Edward McDonough, deputy chief medical examiner for the State of Connecticut, discussed the challenges of pathology work with Elon students and delivered a Voices of Discovery lecture Tuesday, March 28. Details...
McDonough has been performing medical death investigations since 1982, and joined the Connecticut medical examiner’s office in 1986. He also serves as a consultant to attorneys trying criminal and civil cases.
During a visit Tuesday morning with students in HUS 359, a Criminal Justice course taught by Bennie Felts, McDonough said it is impossible for investigators to determine the exact time of death.
“Time of death often is determined by the interval between when a person was last reliably known to be alive and when they were found dead,” said McDonough. “The best you can do is give some sort of a range.”
Determining the time of death is required by law and can be important in establishing or eliminating alibis, McDonough said. It can also be important in determining which relatives are entitled to estate inheritance.
McDonough said a proper autopsy is crucial in determining the time and cause of death. “We’re looking at a number of factors that will help us determine the cause and manner of death in an autopsy,” McDonough said. During an autopsy, medical examiners and coroners document evidence of natural diseases, injuries, take toxicology specimens and perform an internal exam.
Evidence from the autopsy is just one piece of the puzzle in determining how someone died, McDonough said.
“I really believe in a multidisciplinary approach. Everyone can lend their expertise as to what happened. EMT’s, police officers, crime scene technicians, and the medical examiner can all provide their viewpoint,” McDonough said.
A forensic pathology professor at the University of New Haven and Quinnipiac University, McDonough also teaches medical students and pathology residents from medical schools at Yale University and the University of Connecticut.
McDonough’s presentation was part of the Voices of Discovery science speaker series, sponsored by Elon College, the College of Arts and Sciences. The series invites noted scholars in science and mathematics to Elon to share their knowledge and experience with students.