2014/08/23

The Washington Post August 19, 2014: Multiple autopsies like those in Michael Brown’s death are unusual and occasionally complicated

In the name of getting to the truth, Michael Brown’s body has undergone three autopsies following his shooting death Aug. 9.

First came the one conducted by the county medical examiner’s office. Then, forensic pathologists Michael Baden and Shawn Parcells flew to Missouri to examine Brown at the request of the teenager’s family.

Amid violent protests, U.S. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. ordered a federal autopsy, which was completed Monday by U.S. military medical examiners. It was the third such examination of the same body in a week’s time.

Is there a value in conducting multiple, consecutive examinations on the same body?

Although some experts say that experienced forensic pathologists should have no trouble conducting an accurate second — or even third — autopsy, it’s unlikely that the subsequent examinations would uncover substantial differences in fact.

But the body being examined would be altered significantly: David Fowler, chief medical examiner for the state of Maryland, told The Post that the process of conducting the first exam would dramatically alter the appearance of the body, including its organs. Still, Fowler said, those changes would present only minor challenges to experienced, qualified pathologists conducting the second or third autopsies. more