(Private) Wounds, Welts, and Witness Testimony: A Forensic Nurse’s Guide to Bodily Injury Cases for Maricopa County, AZ
Almost every state has a penal code/statute that relates to the seriousness of the injuries sustained by a victim of a crime. Most states define it as Serious Bodily Injury; some have a lesser called Substantial Bodily Injury. California calls it Great Bodily Injury and it is a felony strike that adds prison time to the sentence.
This presentation will review 5 cases to address different types of bodily injury and provides insight on how best to litigate them to achieve the desired outcome.
Cases Reviewed:
1. Wrist Fracture
2. Nasal Fracture
3. Head Injury (Mechanism)
4. Head Injury (Disfigurement)
5. Fabrication of Injuries/ Past Medical History
Objectives
Upon completion of this course, the attendee will:
1) Be familiar with the general concept of bodily injury as it applies in legal cases.
2) Be familiar with different injuries that may constitute bodily injury.
3) Be better prepared to litigate a case where bodily injury is charged.
Speakers
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MBA BSN RN
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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.
