Shock in Criminal Cases

In April, I covered delirium and noted that there are many underlying etiologies that can cause it. One such etiology is hypoperfusion. When the blood flow is cut off to the vital organs, the body will compensate in an effort to restore the blood flow. The body’s reaction to hypoperfusion is known as shock: What Read More...

Two Black Eyes But He Swears He Didn’t Hit Her {Assault/Trauma}

Two Black Eyes, also known as Raccoon’s eyes, is a sign of a skull fracture and does not necessarily indicate blunt force trauma to the face. Because this type of skull fracture is often missed on radiology studies, a medical expert is needed to review the records and determine the cause of the bruising.   Read More...

Is the Defendant Drunk or Concussed? {DUI/Gen Med}

If a person who is charged with a DUI and has a concussion, a review of the medical records by an expert can determine if the defendant has either: Concussion overview Concussion is a form of Mild Traumatic Brain Injury (MTBI) in which the brain is impacted sufficiently to result in neurological symptoms but not Read More...

What Constitutes GBI? {Assault/Trauma}

I am often called to testify in assault cases in which great bodily injury is an enhancement. In these cases I try to determine the severity of the injury based off of the medical records and photographs. For this month’s newsletter, I’d like to point out some ways to avoid pitfalls in GBI cases by using Read More...

Medical Records: Emergency Dept.

If you’re looking for a list of injuries, as you commonly are in criminal law, you will look at the emergency department (ED or ER) reports and/or the ambulance reports. Ambulance/Fire: The vast majority of the time, I have to request that the ambulance and/or fire records be subpoenaed. This is a great source of Read More...