(Private) Strangulation: Evaluating Strangulation Evidence from a Medical Perspective for St. Thomas Virgin Islands PDO
In many strangulation/suffocation cases, there is no visible sign of injury. This presentation is designed to educate attorneys and investigators on what to look for to determine if strangulation occurred, with or without physical signs of the assault, and to assess the risk of lethality. Anatomy, vocabulary, statistics, mechanism, petechiae, and signs and symptoms are all reviewed. A case study is reviewed when time permits.
Speaker
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Tara GodoyBSN RN CFNTara Godoy is a Certified Forensic Nurse and has been working with Criminal and Civil Attorneys for over 10 years. She has a BS in Nursing from the University of Southern California and currently lives in the San Francisco Bay Area. Through consulting and testimony she has assisted both the prosecution and the defense in obtaining an honest and fair resolution in hundreds of criminal cases. Along with her nursing staff and physician contractors, Godoy Medical Forensics has consulted on over 1500 cases nationwide and has worked at both the federal and state levels. Tara has been asked to present for national organizations such as the NACDL and the NDIA at their Forensics conferences in Las Vegas. Tara’s main areas of expertise are Strangulation and Blunt Force Trauma, but testimony is also offered on other cases where traumatic injuries occur or medical record analysis is needed.
