¶ … medical examiners of years past to the current technological advancements of medical examiners today. The earliest medical examiners were called coroners, and they still exist in some areas of the United States, although they have largely been replaced by medical examiners. Medical examiners are licensed physicians trained in pathology and death investigation.
In the past, coroners had much more power than they do today. They were more involved in criminal justice, and could even arrest prisoners and set their bail. They were not paid a salary, but paid for each inquest they conducted. They were also open to bribes and embezzlement, since they did not receive a salary. Families would offer bribes to cover up suicides, and politicians would offer bribes to cover up embarrassing accidents or other deaths that might impact their political careers. One New York City coroner said, "A few of the coroners,...
Their only interest in each new case was to discover how they could extort money, and they used the power of their office for blackmail purposes" (Timmermans). In many rural areas, the coroner was actually the sheriff, who had little medical knowledge or training, and often just guessed at the cause of death. Even today in some areas, coroners can be anyone, from a tow-truck driver to a funeral director, and everything in between. They conduct inquests, and can call in a jury of citizens to determine the cause of death. They did not have advanced tools, and often did not have advanced training, so often; their determinations were wrong, or at least flawed.
However, most medical examiners today are very different from the coroners of the past. Most are trained physicians, who have additional training in…
Using forensic medical evidence in court It is a requirement by the International law for all states to carry out investigations for all allegations of torture and bring to book the culprits. The victims of such torture also need to be compensated adequately by the state. Many torturers perform their heinous acts in the dark, and try to conceal all possible evidence, but still aim at inflicting as much pain as
Medico-Legal Investigations HOW ADEQUATE? Medical Death Investigative Systems Past and Present Systems Death investigation of some sort has existed in all countries for centuries, but not always performed by medical professionals (Committee, 2003 as qtd in Moldovan, 2008). The link between law and medicine traces back to the ancient Egyptian culture in 3000 B.C. This was followed by the English coroner system in around the 12th century. The 194 Articles of Eyre first used
Forensic nursing goes far beyond traditional medical care; it is "an innovative expansion of the role nurses will fill in the health care delivery system of the future," (Lynch, 1995, p. 489). This is why the Vice President of the United States Joe Biden has stated, "Forensic Nurses play an integral role in bridging the gap between law and medicine. They should be in each and every emergency room," (cited
Law in Higher Education Case Name: Charleston v. Board of Trustees of University of Illinois at Chicago 741 F.3d 769 (C.A.7, Ill.2013) R-Z. Procedural History: Charleston brought his 1983 action to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division; the case was argued on November 6, 2013 Law in Higher Education Gerald Charleston, a former medical student at University of Illinois College of Medicine, claimed that his dismissal for
Department of Veterans Affairs Medical Center, Oklahoma City, Oklahoma Today, the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) operates the nation's largest healthcare system through the Veterans Health Administration (VHA), including 152 medical centers (VAMCs), 800 community-based outpatient clinics and numerous state-based domiciliaries and nursing home care units (About VA, 2016). As the second-largest cabinet agency in the federal government, the VA's budget exceeds the State Department, USAID, and the whole of the
This bill was sent to the U.S. Senate and set for vote mirroring a bill previously passed by the House during the Summer of 2003 which failed to pass the Senate because of vehement disagreement that was even "within the parties over the prohibition of therapeutic cloning.(National Legislation Concerning Human and Reproductive Cloning, 2004; paraphrased) As of the date of the report on legislation eight U.S. states had passed