Injuries & Wounds

·         Medico-legal Importance Of Injuries

Important Definitions

1. Injury: Any harm whatever illegaly caused in Body, Mind, Reputation or Property (Memory Aid ® BMR is an important concept of Physiology)
• Section Forty four (44), IPC.

2. Murder: Definition is under section 300 IPC and punishment under Section 302 IPC.
3. Hurt:

• Section 319 (IPC)

• Bodily pain, Disease or Infirmity caused to a person (BID).

4. Grievous Hurt

• According to S 320 I.P.C(Only Defines*) any of the following injury is grievous: The eight clauses of grievous injury can be remembered with the help of sentence—“Every Student Has reMEMBERed Injury’s Definition and Forgot it within 20 days of Passing Exams”.

1. Emasculation (Impotency/ sterility).

2. Permanent privation (loss) of Sight of either eye.

3. Permanent privation of Hearing of either ear. ( Permanence is in ordinary course of nature , irrespective of medical treatment)

4. Privatation of any Member or joint.

5. Destruction or permanent Impairing of the power of any member or joint.

6. Permanent Disfiguration of the head and face.

7. Fracture or dislocation of a bone or tooth.(Discontinuity till medullary Cavity is considered grievous)

8. Any hurt which Endangers life or, which causes the victim to be in the severe bodily Pain or unable to follow his ordinary pursuits (not mere hospitalization) for a period of 20 days.

5. Dangerous Weapon*(Sec 324 &Sec 326 IPC)

Any weapon used for Stabbing Shooting or Cutting(S.S.C),or is likely to cause death

·         Only when the fracture reaches medullary cavity, it is consider Grievous, hairline fracture is not grievous.

·         METHODS OF TORTURE

1. TELEFONO consists of repeated slapping of the sides of the head[over the ears] by open palms of the assailant .this may cause rupture of ear drums.
2. FALANGA (also known as falaka or bastinado) In this canes/rods are used to beat on the soles of the feet , which is very painful and debilitating. Aseptic necrosis may occur. also hyper pigmentation is seen along lines of injury.
3. SUBMARINO[also known as latina] Victim suffers forced immersion of head in water often contaminated with feces/urine until suffocation.
4. DRY SUBMARINO is tying a plastic bag over the head up to the point of suffocation.
5. SAW HORSE forced straddling of a bar, forcing the victim to sit on a Rod like one sits on horse back, leading to perineal/scrotal hematoma.
6. CATTLE PROD[electric shock] here a magnetic device delivering high voltage may be used in which burns may not be found on skin, but it causes severe pain.
7. BLACK SLAVE here a heated metal spear like object, is inserted into anus .causing rectal/ perinea burns.

·         Wounds from shot-gun : Shape of wound Distance

1. Cruciate or Stellate shape: Contact over bone

2. Oval shape Upto 30 cm

3. Rat hole wound 30-100 cm

4. Satellite wound More than 2 metres

5. Individual pellets Over 4 metres

·         Pedestrians Injury

1)Primaryimpact: These are caused when first part of the strikes the vehicle

In the typical case, the victim is struck by the front of the vehicle and sustains so called bumper injury on legs

2)Secondary impact injuries: These are injuries cause by further impact by the the vehicle

3) Tertiary impact injuries (Secondary injuries) These are injuries caused when the victim striking objects such as the ground)

·         Abrasions (Gravel Rash)

• An abrasion is destruction of the skin, which involves superficial layers of epidermis only.

• It has only length and breadth.

• The exposed raw surface is covered by exudation of lymph and blood, which produces a protective covering known as scab or crust.

Types

1. Scratches: These are caused by a sharp object passing across the skin, such as fingernails, pin or thorn.

2. Grazes: They are most common type* of abrasions. An abrasion caused by violent lateral rubbing by friction force* is called brush burn.

3. Impact Abrasion: They are caused by impact of a rough object such as a person is knocked down by a motor car.

4. Pressure Abrasion: They are caused by crushing of the superficial layers of the epidermis e.g. ligature mark of hanging.

Impact Abrasion and Pressure abrasions are also known as Patterned Abrasions*

Age of Abrasions*

1. Fresh —Bright red.

2. 12 to 24 hours—Lymph and blood dries up leaving a bright scab.

3. 2 to 3 days—Reddish-brown scab.*

4. 4 to 7 days—Epithelium grows and covers defect under the scab.

5. After 7 days—Scab dries, shrinks and falls out.

• In antemortem abrasions, intravital reaction and congestion is seen.

• Erosion of the skin produced by Ants, exco­riations of the skin by excreta and pressure sores resemble abrasions.

•          Bullets

• Bullet is made up of lead.
• The extent of muscle damage by a bullet depends primarily on the velocity.
• Large round bullet causes greater damage to the body.
• A dumdum bullet, so called because tip is chiseled out, is one, which fragments extensively upon striking.
• Express bullet—Bullet in which a hole is present
o Tracer Bullet—Powder in the base so that it burns brightly*
• Incendiary bullets contain phosphorus.
• Souvenier Bullet—When the bullet remains in body for a long period of time is called souvenier bullet. It causes chronic lead poisoning.
• Glance bullet causes gutter fracture.
• Piggyback bullet—when bullet fails to come out from muzzy, this bullet is pushed by another bullet (Tandem bullet). In Tandom cartridge bullets are present in same cartridge which enters the target at different points.