

Impalement of the gear stick into the brain through the nose

| Accident | No Comments
Japan. A 59-year-old male was driving a car on the road. The back of his car was hit…
Fig.1 Brain tissue that has undergone pulp-like transformation.

Brain tissue that has undergone pulp-like transformation

| Decomposition, Mummification | No Comments
Brain tissue that has undergone pulp-like transformation (burial time, 7 weeks). In the case of a naturally mummified…
Fig.1 Bloating and blood-tinged fluid from the nostrils and mouth.

Bloating and blood-tinged fluid from the nostrils and mouth

| Decomposition, Drowning | No Comments
Bloating of face and effusion of blood-tinged fluid from the nostrils and mouth. A body recovered from water,…
Fig.2 Note the large amount of avulsed tissue that can be reflected.

Pedestrian who was run over by a large heavy truck

| Accident | No Comments
This woman was a pedestrian who was run over by a large, heavy truck. Note the severe amount…
Fig.1 A suicide using a chainsaw to cut into the right side of the face.

A suicide using a chainsaw to cut into the right side of the face

| Suicide | No Comments
This individual committed suicide with a chainsaw into the right side of the face. No further info. Suicides,…

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Fig.1 Decomposition & bagged hands.

Decomposition & bagged hands

| Accident, Decomposition, Medical | No Comments
In this case, police and scene investigators were suspicious that this individual was killed by blunt force injuries…
Fig.1 4th degree burns on the head.

Fire exposure after lethal hypothermia

| Accident, Fire, Medical | No Comments
A 49-year-old woman was found dead in her apartment after a fire in a residential building in Germany.…
Fig.2 Anterior view of perineal wound showing near complete amputation of the phallus.

Unusual mechanism of penile amputation from an industrial-sized lawn mower

| Accident | No Comments
West Virginia, USA. A 69-year-old male who was found underneath an industrial-sized lawn mower in a rural area.…
Fig.1 Anterior view of the head and neck showing extensive scavenging of the face.

Postmortem animal activity on woman’s face by her puppy

| Animal Scavenging | No Comments
This woman was located deceased at home in her bedroom wearing only a pair of underpants, lying on…
Fig.1 Stab injury to the skull.

Police officer stabbed in the head

| Homicide | No Comments
A 23-year-old police officer was killed while on duty. The victim was attacked by multiple assailants, and one…
Fig.1 Complete destruction of the head.

Complete destruction of the head

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Complete destruction of the head from a gunshot suicide. No further info. Head injuries from shotguns and high-powered…

Bloated body of a woman after one week of submersion

| Decomposition, Drowning | No Comments
The body of this woman had been in the water for approximately one week. Notice the effects of…
Fig.1 The position of the corpse (after removal of the blanket lying on the corpse): lateral view.

Suicide with home made guillotine

| Suicide | No Comments
Germany. In early September 2011, after a 2-week holiday, a 26-year-old man failed to show up for work…
Fig.1 A 55-year-old man was found dead in his friend’s apartment.

Autoerotic death in a special metal construction

| Accident, Asphyxiation, Autoerotic Death, Hanging | No Comments
A 55-year-old man was found dead in his friend’s apartment. The victim’s body was suspended in a special…
Fig.1 Anterior view. Stab and incised wounds over all the body.

Homicide with a Japanese katana sword

| Homicide | No Comments
France. A 59-year-old woman was assaulted by her son with a Japanese sword (katana) with a total length…
Fig.1 Intraoral shotgun wound.

Intraoral shotgun wound

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Occasionally, people shooting themselves in the mouth tilt their heads too far back- ward before firing. This results…
Fig.1 Tentative cuts inflicted with suicidal intent.

Tentative cuts inflicted with suicidal intent

| Suicide | No Comments
Tentative cuts inflicted with suicidal intent accompanied by deep stab/incised wounds to the soft tissue of the neck.…
Fig.4

Mechanic sucked into a jet engine

| Accident | No Comments
January 16, 2006 - El Paso, TX, USA. A mechanic standing near a Boeing 737 at El Paso…
Fig.8 The fighter jet immediately returned to the carrier after the accident.

Sailor Killed in Aircraft Carrier Freak Accident

| Accident | No Comments
A US sailor from Macomb County was killed when he was struck by the wing of a fighter…
Fig.1 Associated with putrefaction is the production of gases.

Associated with putrefaction is the production of gases

| Decomposition | No Comments
Associated with putrefaction is the production of gases. These gases, primarily located in the abdomen, cause the body…
Fig.1

Suicide by multiple sharp-force injuries with broken glass

| Suicide | No Comments
This individual committed suicide with broken glass from a picture frame. No further info. Sharp-force injuries are defined…
Fig.1 Finding situation of the body.

Decomposing body found in apartment

| Accident, Decomposition | No Comments
On 11 July 2017, the dead body of a 39-year-old man was found in his apartment in a…
Fig.1 Extensive whitish-gray fungal colonization following a burial time of 7 months.

Extensive whitish-gray fungal colonization on corpse’s face

| Decomposition, Mummification | No Comments
Here we see an extensive whitish-gray fungal colonization on a corpse's face following a burial time of 7…

The use of dentures to identify a decomposed body from the sea

| Accident, Animal Scavenging, Decomposition, Drowning | No Comments
The body of this decomposed individual was pulled from the sea. The loss of tissue around eyes and…
Fig.1 Protrusion of the tongue and putrefactive fluid from the nostrils.

Protrusion of the tongue and putrefactive fluid from the nostrils

| Decomposition | No Comments
Postmortem protrusion of the tongue due to putrefactive gas formation and purging of putrefactive fluid from the nostrils.…
Fig.1 Maggots on a decomposing body.

Maggots on a decomposing body

| Decomposition | No Comments
Maggots are the larval form of flies. Flies lay their eggs in small and sometimes large bulky clusters…

High velocity rifle suicide

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Texas, USA. These photos illustrate the appearance of a crime scene indoors involving a high velocity weapon. The…

Surveyor crushed to death in Israel

| Accident | No Comments
September, 2016 - Israel. A 65-year-old surveyor was killed at a work site to widen Road 531 in…
Fig.6

Kidnapped teacher found dead and gagged in a shallow grave

| Decomposition, Homicide | No Comments
San Rafael del Yuma, Dominican Republic - 2019. Janel Aquiles Cedano de León, a 35 year old teacher…

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Woman driver died in a collision with a truck while using her phone

| Accident | No Comments
Brazil - 2019. A 34-year-old woman died in a head-on collision with a truck on the PR-323 highway…
Fig.5

Man commits suicide at ex-wife’s house

| Fire, Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Thailand. A 40-year-old taxi driver broke in to the apartment of his ex-wife and set it on fire,…
Fig.3

Woman falls to her death from 34th floor

| Accident | No Comments
Bangkok, Thailand - 2014. A 28-year-old Russian woman, Svetlana Pokasova, was killed after she fell from her room…
Fig.15

The victims of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17

| Accident, Aircrash, Explosion | No Comments
Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was a scheduled passenger flight from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur that was shot down…
Fig.1 Putrefactive body fluid stain.

Putrefactive body fluid stain

| Decomposition | No Comments
A 71-year-old man was found dead in his locked apartment in a prone position on the floor of…

Man in a state of advanced decay after suicide

| Decomposition, Hanging, Suicide | No Comments
This individual was found in a state of advanced decay, he had committed suicide by hanging. No further…
Fig.2 Partial skeletonization.

Partial skeletonization

| Decomposition, Mummification | No Comments
Skeletonization is the removal of tissues from the skeleton or bones. It may be complete where all soft…
Fig.1 The corpse floating in the bathtub.

Woman found dead in a bathtub

| Accident, Decomposition | No Comments
Madrid, Spain. Corpse of a 48-year-old woman, found in the bathroom in her home address, in a bathtub…
Fig.1 Suicide by aircraft.

‘‘I am flying to the stars’’—Suicide by aircraft

| Aircrash, Suicide | No Comments
Germany. In March of 2007, a 50-year-old man was fatally injured when his single-engine low wing propeller aircraft…
Fig.10 Autopsy revealed that all the woman's internal organs had spontaneously mummified and decomposed.

Mummified woman found inside a sealed wardrobe in Italy

| Decomposition, Mummification | No Comments
2005 - Italy. A young man was found dead in the garage of his house. Extremely poor hygiene…
Fig.1 Fatal multiple cut wounds.

Fatal multiple cut wounds

| Homicide | No Comments
Russia. This individual has multiple cut wounds and slash wounds on his face. No further info. Slash wounds…
Fig.1 Advanced putrefaction and extensive maggot colonization.

Advanced putrefaction and extensive maggot colonization

| Decomposition | No Comments
Maggots cause most of the body's decomposition because the maggot will do the majority of the eating. Maggots…
Fig.1 Suicide by train.

Suicide by train

| Suicide | No Comments
Suicide by train. Decapitation of the head. No further info. Unfortunately, suicides by train do occur, and they…

Complex suicide

| Gunshot, Hanging, Suicide | No Comments
USA. A planned complex suicide. Note the gun on the floor near the decedent’s feet. The victim had…

The Use of Digital Imaging in Human Identification

| Accident, Decomposition, Drowning | No Comments
2001 - Ventura County, California. The decomposed body of an elderly male was found floating in the ocean…
Fig.1 Gunshot wound to the head.

Gunshot wound to the head

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
This individual died from a gunshot wound to the head. No further info. The head is the most…

Homicide victim recovered from the waters

| Decomposition, Homicide | No Comments
Nassau County, New York. The body of a homicide victim recovered from the waters with the hands still…
Fig.1 Injuries on the face.

Injuries on man’s face

| Accident | No Comments
This man had a fatal accident and has suffered traumatizing injuries on his face. No further info. Soft…
Fig.2 The victim was heavily decomposed.

Remains found in a ditch along a gravel road

| Decomposition, Homicide | No Comments
These remains were found in a ditch along a gravel road, at the edge of a National Forest.…
Fig.1 The deceased was hanging on the cage of an elevating work platform.

Man found hanging on the cage of an elevating work platform

| Hanging, Suicide | No Comments
The body of a 39-year-old man without any history of drug abuse or illness was found in a…
Fig.1 The patient at presentation in the emergency department, with scissors penetrating the left orbit.

Schizophrenic woman tried to remove her eyes with scissors

| Medical | No Comments
An elderly woman with schizophrenia presented with a pair of scissors penetrating her left orbit and an enucleated…
Fig.1 Twin brothers dead on a sofa with self-inflicted gunshot wounds to their heads. One brother is holding a homemade firearm.

Twin brothers commit suicide together

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Twin brothers committed suicide together with a gunshot wound to the head from self-constructed shooting devices, they were…

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Suicide by suffocation with a bag and cable ties

| Asphyxiation, Suicide | No Comments
Spain. This individual committed suicide by suffocation with a bag and cable ties. After placing the bag over…
Fig.1 Man found dead in steam room 8 hours after death.

Man found dead in steam room 8 hours after death

| Medical | No Comments
Body of a 42-year-old male found dead in the steam room approximately 8 hours after having gone alone…
Fig.1 Under the chin shotgun suicide.

Under the chin shotgun suicide

| Gunshot, Suicide | No Comments
Spain. Injuries caused by multiple projectiles (shotgun), with submental entry hole and exit with cranial rupture. No further…
Fig.1 Harvested total facial-scalp flap in the donor cadaver.

Mock facial transplantation on a cadaver

| Medical | No Comments
Here the surgeons have performed a mock facial transplantation by harvesting total facial-scalp flaps from a donor and…
Fig.1 Injuries from scavenging on the face.

Postmortem animal predation

| Animal Scavenging | No Comments
San Fransisco, US - 2008. This individual had died and his body scavenged by animals postmortem, no further…