Medico-Legal Autopsy & Forensic Science Laboratory: Vital Tools of Criminal Justice System

Abstract

Forensic science is the application of science and technology to the detection and investigation of crime. Forensic science has shaped the world of justice, signifying the examination of crime with the help of modern and advanced technology. In this retrospective study, the viscera sent to toxicology and DNA section of FSL during autopsy at mortuary of Adichunchanagiri Institute of Medical Sciences, Mandya district, Karnataka, India, between January 2013 to December 2017 were analyzed. During this study, several epidemiological observations and their results were considered. Out of 748 autopsied cases, in 256 cases viscera has been forwarded to Toxicology section of forensic science laboratory and in 43 unidentified bodies either femur bone or liver tissue has been forwarded to DNA section. In all the 256 cases viscera has been subjected to toxicological examination at forensic science laboratory, in that 211 cases we received positive results, stating the type and amount of poison present at the time of death. In 43 cases viscera has been forwarded to DNA section, and the report has been forwarded to honorable court. With the rising population combined with inflation and economic downturns, there is an increased spurt of crime rates of all natures in the society. To ensure adequate and timely justice to the victims of offences a proper autopsy coupled with laboratory backing will go a long way in supplementing the work of police investigation in order to convert suspicion into a reasonable certainty of either guilt or innocence.